HISTORY
Spoiler
F-4G Wild Weasels were modified F-4E fighters with their cannon replaced by AN/APR-47 electronic warfare equipment. Their mission was to attack enemy air defenses, including surface-to-air missile (SAM) air defense radars. One hundred sixteen F-4Es were rebuilt as F-4Gs for this special purpose.
The F-4G “Advanced Wild Weasel,” was the last model still in the active Air Force inventory, until it was replaced by the F-16CJ/DJ in the role of increasing the survivability of tactical strike forces by seeking out and suppressing or destroying enemy radar-directed anti-aircraft artillery batteries and surface-to-air missile sites. F-4G’s were E models modified with sophisticated electronic warfare equipment in place of the internally mounted 20mm gun. The F-4G could carry more weapons than previous Wild Weasel aircraft and a greater variety of missiles as well as conventional bombs. The primary weapon of the F-4G, however, was the AGM-88 HARM (high speed anti-radiation missile). Other munitions included cluster bombs, and AIM-65 Maverick and air-to-air missiles.
The F-4G “Advanced Wild Weasel,” which inherited most of the features of the F-4E, was capable of passing real-time target information to the aircraft’s missiles prior to launch. Working in “hunter-killer” teams of two aircraft, such as F-4G and F-16C, the F-4G “hunter” could detect, identify, and locate enemy radars then direct weapons that will ensure destruction or suppression of the radars. The technique was effectively used during Operation Desert Storm against enemy surface-to-air missile batteries. Primary armament included HARM (AGM-88) and Maverick (AGM-65). F-4G’s deployed to Saudi Arabia also were equipped with ALQ-131 and ALQ-184 electronic countermeasures pods.
Specifications:
Spoiler
TECHNICAL DATA:
- Empty weight: 13,757 kg / 30,328 lb
- Takeoff weight: 18,825 kg / 41,500 lb
- Maximum takeoff weight: 27 900 kg / 62 000 pounds
- Wingspan: 11.8 meters / 38 feet, 11 inches
- Lenght: 19.1 meters / 62 feet, 11 inches
- Height: 5 meters / 16 feet, 5 inches
- Wing area: 49.2 m² / 530.0 ft²
ENGINE:
- Number of engines: two
- Powerplant: General Electric J79-GE-17a turbojets
- thrust without afterburner: 5 377 kilograms / 11 870 pounds
- thrust with afterburner: 8 055 kilograms / 17 900 pounds
PERFORMANCE:
- Maximum speed: 2 301 kmh/ 1 430 mph
- Cruise speed: 918 kmh / 571 mph
- Climb rate: 210 m/s
- Service ceiling: 18 182 m / 60 000 feet
- Maximum range: 2 092 kilometers / 1 300 miles / 1 130 nautical miles
- Thrust/weight ratio: 0,86
ARMAMENT:
- 4x AIM-9L Sidewinder
- 4x AIM-7F Sparrow
- 4x AGM-45 Shrike
- 4x AGM-88 HARM
- 6x AGM-65 Maverick
- 4x AGM-62 Walleye
- 4x AGM-78 Standart ARM
- 4x GBU-15
- 18x Mk.82
- 18x GBU-12
- 5x Mk.84/ GBU-10 / GBU-14
- 18x CBU-87 / CBU-89 / CBU-58
SYSTEMS:
- APQ-120 fire-control radar [Hughes]
- AJB-7 bombing system
- ASQ-91 weapon release system,
- ASX-1 TISEO (Target Identification System Electro-Optical) Northrup
- ASN-63 INS
- APR-36 RWR
- ALQ-87 FM barrage jammer
- ALQ-101 ECM pod Westinghouse noise/deception jammer
- ALQ-119 ECM pod Westinghouse noise/deception jammer (covering three bands)
- ALQ-130 ECM pod
- ALQ-131 ECM pod
- ALQ-140 IR countermeasures system [Sanders]
Thanks you for reading this, hope it will come next Major Update :D
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That’s a plus one from me, can’t have enough F-4s, and I sincerely hope they start putting more models in, but into folders so that there is still a chance for diversity without obstructing fast grind
I mean this is one of the more famous phantoms isnt it?
Lack of guns will make this a sitting duck in air RB
but cant it have the gunpod underneath?
Should change AIM-7F to AIM-7M
@EDDIEGT
I’m not sure that it can carry gunpod since it’s purpose was SEAD (relying purely on missiles like Shrike and HARM)
@DirectSupport
Regarding this, wouldn’t help much since it still has APQ-120 if I recall correctly
I could be wrong and that it uses AIM-7F, but there’s this source that says F-4G can carry AIM-7M and use them.
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/988184470198812702/1125075360158056588/AIM7M.jpg
I guess F-4G Wild Weasel without integral 20mm M61A1 Vulcan, SUU-23/A M61A1 gunpod & GPU-5/A GAU-13/A gunpod
I did not say that it cannot use them
I pointed out that its radar is not Pulse Doppler and is chaffed easily
(Or just fly low and let the clutter do it’s thing)
Fair enough. I’m seeing sources however that the APQ-120 radar it had was modified to some extent. Not sure what those modifications would have been.
That shouldn’t be too much of an issue as The F-4G are conversions of Late block F-4E’s so should have access to the TISEO (AN/ASX-1) (and theoretically most of the capabilities of earlier F-4E blocks), which works similarly to the AN/AXX-1 TCS of the F-14B. And so should provide look down slaving of the Antenna assembly (and subsequently provide missile guidance due to the coaxially mounted FM-CW illuminator / PD waveform allowing for the resultant Missile Guidance) as well as the assisted automatic lock on subsystems that the later AN/APQ-120 variants have allowing for enhanced target disambiguation.
Sure, it won’t be great (+/- 10 degrees automatic search sector, +/-15 degrees Tracking volume) but a capability is a capability, and with the implementation smoothed by the existing TCS / TISEO implementation (found on the Israeli F-4E’s), it should be pretty serviceable by the time the F-4G turns up.
Additionally if things were too hard without a gun, there are other options, like making it the lead in airframe for advanced capability (e.g. AIM-9M’s, AIM-95, AIM-7R, etc.) Though I do think as a A2G platform these things should be taken into account when assigning a BR, and I personally don’t see it much higher than the existing F-4E anyway.
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Looking at pictures of F-4Gs I can’t find a single one with TISEO fitted. Are you sure it wasn’t removed as part of the conversion to F-4G, or never fitted in the first place?
I think I found the one image of the prototype with the TISEO’s wing blister still there, its almost certainly an F-4G due to the Nose fairing.
We really need HARM in game, would be a perfect solution to so many problems in game right now, from SPAA being too strong, to certain ground attack aircraft like the Tornado Gr1 not really having a role in GRB and then once that was added, dedicated SEAD Aircraft variants like this would be awesome
There’s many solutions without resorting to having HARMs. Adding F-16s with targeting pod and more advanced Mavericks and other air-to-ground ordnances are completely valid options. Tornado GR1 now has PGM-TV but those should really get fixed. If there’s still an issue, PGM-Laser and PGM-IR can be added.
You guess this year gaijin consider new F-16 with targeting pod and Air-to-Ground armament for Israel better F-16A Netz, and F-16 with AIM-120, targeting pod and integrated new Air-to-Ground armament for USA ?
Yes, but the point of having a thing like an F-4G of late block F-4E isn’t just the more advanced weaponry, it’s also diversity, which mind you was heavily emphasized on the research tree rework roadmap. Adding more generation 3 planes would be awesome, as well as giving out missing ordnance to the currently existing vehicles.
And, to top it off, that stuff would most likely be foldered, which would make it optional but still available for the fans to use and get to.
PGMs at least the variants we have, cant be used vs mobile targets. And their inherrent need to be dropped from altitude leaves the tornado vulnerable. ALARMs would allow a jet to fire at an active radar spaa with greater ease. Theyd be no use vs most targets and would require spaa to be smart about how and when they use their radar. I dont think it would be adversly powerful, and would give jets like the tornado, which have little value in most content, niche they are desperately lacking. Yes there are other improvements that could and should be made too, but not all are practical with all jets