BTW, Is there a flight manual for a 1970s F-14A that is not subject to export restrictions, including NATOPS?
When using the AIM-54, the LAU-93 launchers with coolant at Stations 3 and 6 must always be there for cooling AIM-54s, regardless of its loading station but, current F-14A/F-14B doesn’t have loadout limites at the moment.
In other words, the x2 AIM-54 Phoenix & x4 AIM-7 Sparrow loadouts can be “mounted” at each station, but they cannot be used because the AIM-54 cannot be cooled.
I have a 2001 F-14B NATOPS flight manual, but cannot use it as a primary source because it falls under export restrictions. Also, the F-14A 1977 SAC does not mention loadout limitations in detail for somehow.
As long as there is speed. I think this change was intend to fix the issue where Aim120 and other ARH with high fin AoA can still maintain level flight when their speed reduces to 500km/h, which is totally unrealistic.
The issue is like the missile barely looses speed when this happens, they will glide forever until they self destruct. If you watched replay when modern ARH was first released, you will notice a lot of random ARH missiles floating in the air and won’t fall to the ground. This made RWR next to useless since a random floating missile locked on to you will ruin your day.
The other implications is modern ARH will turn less hard when they are slow. Previously this had made ARH undodgeable by pulling Gees even if you managed to make them subsonic: they can still pull quite a lot of Gees when flying slowly.
620km/h at sea level.
At that speed the maximum manoeuvring capability is <10g, it would require the aircraft to fly into the missile, not the other way around.
