AIM-54 Phoenix

AIM-54 Phoenix
AIM-54 Phoenix
	AIM-54A on an F-14 at NAS Patuxent River, 1984
Type	Long range BVR air-to-air missile
Place of origin	United States
Service history
In service	1974–present
Used by	United States Navy (former); Iranian Air Force
Production history
Designer	Hughes Aircraft Company
Designed	1960–1966
Manufacturer	Hughes Aircraft Company; Raytheon Corporation;
Unit cost	US$477,131 (1974 FY)
Produced	1966
Specifications
Mass	AIM-54A/B - 976 lb (443 kg); AIM-54C – 1,015 lb (460 kg);
Length	12 ft 9+1⁄2 in (3.9 m)
Diameter	15 in (380 mm)
Wingspan	2 ft 11+1⁄2 in (0.9 m)
Warhead	AIM-54A/B - HE continuous rod; AIM-54C – HE Mk 82; WDU‐29/B continuous rod;
Warhead weight	133 lb (60.33 kg)
Detonation; mechanism	Proximity fuze
Engine	Solid propellant rocket motor
Operational; range	AIM-54A/B - 72.9 nmi (135.0 km; 83.9 mi); AIM-54C – 99.4 nmi (184.1 km; 114.4 mi);
Flight ceiling	103,500 ft (31.5 km)
Maximum speed	AIM-54A/B - Mach 4.3 (1,460 m/s; 4,800 ft/s); AIM-54C – Mach 5 (1,700 m/s; 5,600 ft/s);
Guidance; system	Semi-active radar homing and terminal phase active radar homing
Launch; platform	Grumman F-14 Tomcat
References	Janes

The AIM-54 Phoenix is an American active radar-guided, beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile (AAM), carried in clusters of up to six missiles on the Grumman F-14 Tomcat, its only operational launch platform.

The AIM-54 Phoenix was the United States' only operational long-range AAM during its service life; its operational capabilities were supplemented by the AIM-7 Sparrow (and later, the AIM-120 AMRAAM), which served as the primary medium-range AAM and the AIM-9 Sidewinder, serving as the primary short-range or "dogfight" AAM. The combination of Phoenix missile and the Tomcat's AN/AWG-9 guidance radar meant that it was the first aerial weapons system that could simultaneously engage multiple targets. Due to its active radar tracking, the brevity code "Fox Three" was used when firing the AIM-54. The act of the missile achieving a radar lock with its own radar is known under brevity as "Going Pitbull".

Both the missile and the aircraft were used by Iran and the United States Navy (USN). In US service both are now retired, the AIM-54 Phoenix in 2004 and the F-14 in 2006. They were replaced by the shorter-range AIM-120 AMRAAM, employed on the F/A-18 Hornet and F/A-18E/F Super Hornet; in its AIM-120D version, the latest version of the AMRAAM just matches the Phoenix's maximum range. In July 2024, the USN announced the operational fielding of the AIM-174, the "Air-Launched Configuration" of the RIM-174 Standard ERAM, the first dedicated long-range AAM to be fielded by the U.S. military since the AIM-54's retirement. While details regarding the AIM-174's range are unconfirmed, certain surface-launched RIM-174 variants are capable of 250 nmi (290 mi; 460 km) launches. With the benefit of being launched already at-speed and at-altitude (where the air is thinner and thus easier to fly through), combined with additional lofting, the AIM-174's range may extend to several hundred miles, though the USN has confirmed a range of 130 nmi (150 mi; 240 km), about a 30% increase in range over the AIM-54C.

The AIM-54 has been used in 62 air-to-air strikes, all by Iran during the eight-year Iran–Iraq War. Following the retirement of the F-14 by the USN, the weapon's only current operator is the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force.