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#1: F14 being retired by the Navy... Author: SFC_Jeff_Button, Location: Ft Hood, TX

Posted: Mon Feb 20, 2006 4:59 am
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I noticed in an USA Today article in Fridays edition, that the Navy is retiring the F-14 Tomcat, after 32 years of service. Its replacement the F18E/F Super Hornet has a 214mph slower top speed, and costs 24.6 Million dollars more than the F14's cost when new, (47.3 mil for the F14 in 1974 VS 71.9mil for the F18 in 1999). Seems that the F14 costs to much to repair. An F14 requires 50 hours of maint for each 1 hour of flight, versus 5-10 hours of maint for the F18. Also mentioned was the fact that the F14 was aimed at dogfighting, (as in top-gun fame) but that it is no longer needed since jets now shoot missiles at each other from miles away. The last F14 to fly a combat mission was February 8th, when Cpt. William Sizemore flew over Iraq with another F14 from the USS Theodore Roosevelt and dropped bombs. The F14 is being called the "last of the pure fighters". Do you supposse that a bunch of F14's will end up at China Lake as targets? What a sad fate for such a wonderful bird.

#2: Re: F14 being retired by the Navy... Author: XcalibeR,

Posted: Mon Feb 20, 2006 6:32 am
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I hope we'll be able to see these beauties at airshows for decades to come...

#3: Re: F14 being retired by the Navy... Author: Uhu_Deenee,

Posted: Mon Feb 20, 2006 7:36 am
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I wonder what happened to the ones sold to Iran? Apparently, because of the lack of spares, they don't fly much... The radars were so good though, that the Iranian Air Force used them as AEW aircraft!

I geuss we can always watch Top Gun and dream...

H Cool

#4: Re: F14 being retired by the Navy... Author: JG300-Stoopy, Location: Group W bench

Posted: Mon Feb 20, 2006 12:30 pm
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- SFC_Jeff_Button

....Also mentioned was the fact that the F14 was aimed at dogfighting, (as in top-gun fame) but that it is no longer needed since jets now shoot missiles at each other from miles away.

...Exactly the same logic was used back in the late '50's to justify omitting the guns from new fighter designs such as the F-4 Phantom, a decision which fighter pilots in the next war suffered from...

It's a Weapons Platform, give it the weapons!

#5: Re: F14 being retired by the Navy... Author: XcalibeR,

Posted: Mon Feb 20, 2006 5:33 pm
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- JG300-Stoopy

- SFC_Jeff_Button

....Also mentioned was the fact that the F14 was aimed at dogfighting, (as in top-gun fame) but that it is no longer needed since jets now shoot missiles at each other from miles away.

...Exactly the same logic was used back in the late '50's to justify omitting the guns from new fighter designs such as the F-4 Phantom, a decision which fighter pilots in the next war suffered from...

It's a Weapons Platform, give it the weapons!

Well, they learned from that, so aircraft are still equipped with guns. They just don't use them.

On the same note though, I thought the F-14 was the only US aircraft that could carry the AIM-54 Phoenix missle, which has a range of some 200 miles? I mean, if we're talking shooting missles from far away, I think that tops the charts Smile

It is sad though to see such a beautiful aircraft finally get grounded. I really hope that some of them rich guys see that the F-14 could have the same effect on people that the P-51 does today, and buy them up and keep them airworthy.

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