# Men tried to export F-14 parts to Canada: police



## GAP (8 Oct 2007)

Men tried to export F-14 parts to Canada: police
Updated Mon. Oct. 8 2007 9:24 AM ET The Associated Press
Article Link

SALT LAKE CITY -- Two Utah men have been charged with attempting to export surplus components of F-14 fighter jets to Canada.

The fighter jet is no longer in service in the U.S. and Iran is the only airforce that still uses F-14's.

Twenty-two-year-old David Waye and 61-year-old Abraham Trujillo are alleged to have tried exporting the parts to Canada and are charged with attempting to export a defence article without a licence.

But the charges don't specify how they supposedly got the parts and don't list all buyers.

Court documents say U.S. government agents placed online orders, then intercepted the goods before they made it out of the country.

Iran is trying to maintain its F-14s and is aggressively seeking components from the retired U.S. Tomcat fleet.

The men will receive a summons to appear before a magistrate. 

They could face up to 10 years in prison and millions of dollars in fines. 
More on link


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## Cheshire (8 Oct 2007)

I wonder who they tried to export them too? I hope the police are following up on that. We have Iranian sympathisers here in Canada one would presume.


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## DirtyDog (8 Oct 2007)

Intresting indeed.  It's a shame seeing how the US is shredding up the Tomcats but it looks like a neccesary precaution.


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## vangemeren (8 Oct 2007)

I thought absolutely everything was going to be shredded?


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## George Wallace (8 Oct 2007)

van Gemeren said:
			
		

> I thought absolutely everything was going to be shredded?



Nope!  One flew away into the unknown, under the radar, in the grass and is now in a barn somewhere in Alberta; parked wing tip to wing tip with Avro Arrow #205.    ;D


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## midget-boyd91 (8 Oct 2007)

George Wallace said:
			
		

> Nope!  One flew away into the unknown, under the radar, in the grass and is now in a barn somewhere in Alberta; parked wing tip to wing tip with Avro Arrow #205.    ;D



I was going to mention something about the Arrow, but as is the usual case with me, I couldn't put the words in the right order so decided not to.


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## midget-boyd91 (8 Oct 2007)

Are they also getting rid of the outer shells of the aircraft? Ones that could be put up on display.


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## Fishbone Jones (8 Oct 2007)

Cheshire said:
			
		

> I wonder who they tried to export them too? I hope the police are following up on that. We have Iranian sympathisers here in Canada one would presume.



From the article:

"Court documents say U.S. government agents placed online orders, then intercepted the goods before they made it out of the country."


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## DirtyDog (9 Oct 2007)

uncle-midget-boyd said:
			
		

> Are they also getting rid of the outer shells of the aircraft? Ones that could be put up on display.


I'm sure they'll leave a few for static display.  I know of few that have been on display for a few years (early ones) and I doubt they'll tear them down.  I wonder if they'll keep any flyable for historic purposes?


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## Cheshire (13 Oct 2007)

> Quote from: Cheshire on October 08, 2007, 17:45:13
> I wonder who they tried to export them too? I hope the police are following up on that. We have Iranian sympathisers here in Canada one would presume.
> 
> 
> ...



From the Article:

"But the charges don't specify how they supposedly got the parts and _don't list all buyers."_

Who here in Canada, other than US Agents, are wanting these parts??


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## MarkOttawa (14 Oct 2007)

Story in the _Washington Post_ that notices Canada:

U.S. Military Technology Being Exported Illegally Is a Growing Concern
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/13/AR2007101301277.html



> Pentagon investigators thought they had discovered a major shipment of contraband when they intercepted parts for F-14 Tomcat warplanes headed to Iran, via FedEx, from Southern California. Under U.S. sanctions since its 1979 revolution, Tehran had been trying for years to illegally obtain spare parts for the fighters, which are used only in Iran.
> 
> But when agents descended on the Orange County, Calif., home of Reza Tabib, the 51-year-old former flight instructor at John Wayne Airport who sent the shipment, they were astonished to discover 13,000 other aircraft parts, worth an estimated $540,000, as well as a list of additional requests by an Iranian military officer and two airplane tickets for Tehran.
> 
> ...



Mark
Ottawa


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## geo (14 Oct 2007)

From a personal perspective, why would F4 Phantom & F14 Tomcat parts even raise a flag in Canada.  We never flew these birds and thus have no interest in them.  I would imagine that whoever was shipping the parts out of the US should have been asking themselves a lot of questions about WHY anyone in Canada would want said parts.

WTF?


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## Good2Golf (14 Oct 2007)

It would be much cleaner if the US DoD destroyed all F-14-related parts and there was no inventory of pieces to sell/export...


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## DirtyDog (14 Oct 2007)

Good2Golf said:
			
		

> It would be much cleaner if the US DoD destroyed all F-14-related parts and there was no inventory of pieces to sell/export...


I'm pretty sure that's what they're attempting to do.


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## aesop081 (14 Oct 2007)

Good2Golf said:
			
		

> It would be much cleaner if the US DoD destroyed all F-14-related parts and there was no inventory of pieces to sell/export...



In the case of the F-14 this makes perfect sense, simply eliminate the problem altogether. In other cases, such as the F-4, it is rather more complicated as there is a large supply of parts in the world with alot of allied countries still flying the F-4. One cannot simply shread all parts and stop making them.


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## Flip (14 Oct 2007)

Wait a minute.....

Even if they get a few parts - do they REALLY pose much threat?

The act of obtaining the parts illegally is probably doing more political
harm to Iran than the a few parts would help Iran in the event of action.

From what I've read - The early F14 was a relatively underpowered 
fighter and then there are the issues of pilot skill and weapons.
I suspect the Americans would be able to render their radars useless.
Electronics and computer technology have come a long way in the 
intervening years and the Iranian inventory has only gotten
older.

I dunno - any airforce guys with an opinion?


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## geo (14 Oct 2007)

I think the US at times goes off on a tangent...

Like, what is the relevance of blockading Cuba?
There are thousands of Americans who travel to Canada & Mexico in order to board flights to vacationland Cuba.  The Cuban custom agents even accomodate the american tourists by stamping loose pages they place inside their passports.  However, considering the number of Cuban expats who can vote Republican, the blockade persists.


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## DirtyDog (14 Oct 2007)

Flip said:
			
		

> Wait a minute.....
> 
> Even if they get a few parts - do they REALLY pose much threat?
> 
> ...


They do seem to be putting a fair amount of effort into shredding F14s, so somebody, somehwere considers it a risk.

Or it's just to spite the Iranians.....


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## aesop081 (14 Oct 2007)

Flip said:
			
		

> Wait a minute.....
> 
> Even if they get a few parts - do they REALLY pose much threat?
> 
> ...



Flip,

Only one country uses the F-14.....Iran. The US and Iran are not exactly freinds........

A missile can still ruin someone's day wether its fired from a brand new fighter or an outdated one. Since no american ally uses the F-14, why not simply ensure that nothing gets to the ennemy ?

As for your assesemnt of the F-14, let me tell you this.  The americans in Vietnam had the state of the art in fighters, The F-4, yet the VPAF gave them a serious blow using "outdated" MIG-17s and MIG-19s.........


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## Shamrock (14 Oct 2007)

geo said:
			
		

> Like, what is the relevance of blockading Cuba?



Fidel's still alive.


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## Flip (14 Oct 2007)

> As for your assesemnt of the F-14, let me tell you this.  The americans in Vietnam had the state of the art in fighters, The F-4, yet the VPAF gave them a serious blow using "outdated" MIG-17s and MIG-19s.........



OK - there's a point. My demote button is gone so just PM me.  ;D

Worrying about Iranian F14s will only add to the work load when
if that nuclear power issue gets some military attention.


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## Loachman (14 Oct 2007)

DirtyDog said:
			
		

> They do seem to be putting a fair amount of effort into shredding F14s,



Old, obsolete aircraft, like any other old, obsolete piece of machinery, are routinely scrapped.


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## aesop081 (14 Oct 2007)

Loachman said:
			
		

> Old, obsolete aircraft, like any other old, obsolete piece of machinery, are routinely scrapped.



Quite right.

If anyone is still in doubt about this, go visit AMARC and see the vast effort put into the destruction of B-52s


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## geo (14 Oct 2007)

Shamrock said:
			
		

> Fidel's still alive.


yes, he is.

Why not open the doors of Florida to all of the Cuban population.  Have everyone defect and abandon Fidel & his bro.


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## DirtyDog (14 Oct 2007)

Loachman said:
			
		

> Old, obsolete aircraft, like any other old, obsolete piece of machinery, are routinely scrapped.


Yes, but they aren't normally systematicaly shredded down to the last part in a concerted effort though are they?


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## DirtyDog (14 Oct 2007)

http://forums.army.ca/forums/threads/63787.0.html


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## aesop081 (14 Oct 2007)

DirtyDog said:
			
		

> Yes, but they aren't normally systematicaly shredded down to the last part in a concerted effort though are they?



I alot of cases, yes they are


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