I recently discovered the F-104 Starfighter was equipped with an IRST system in addition to its radar set. The sensor for this system was placed in the front corner of the windscreen and can be seen on most models. I couldn’t find pictures clear enough to confirm the sensor on the A model, however the C all the way to the S.ASA have this sensor. When the ASA’s were modernised to ASA/M standard (an upgrade program that focused primarily on reliability and maintenance modifications and refurbishment) this IRST system was removed and the aperture was covered by a filler plate. Perhaps its similar to the AN/AAA-4 put in the Phantoms and Voodoo, but finding any sources that actually have details is difficult. Allegedly the ASA might have had an upgraded Selenia system but this is hard to corroborate with any sources so I’m considering that pure speculation for now, as I can’t even find any evidence of Selenia making air-to-air IRST systems in the 80s when the ASA upgrade took place.
As I said, finding any information or technical details is extremely challenging, but if anybody has some special non-classified knowledge on the IRST systems used in the Starfighters, I thought this would be a great place to compile and discuss it those capabilities, and maybe one day submit a proper suggestion, because seeing it in game would be a nice feature, especially for the 10.0+ Starfighters.
For anyone curious, the WT model does indeed feature the aperture for IRST on all the starfighter models, but on many of them they’re simply body-coloured.
Real Images
F-104A with the aperture but what appears to be a metal block-off plate installed
F-104C with a painted-over aperture, unclear if this happened during service or after it was retired to museum
F-104G with an easily visible IRST aperture in the windscreen
F-104S.ASA/M with its sensor aperture blocked by a bolt-on plate
F-104S.ASA/M serial number 9-99 apparently lacking the hole for the IRST altogether
In-Game Images
The polished aluminum Starfighters have a unique texture in WT for their IRST sensor
The Italian F-104G, F-104S, and F-104S.ASA lack a unique IRST aperture texture
Reminder this is not currently a suggestion, just a place to discuss and potentially accumulate information on this system!
Edit: Godvana’s bug report on the absence of IRST
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I reported this some time ago
https://community.gaijin.net/issues/p/warthunder/i/wlETGoDDwzUn
The F-104S.ASA/M doesn’t have one because the main objective of this modification was to service the airframe and remove anything that wasn’t absolutely necessary to the mission of the F-104, which meant getting rid of the IRST system and the RWR.
It was also never installed on CF-104s.
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So this is real?! This is an unexpected news!
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Thanks for the information! Yeah I couldn’t seem to spot it on the CF-104 pictures I was looking at so that makes sense!
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f104 isnt the only one that gets irst unmodeled
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Yeah, I think the Phantom also gets one, the same one as the Voodoo, would love to see those get their IRSTs as well (whenever we hopefully get the F-101).
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th IRST on the phantoms was removed in favour of the Gun
the only phantom that should have one is the F-4C
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the F-14A Early is a block 90 ingame
and the F-14B is a block 145 ingame nothing was unmodeled
the pictrure you posted yourself even says that only the F-14D had an IRST
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Years go by, and the Pencils still don’t have a working IRST… The G/S versions are still missing EEGS—it’s been over two years since the bug reports were “accepted”, and nothing has happened. They must be the most neglected fighters in the game, even though they’re so unique.
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It show it goes man. Gaijin has the attention span of a goldfish, the moment they move on to the next shiny thing they abandon the actual unique vehicles.
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Yep, it’s a shame. The F-104s are truly unique fighters, yet they’ve been stripped of all their technical capabilities. The latest nerf to their maneuverability was the final nail in their coffin—not only do they maneuver like a coal car, but they also lack the full combat capabilities they had in the real world (IRST/EEGS)… Sad.
You mean you don’t want to lose all your energy in one 15° turn??
No, what I meant was that they were able to nerf the F-104 quickly, but enabling the IRST—which is already modeled in the game—is a problem, as is activating the EEGS for the G & S versions. These fighters actually had that in real life, as confirmed by all the documentation found online, but for some reason the devs still haven’t implemented it—it’s a real shame.
Especially since the F-104G/S could use some “upgrades,” considering their BR and severely limited maneuverability; IRST/EEGS won’t suddenly make them overpowered… At best, they’ll be more enjoyable to fly in certain situations, but they’ll still be very niche aircraft in the game, and most players probably won’t like them—but let’s at least make them consistent with their real-world technical specifications.
It’s a bit like if the MiG-23ML/MLD didn’t have IRST/EEGS in the game—can you imagine that?.. Here, everything seems to add up…
Haha yes, I was just being sarcastic and silly about how bad the FM is in war thunder. It very much is obvious how they are reluctant to model/implement things that benefit aircraft like the starfighters. They would rather find new unoriginal premiums to sell for $80
The Yak-141 didn’t ever actually make it past tests and they got no problem buffing that, but the aircraft that served in half of nato countries for 30+ years can’t get basic features it served with
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