F-14 Tomcat

F14 Tomcat F-14	F14-A Tomcat	F14 Wing	F-14 landing

The F-14 Tomcat is a supersonic, twin-engine, variable sweep wing, two-place strike fighter manufactured by Grumman Aircraft Corporation. The multiple tasks of navigation, target acquisition, electronic counter measures (ECM), and weapons employment are divided between the pilot and the radar intercept officer (RIO). Primary missions include precision strike against ground targets, air superiority, and fleet air defense.

Features: As a Strike Fighter, the Tomcat is capable of deploying an assortment of air-to-ground ordnance (MK-80 series GP bombs, LGBs and JDAM) in various configurations, while simultaneously carrying the AIM-7, AIM-9 and AIM-54 air-to-air missiles. The F14 also has the LANTIRN targeting system that allows delivery of various laser-guided bombs for precision strikes in air-to-ground combat missions and for battle damage assessment. With its Fast Tactical Imagery (FTI) system the F-14 can transmit and receive targeting/reconnaissance imagery in-flight to provide time sensitive strike capability. A number of F-14s also carry the Tactical Air Reconnaissance Pod System (TARPS) providing in-theater tactical reconnaissance.

Background: Current plan is to have F14 Tomcats in service until mid-FY07. Tomcat squadrons have already started to transition to the F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet aircraft, and will continue to transition in a phased approach

F14 General Characteristics

Overall Length: 62 feet 9 inches (18.9 meters)
Wingspan: 64 feet (19 meters) unswept; 38 feet (11.4 meters) swept
Height: 16 feet (4.8 meters)
Weight: 43,600 lb (19,777 kg) (F14B)
Speed: Mach 2+
Ceiling: 50,000+ feet
Range: 1600 nm
Power Plants:
F14 A: (2) TF30-414A Afterburning Turbofans with over 40,000 lb Total Thrust
F14 B/D: (2) F110-GE400 Afterburning Turbofans with over 54,000 lb Total Thrust
Sensors: Tactical Air Reconnaissance Pod System (TARPS) LANTIRN Targeting System
Armament: Up to 13,000 pounds to include fourJoint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAM) [F-14D], AIM-54 Phoenix missile, AIM 7 Sparrow missile, AIM 9 Sidewinder missile , air-to-ground precision strike ordnance, and one M61A1/A2 Vulcan 20mm cannon.
Crew: Two (pilot and radar intercept officer)
Contractor: Northrop Grumman
F14 Date Deployed: First flight: December 1970


F14 Operational history

The F-14 Tomcat was the Navy's primary air superiority fighter and tactical reconnaissance platform from 1972 to 2006. The F-14 has served in Iran's Air Force from 1978 to the present day.

United States Navy

The F-14 began replacing the F-4 Phantom II in USN service starting in September 1974 with squadrons VF-1 Wolfpack and VF-2 Bounty Hunters aboard USS Enterprise and participated in the American withdrawal from Saigon. The F-14 had its first kills on 19 August 1981 over the Gulf of Sidra in what is known as the Gulf of Sidra incident after two F-14s from VF-41 Black Aces were engaged by two Libyan Su-22 "Fitters". The F-14s evaded the short range heat seeking AA-2 "Atoll" missile and returned fire, downing both Libyan aircraft. U.S. Navy F-14s once again were pitted against Libyan aircraft on 4 January 1989, when two F-14s from VF-32 shot down two Libyan MiG-23 "Floggers" over the Gulf of Sidra in a second Gulf of Sidra incident.

Despite the attention given to the Tomcat over aerial encounters in the Gulf of Sidra, its first sustained combat baptism of fire was as a photo reconnaissance platform. The Tomcat was selected to inherit the Reconnaissance mission upon departure of the dedicated RA-5C Vigilante and RF-8G Crusaders from the fleet. A large pod called the Tactical Airborne Reconnaissance Pod System (TARPS) was developed and fielded on the Tomcat in 1981. With the retirement of the last RF-8G Crusaders in 1982, TARPS F-14s became the U.S. Navy's primary tactical reconnaissance system. One of two Tomcat squadrons per airwing was designated as a TARPS unit and received 3 TARPS capable aircraft and training for 4 TARPS aircrews.
An F-14A Tomcat from VF-114 intercepting a Soviet Tu-95RT "Bear-D" maritime patrol aircraft.

While the Tomcat was being used by Iran in combat against Iraq in its intended air superiority mission over the skies of Iran in the early 1980s, the US Navy found itself flying regular daily combat missions over Lebanon to photograph activity in the Bekaa Valley. At the time, the Tomcat had been thought too large and vulnerable to be used overland, but the need for imagery was so great that Tomcat aircrews developed high speed medium altitude tactics to deal with considerable AAA and SA-7 SAM threat in the Bekaa area. An urgent combat need was stated to address the Tomcat vulnerability in this type of mission. The first exposure of a Tomcat to a SA-2 was over Somalia in April 1983 when a local battery was unaware of two Tomcats scheduled for a TARPS missions in prelude to an upcoming international exercise in vicinity of Berbera. An SA-2 was fired at the second Tomcat while conducting 10 thousand foot mapping profile at max conserve setting. The Tomcat aircrews spotted the missile launch and dove for the deck thereby evading it without damage. The unexpected demand for combat TARPS laid the way for high altitude sensors such as the KA-93 36 in (91 cm) Long Range Optics (LOROP) to be rapidly procured for the Tomcat as well as an Expanded Chaff Adapter (ECA) to be incorporated in a AIM-54 Phoenix Rail. Commercial "Fuzz buster" type radar detectors were also procured and mounted in pairs in the forward cockpit as a stop gap solution to detect SAM radars such as the SA-6. The ultimate solution was an upgrade to the ALR-67 then being developed, but it would not be ready until the advent of the F14 A+ in the latter 1980s. During the Gulf of Sidra operations in 1986, the Tomcats were used in over-water missions only due to their vulnerability overland. It was not until Desert Shield that US Navy Tomcats were introduced to overland combat operations on a regular basis.

The participation of the F14 Tomcat in the 1991 Operation Desert Storm consisted of Combat Air Patrol (CAP) over the Red Sea and Persian Gulf and overland missions consisting of strike escort and reconnaissance. Until the waning days of Desert Storm, in-country air superiority was tasked to USAF F-15 Eagles due to the way the Air Tasking Orders (ATO) delegated primary overland CAP stations to the F-15 Eagle. The governing Rules of Engagement (ROE) also dictated a strict Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) requirement when employing Beyond Visual Range weapons such as the AIM-7 Sparrow and particularly the AIM-54 Phoenix. This hampered the Tomcat from using its most powerful weapon. Furthermore, the powerful emissions from the AWG-9 radar are detectable at great range with a radar warning receiver. Iraqi fighters routinely displayed countertactics as soon as the Tomcats "lit them up" with the AWG-9. The US Navy suffered its only F14 loss from enemy action on 21 January 1991 when b/n 161430, an F-14 A upgraded to an F-14A+, from VF-103 was shot down by an SA-2 surface-to-air missile while on an escort mission near Al Asad airbase in Iraq. Both crew survived ejection with the pilot being rescued by USAF Special Operations Forces and the RIO being captured and held by Iraqi troops as a POW until the end of the war. The F-14 also achieved its final kill, an Mi-8 "Hip" helicopter, with an AIM-9 Sidewinder.

In 1995, F-14s from V-F14 and VF-41 participated in Operation Deliberate Force as well as Operation Allied Force in 1999, and in 1998, VF-32 and VF-213 participated in Operation Desert Fox. On 15 February 2001 the Joint Direct Attack Munition or JDAM was added to the Tomcat's arsenal. On 7 October 2001 F-14s would lead some of the first strikes into Afghanistan marking the start of Operation Enduring Freedom and the first F14 drop of a JDAM occurred on 11 March 2002. F-14s from VF-2, VF-31, VF-32, VF-154, and VF-213 would also participate in Operation Iraqi Freedom. The F-14Ds of VF-2, VF-31, and VF-213 obtained JDAM capability in March 2003.[15] On 10 December 2005, the F14-Ds of VF-31 and VF-213 were upgraded with a ROVER III downlink for transmitting images to a ground Forward Air Controller (FAC). The F-14s of VF-31 and VF-213 deployed on their last combat cruise on USS Theodore Roosevelt in 2005.


F14 Variants

A total of 712 F-14s were built at Grumman's factory in Calverton on Long Island from 1969 to 1991. While the F-14 is listed as being produced in Bethpage, NY all construction and test flights were performed out of Grumman's Calverton facility. The Bethpage facility was home to the engineers who designed the F-14 and it produced WW2 aircraft. But Bethpage no longer had the facilities or airport required to produce such a large airplane.

* YF-14A: Prototypes and pre-production aircraft, 12 built.

* F-14A : The original production two-seat all-weather interceptor fighter version for the US Navy. Modifications late in its service life added precision strike munitions to its armament. 545 F-14A aircraft were delivered to the US Navy and 79 to Iran. The final 102 F14 As were delivered with improved TF30-P-414A engines. Additionally, an 80th F14 A was manufactured for Iran, but was delivered to the US Navy.

* F-14A Plus or F14 B: Upgraded version of the F-14A with GE F110-400 engines. Much of the avionics as well as the AWG-9 radar were retained. Later re-designated F14 B. Thirty eight new aircraft were manufactured and 48 F-14A were upgraded to B variants.[28] In the late 1990s, 67 F14 Bs were upgraded to extend airframe life and improve offensive and defensive avionics systems. The modified aircraft became known as F-14B Upgrade aircraft.

* F-14D Super Tomcat: The final incarnation of the F-14. The original TF-30 engines were replaced with GE F110-400 engines, similar to the F-14B. The F-14D also included newer digital avionics systems including a Glass cockpit and replaced the AWG-9 with the newer APG-71 radar. A total of 37 new aircraft were constructed and 18 F14 A were upgraded to D variants.

F14 Operators

* Pacific Fleet
o F-14 VF-1 Wolfpack (Disestablished 30 September 1993)
o F-14 VF-2 Bounty Hunters (Redesignated VFA-2 with F/A-18F 1 July 2003)
o F-14 VF-21 Freelancers (Disestablished 31 January 1996)
o F-14 VF-24 Fighting Renegades (Disestablished 20 August 1996)
o F-14 VF-51 Screaming Eagles (Disestablished 31 March 1995)
o F-14 VF-111 Sundowners (Disestablished 31 March 1995)
o F-14 VF-114 Aardvarks (Disestablished 30 April 1993)
o F-14 VF-124 Gunfighters (Disestablished 30 September 1994)
o F-14 VF-154 Black Knights (Redesignated VFA-154 with F/A-18F 1 October 2003)
o F-14 VF-191 Satan's Kittens (Disestablished 30 April 1988)
o F-14 VF-194 Red Lightnings (Disestablished 30 April 1988)
o F-14 VF-201 Hunters (Redesignated VFA-201 with F/A-18A 1 January 1999)
o F-14 VF-202 Superheats (Disestablished 31 December 1999)
o F-14 VF-301 Devil's Disciples (Disestablished 11 September 1994)
o F-14 VF-302 Stallions (Disestablished 11 September 1994)

* Atlantic Fleet
o F-14 VF-11 Red Rippers (Redesignated to VFA-11 with F/A-18F in May, 2005)
o F-14 V F14 Tophatters (Redesignated VFA-14 with F/A-18E 1 December 2001)
o F-14 VF-31 Tomcatters (Redesignated VFA-31 with F/A-18E October, 2006)
o F-14 VF-32 Swordsmen (Redesignated VFA-32 with F/A-18F on 1 October 2005)
o F-14 VF-33 Starfighters (Disestablished 1 October 1993)
o F-14 VF-41 Black Aces (Redesignated VFA-41 with F/A-18F, 1 December 2001)
o F-14 VF-74 Bedevilers (Disestablished 30 April 1994)
o F-14 VF-84 Jolly Rogers (Disestablished 1 October 1995)
o F-14 VF-101 Grim Reapers (Disestablished 15 September 2005)
o F-14 VF-102 Diamondbacks (Redesignated VFA-102 with F/A-18F in 1 May 2002)
o F-14 VF-103 Sluggers/Jolly Rogers (Redesignated VFA-103 with F/A-18F 1 May 2005)
o F-14 VF-142 Ghostriders (Disestablished 30 April 1995)
o F-14 VF-143 Pukin' Dogs (Redesignated V F14 with F/A-18E in early 2005)
o F-14 VF-211 Fighting Checkmates (Redesignated VFA-211 with F/A-18F 1 October 2004)
o F-14 VF-213 Black Lions (Redesignated VFA-213 with F/A-18F in May 2006)
* Test and Evaluation Squadrons
o F-14 VX-4 Evaluators (Disestablished 30 September 1994)
o F-14VX-9 Vampires (Currently operates F/A-18C/D/E/F, EA-6B, AV-8B, & AH-1)
o F-14 VX-23 Salty Dogs (Currently operates F/A-18C/D/E/F, EA-6B, EA-18G & T-45)

Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force (IRIAF) squadrons

* 72nd TFS: F14 A, 1976 - 1980
* 73rd TFS: F14 A, 1977 - until mid-1990s
* 81st TFS: F14 A, 1977 - until today
* 82nd TFS: F14 A, 1978 - until today
* 83rd TFS: F14 A, re-named former 73rd TFS[29]


F-14s preserved at museums include:

* Number Model - Location. Significance
* (R): Signifies an F-14 B or D manufactured from an F14 A.
* 157982 Y F14 A - Cradle of Aviation Museum, Garden City, NY. Prototype #3 Nonstructural Demonstration Testbed
* 157984 Y F14 A - National Museum of Naval Aviation, Pensacola, FL. Prototype #5 Systems Compatibility Demonstrator/Testbed
* 157986 Y F-14 A/B - Intrepid Sea-Air-Space Museum, New York City, NY. Prototype #7 Engine/F-14B Testbed
* 157990 Y F-14 A - The March Field Air Museum, Riverside, CA. Prototype #11 Avionics Testbed
* 158978 F14 A - San Diego Aircraft Carrier Museum on board the USS Midway, San Diego, CA
* 159432 F-14 A - Cradle of Aviation Museum, Garden City, NY. Forward Fuselage preserved
* 159610 F14 D(R) - National Air & Space Museum, Washington DC. One of the F-14s involved in the second Gulf of Sidra incident.
* 159624 F14 A - Wings Over the Rockies Air Museum, Denver, Colorado
* 160382 F14 A - Museum of Flight, Seattle, WA
* 160395 F-14 A - Kalamazoo Aviation History Museum, Kalamazoo, MI
* 160666 F-14 A - Western Aerospace Museum, Oakland, CA
* 160684 F14 A - Pima Air & Space Museum, Tucson, AZ
* 160889 F14 A - Pacific Coast Air Museum, Santa Rosa, CA
* 160899 F14 A - Cradle of Aviation Museum, Garden City, NY
* 160902 F-14 A - Grumman Memorial Park, Calverton, NY
* 161163 F14 D(R) - Prairie Aviation Museum, Bloomington, IL
* 161166 F14 D(R) - Carolinas Aviation Museum, Charlotte, NC. VF-213, Last F-14 to launch on a combat mission (Iraq February 2006)
* 161422 F-14 B(R) - Naval Air Station Wildwood Aviation Museum, Cape May, NJ
* 161426 F-14 D(R) - DeLand Naval Air Station Museum, DeLand, FL
* 161598 F-14 A - Tulsa Air and Space Museum, Tulsa, OK. Has squadron VF-41, "Black Aces" markings
* 161605 F14 A - Wings Of Eagles Discovery Center/National Warplane Museum, Horseheads, NY
* 162689 F-14A - USS Hornet Museum, Alameda, CA, VF-101 "Grim Reapers", retired August 31, 2000
* 162912 F14 B - Grissom Air Museum, Peru IN. First aircraft retired from VF-11 Red Rippers
* 163904 F14 D - Hickory Regional Airport, Hickory, NC. VF-31 Modex 107, Tomcat flown at Sunset Ceremony at NAS Oceana
* 164601 F14 D - Castle Air Museum, Atwater, CA
* 164603 F14 D - American Air Power Museum, Farmingdale, NY. VF-31 Modex 101 Last (American) Tomcat to take flight
* 164604 F14 D - NAS Oceana, Virginia Beach, VA. Last F-14 built by Grumman.
* (unknown) F-14 - Palm Springs Air Museum, Palm Springs, CA.
* (unknown) F14 A - Aviation Challenge Camp, Huntsville, AL. Has the "Jolly Rogers" Insignia on left tail - Once on 3-day stand-by

F14 Retirement

The F-14 has been completely retired from US Naval service. At one point, it was slated to remain in service through at least 2008, but all F-14A and F-14B airframes had already been retired, and the last two squadrons, the VF-31 Tomcatters and the VF-213 Black Lions, both flying the D models, arrived for their last fly-in at Naval Air Station Oceana on 10 March 2006.
The last American F-14 to takeoff from a US Navy carrier, USS Theodore Roosevelt on 28 July 2006

The last American F-14 combat mission was completed on 8 February 2006, when a pair of Tomcats landed aboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) after one dropped a bomb in Iraq. That aircraft was assigned to VF-31 and the aircrew credited with the last bomb dropped in combat by a Navy Tomcat was pilot LT Justin Halligan and RIO LT Bill Frank. The other Tomcat on that mission was an F-14D from VF-213 piloted by Commander, Carrier Air Wing Eight, Capt. William G. Sizemore, and became the last F-14 to land on an aircraft carrier after a combat mission. During their final deployment with the USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71), VF-31 and VF-213 collectively completed 1,163 combat sorties totaling 6,876 flight hours, and dropped 9,500 lb (4,300 kg) of ordnance during reconnaissance, surveillance, and close air support missions in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.[46]
The last American F-14 to fly a combat mission, an F14 D(R) from VF-213, lands at Sherman Field at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida.

On 10 March 2006, the 22 planes from these squadrons flew in formation into Naval Air Station Oceana after the last deployment of the F-14. VF-31 remained operational in the F-14 Tomcat under the Fleet Response Plan (FRP) through September and conducted the last carrier qualifications in late July maintaining their ability to deploy right up until the end. VF-213 and VF-31 would transition to the Super Hornet training.

The USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) shot from its catapult an F14 D, assigned to VF-31, for the last time on 28 July 2006. It was piloted by Lt. Blake Coleman and Lt. Cmdr Dave Lauderbaugh as RIO.[47] The last trap recovery was made a while before by Lt. Chris Rattigan and Lt. Paul Dort, on aircraft no. 110. The "official" final flight retirement ceremony was on 22 September 2006 at Naval Air Station Oceana. The ceremonial last flight was flown by Lt. Cmdr. Chris Richard and Lt. Mike Petronis as RIO in a backup F-14 (Felix 107),[48] after the primary aircraft experienced a mechanical problem.[49] The actual last flight of the F-14 Tomcat in U.S. service took place 4 October 2006, when an F-14D of VF-31 was ferried from Oceana to Republic Airport on Long Island, NY.

The remaining intact US Navy F-14 aircraft have been stored at the 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group "Boneyard", at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona. By July 2007, many of the remaining 165 aircraft were being shredded to prevent parts from being acquired by Iran, the only other nation to buy the F-14. By July 2007, 23 F-14s had been shredded at a cost of US$900,000. Due to the strength of the landing gear, it was removed before shredding and cut up with a torch. The last remaining F-14 after demolition will be located at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida.

Text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License

The last American F14 combat mission was completed on 8 February 2006, when a pair of Tomcats landed aboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt after one dropped a bomb in Iraq. That aircraft was assigned to VF-31 and the aircrew credited with the last bomb dropped in combat by a Navy Tomcat was pilot Lt. Justin Halligan and RIO Lt. Bill Frank. The other Tomcat on that mission was an F-14D from VF-213 piloted by Commander, Carrier Air Wing Eight, Capt. William G. Sizemore, and became the last F-14 to land on an aircraft carrier after a combat mission. During their final deployment with the USS Theodore Roosevelt, VF-31 and VF-213 collectively completed 1,163 combat sorties totaling 6,876 flight hours, and dropped 9,500 pounds (4,300 kg) of ordnance during reconnaissance, surveillance, and close air support missions in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

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On 10 March 2006, the 22 planes from these squadrons flew in formation into Naval Air Station Oceana after the last deployment of the F-14. VF-31 remained operational in the F-14 Tomcat under the Fleet Response Plan (FRP) through September and conducted the last carrier qualifications in late July maintaining their ability to deploy right up until the end. VF-213 and VF-31 would transition to the Super Hornet training.

The USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) shot from its catapult an F-14D, assigned to VF-31, for the last time on 28 July 2006. It was piloted by Lt. Blake Coleman and Lt. Cmdr Dave Lauderbaugh as RIO. The last trap recovery was made a while before by Lt. Chris Rattigan and Lt. Paul Dort, on aircraft no. 110. The "official" final flight retirement ceremony was on 22 September 2006 at Naval Air Station Oceana. The ceremonial last flight was flown by Lt. Cmdr. Chris Richard and Lt. Mike Petronis as RIO in a backup F-14 (Felix 107),[35] after the primary aircraft experienced a mechanical problem.[36] The actual last flight of the F-14 Tomcat in U.S. service took place 4 October 2006, when an F-14D of VF-31 was ferried from Oceana to Republic Airport on Long Island, NY.

The remaining intact US Navy F-14 aircraft have been stored at the 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group "Boneyard", at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona. By July 2007, many of the remaining 165 aircraft were being shredded to prevent parts from being acquired by Iran, the only other nation to buy the F-14. By July 2007, 23 F-14s had been shredded at a cost of $900,000. Due to the strength of the landing gear, it was removed before shredding and cut up with a torch. The last remaining F-14 after demolition will be located at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida.