As much as I like the Raptor, The F-14 Tomcat steals the show in my book. This is a Jet that should never be forgotten. Now I have the urge to go watch Top Gun, LOL!
Those high speed passes are incredible, and not to mention maneuverability. For it to be such a monster of a fighter jet, that thing made some tight turns, even when it went supersonic. Also very intimidating. You knew something exciting was about to happen once those wings swept back.
i was in the navy on a aircraft carrier in the mid 80s i fueled them along with other US Navy planes of that era. the full after burners at night was real fun to watch 15 feet of white hot flame plus the thunder of the jet engines a full power
I was at this show, my dad was an electrician on the f14 for his whole career until he retired, he used to bring me to the hanger as a kid so I got to really see these things up close, badass planes 💪🏾
That'll never happrn, because, all remaining airframes that were retired became museum pieces, and had their engines removed. The only way to see one of these felines In the air now, is to go to Iran, but, they're not at all friendly with our country.
@@johnosbourn4312 they probably have quite a few of them mothballed in the bone yard just case if so it wouldn't take too much at all to make them airworthy but it would never happen. I'm sure the pilots that flew it are all retired now and you'd have to go through training new pilots... Etc. It would be more trouble than it's worth
@@MuscleDad420 vicious religious fundamentalism? Did you just throw 3 ridiculous words together? Last I checked we never buried someone to their waist and stone them till they are dead because they broke some religious law.
When I was growing up, dad was stationed for a year at the NWS Charleston, as a corpsman. We lived for a while across the highway from the AFB there, and these things would do touch and gos on full afterburner if there was a carrier group nearby. The only things louder than these things were the B1Bs, which nearly flattened the house when they left on full afterburner. One of the highlights of my life was getting to ride in the RIO seat at the airshow at Andrews AFB once he transferred to NNMC. Needless to say it's been decades since they allowed that, but this has always been, and always will be my favorite strike craft. No other aircraft could compare to its durability, performance, ordnance, speed, and maneuverability for such a LARGE fighter. And it was NOISY. We don't have enough noisy jets anymore. I know the various reasons we don't, but I'd gladly send tax dollars to bring back updated versions of this beauty. Screw VTOL and STOL, variable geometry wings had short takeoff down pat fifty years ago. Need to become a billionare and buy one.
Brian Phillips when i was 12 i got to see a whole squad of f14s with Desert, Jungle and other Paint schemes during Wings over Stockton in CA. Greatest Air Show in the world. I am so sad that i cant ever see anything close to it again. Especially sad that I will never see an F14 fly ever again.
I was at that air show! It was a great sight to see the Tomcats specially since I was active duty USN and was able to get very close to the action since my Squadron had an aircraft on display.
A lot of people don't realize when the Tomcat and the Eagle are at the same operating weight, the Tomcat could kick the Eagle's butt all day long. Just look at that roll rate. This plane was designed to be an Interceptor but could fill the roll of Air Superiority Fighter once it got light.
Saw this demo several times in the 90's and early 2000's The F-14 was extremely loud engines had around 30k lbs of thrust each compared to the F-15 23k each F-18 is 17k each all in afterburner. I can remember one show at Salinas CA airport could hear car alarms going off all over the city after one F-14 ran though their show. You could feel the heat from the burner was amazing show nothing on video can ever really reproduce being there in person. What was cool about that show and the one at NAWS PT Mugu ca they had small crowd turnouts so you can get right up on the flight line at the Salinas show the Pilot and REO just sitting in chairs under their F-14 got to spend lot of time talking to them telling me about carrier landings how he got to be a navy fighter pilot that was 1992.
It doesn't matter now. Their hull only has so many hours of life like all aircraft. There's a reason Iran doesn't use them much. With Iran, we're talking 30+ year old F-14A models. They can get no parts for them and have to fabricate them on their own to keep them flying. That puts reliability into question due to manufacturing tolerance variances, let alone alloy requisites for heat, pressure, etc. during flight. We're talking microns in precision tolerances here. So whatever Iran has left is a skeleton of what we had. They are using Russian avionics and power plants and weapons. The bird was due to retire after a valiant service by the US Navy. And the US government demanded wisely the scrapping of every one to keep parts from getting into enemy hands.
Nfarce have Iran's F14's ever flown? I thought our techs that delivered them and were offering support to Iran's airforce sabotaged the planes before high-tailing it out of there when the revolution started, essentially guaranteeing they'd never fly.
@@MrCool-qi7cy hey buddy ,with Iranian shah' ordered and their money's this project was built in our product line ( grumman ! ) for fighting with Soviets russia Migs ! but after the revolution of Iran everything gotta be changed !
I remember being there and seeing this beautiful aircraft fly, along with all the others on that day. I was 7 years old then and I wanted to become a pilot for the longest time ever. It’s a shame I was born with only one kidney, otherwise I would’ve pursued this. Regardless, thanks for posting this video, brings back great memories!
Sad that they retired tomcat. To me it personified pure muscle and grace at the the same time. Makes you wonder why they did not keep newer upgraded one in service in a reserve land based role whether for training or guard units because of its long range and weapons capability. But then again it was an old design and expensive to maintain and basically outlived itself being in service for well over thirty years. To me it was one of the most beautiful aircraft to ever hit the the skies.
"Based on an old design...: has nothing to do with it. The F-15 and F-16 entered service in 1976 which is only 2 years after the F-14, and both are still in service. The US Navy had a smaller number of F-14 than any other combat aircraft and this made any production runs for spare parts more expensive because high volume equals lower cost per unit. They were not kept in reserve, but completely destroyed because of several attempts by Iran to steal parts to maintain their fleet of F-14's.
The Navy and American Government is greatly regretting not getting more.new D models or the suggested Super Tomcat. Russia is testing everyone again and China is building up it's long range arsenal. A long range interceptor is needed again. The F15, F22, F35, and F18 Rhino don't have the legs. The Amraam doesn't have the range of Aim 54 either.
@@TheUsmc0802 the F15 does in fact have longer legs/ The only real special thing about the tomcat was its AIM54 capability giving it the longest standoff range against bombers. IF the US ever got its hands on the European Meteor missile, it would essentially fill the standoff range, whilst also being capable as the AMRAAM against fighter sized targets
@Ultra CNC By that same logic one shouldn't compare the F16 and the Hornet? I think not. Ultimately the F14 competed on the export market for air forces against the F15 , just as the Hornet did against the F16. What made the tomcat superior in pure interception over the Eagle was really just the missile. The Aim54 giving it at the time unmatched standoff capability, but even then those were only really justified against bombers to protect the fleet. Today There would be no need for an Aim54. To large, heavy, overly expensive and impractical. And even if there is such a need for a missile with even longer ranges than the Aim120 family ( there are Aim120 replacement being built) there exists the MBDA Meteor missile, which does have superior range to the Aim120D on the market, whilst being practical as a main use missile against any aerial targets ( fighters included). The naval F35C already has longer combat radius on internal fuel alone than the tomcat did with EFT's. So the excuse that the Navy has a capability gap without the F14, because does not have an aircraft to match or exceed tomcats range, or integrate a missile for interception no longer has any validity. The Tomcat is simply a redundant and impractical aircraft to have kept around even if you did want to invest in modernizing the same old airframe. IN comparison the F15 has aged much better. iT has its age but by not having a variable sweep wing design, and not requiring a 2 man crew already made it more economical then the tomcat to maintain and operate.
And? No one is saying the f14 wasn't right for the navy during the cold War especially given the time frame it was introduced? Stop trying to change the goal post. Not really much of an argument in favor of the f14 if really all it had going for it is "muh carrier operations". And as for present day navy doesn't really require an Pure interceptor.. Now that generation 5 is out, generation 6 is already on the drawing boards. I seriously doubt that generation 6 will be as streamlined and inexpensive as gen 4 let alone being cheaper then gen 5. There really is no capability gap for having retired the f14 when they did. The war in the middle east has been operating in air supremacy environment and lugging laser or GPS based bombs, meaning aerial refueling was much more easily deployable. Now that there is need a possible need for deterring a neer peer adversary like china, there still isn't would be a justifiable need for a return of a tomcat. F35C mixed in with advanced super hornet fits needs well. You need to understand the navy doesn't have the budget or space on carriers to have aircraft variety like the us air force can afford. Air power projection from the sea is just 1 aspect of the navies role. The f35 may be expensive to maintain relative to typical gen 4, but its price has drastically dropped as is production has increased in the last years. Even looking on the export market, most of nato, and other allies of the west want the f35 over anything else on the market.It is well rounded multirole design with some of the most sophisticated technology offered. Its the most future proof design especially if your going to operate it for the length the legs aircraft have stuck around. It is a stealth aircraft and therefore has a immensely smaller radar cross section that the tomcat ( or any aircraft of that generation tbh), meaning it won't be detected by radars unless at relatively close ranges, giving it a first detection and first kill advantage. It has an aesa radar and much more modern avionics, and is the epitome of network centric air warfare. With the aim120d, or especially with meteor missile it in practical terms also serve as a superior interceptor to f14.
I miss living 5 mins from NAS Oceana. It was nice seeing tomcats in airshows as a kid. Hell, it was even nice seeing the F-18s every single day to remind me I still have freedom.
saw an F-14 demo when I was about 9 or 10 in the late 90s. I've been to several dozen air shows and it's either the F4 or F14 that is the loudest by for. Both just had this thunder in your chest that just doesnt happen now with the F15, 22 or 35.
I have no idea why we didnt keep the tomcat just as an interceptor. The F/A-18 is great but its not nearly as good of a fighter or interceptor as the F-14 was. You will be missed F-14 ;_;
Good interceptors against bombers, but not as a dogfighter against modern fighters. The only real advantage the F-14 had was its AIM -54 Phoenix missile which had an incredible standoff range, but it was only good for large lumbering bombers and maybe a cruise missile. The US did not keep any F-14 around and in fact destroyed them instead of parking them in the aircraft boneyard because in the past Iran had attempted many times to steal/smuggle spare parts to maintain their fleet of F-14's they inherited from the days when the Shah was in power.
Maintenance costs killed it, however the for real D models were new builds and should've been kept. The converted B models were definitely getting long in the tooth.
I was in VF-101 and two other Tomcat sea going squadrons after that. NAS Oceana was my home for many years. I even loved food at the Galley, our cooks were the best, aka Culinary Specialties today. I wanna come back visit the O Club, then grab some chow. They tell me McDonalds left the base, that sucks for my shipmates.
Sad that I didn’t get to see one fly but had the chance to touch and inspect one back in 2001 aboard USS Constellation - that was and F-14D from VF-2 Bounty Hunters from CVW-2
Actually, the glove vanes were only used at high Mach numbers to make lift forward of the CG. They could be deployed manually above mach .7, and deployed automatically above mach 1.4. Operationally, they were found to be not worth the maintenance, so their actuators were removed and the vanes were wired closed on the F-14A, and deleted entirely from the F-14B/D.
The US military has built many effective and brilliant airplanes... only two command, and demand respect just on sight. The 14 and the 15. The 14 should never have been retired. She was beautiful, merciless, elegant, and deadly. Such a shame
I was 11 years old in 1977 when I actually took a picture with this plane as my best friends dad was a top gun in Iranian air force. Given the design is over 50 years old, still it is one of the most beautiful and capable planes produced by USA. The unique roar of those two turbo fans still brings chill to my spine. It’s just so beautiful when you see them maneuver. Last time I saw one fly was in 1997 at moffet air base in Mountain view, ca. Still an amazing plane specially next to blue Angeles. Sadly, this multi role plane was killed by Israel agent who control state department and pentagon. They wanted to make sure none of the spare parts gets to Iran. Ironically, by killing this multi role plane, to this day US has remained vulnerable. The only other country beside US that ever acquired this plane was Iran. The story was that Northrop Grummon was having financial issues at the time they built this aircraft and Shah of Iran’s order of 380 of these planes saved them from bankruptcy. Sadly only 78 were delivered to Iran. The rest of the money was kept in US until it was finally released during Obama administration.
oh wow. it would be pretty cool if they brought tommy back with thrust vectoring nozzles and carnards. im sure im not the only one that thinks that... but thanks for your feedback.
In the OLD days of the F-14B/D, GE wonder engine;a half loaded Tomcat is light enough to tangle with any bug or bird driver. they look at the swing wings for my state of energy. leave them back(autosweep off), zone 2 and climb at them. they will turn into you going for the overshoot,use the brakes cut to 80% and turn left at 7.0 G and they always somehow end in front of you with there burners glowing and my Aim 9 barking. Fox 1 BABY!
No plane will ever top the Tomcat. All current planes don’t hold a candle in the wind to this beauty. Makes me sad whenever I see these videos knowing I will never see one fly again. Only way to see one is in a museum.
I’m an Air Force guy and more partial to the F-15, but I will say that I don’t think the Navy should’ve retired the Tomcat so early. I lived in Tidewater for a brief moment & always loved seeing these planes flying over
I got to see this monster fly at the Cleveland airshow.what a treat.the Navy should develop another jet based on the tomcats platform...that would be something.
Saw them at Dayton a few times. Definitely the most impressive displays I ever saw. The F-35 at Paris was so sad. And they are killing the A-10! That's just so wrong.
Do you know ANYTHING about the Tomcat? The Tomcat had proven to be a more precise and effective attack aircraft than the Hornet and even the Strike Eagle. The Tomcat was one hell of an attack aircraft.
What did the Squadron Leader tell the pilot after the moment at 08:30? "What you should have done was land that plane. You don't own that plane son, the taxpayers do!"
They are actually flying this a bit loose, Snort or Lung( Cincpacflt) would bend them putting on a show. There are certain aircrews that can make her cut perfect 45s on a bank. 8.96 overstresses on up. Snort did it nastier but tactical wise I believe Lung did it like a boss
samplethief: One of the great advantage of VARIABLE POSITIONED ANGLE WINGS was the ability of short take off, more close turn radio and better Delta wing mach speed performance, but really; the modern F-18 Super Hornet have better manouverbrability that any retired F-14 and any Mig-29, but in mach speed performance: the Tomcat and Mig-29 wins.
You're right that the F-14 wasn't intended to be a multi-role fighter but because it was modified for the attack mission, it extended its life by many years. I didn't say Hornets or Strike Eagles are bad attack aircraft, just the Tomcat was equal to or better in that role. To say it wasn't a good multi role aircraft is absurd.
As much as I love the F18 and the Raptor, The F14, in my opinion, is just gorgeous. It's too bad the cost of maintaining and technology side lined this beautiful killer. It's like a black mamba...admire from a distance. Get too close and its game over!
i have always been curious of that. are the carnards active such as aid the turning or are they just for stability and only stick out and never move besides that?
As much as I like the Raptor, The F-14 Tomcat steals the show in my book. This is a Jet that should never be forgotten. Now I have the urge to go watch Top Gun, LOL!
Those high speed passes are incredible, and not to mention maneuverability. For it to be such a monster of a fighter jet, that thing made some tight turns, even when it went supersonic. Also very intimidating. You knew something exciting was about to happen once those wings swept back.
THIS is the best looking plane EVER. I'd love to see one live one day, sadly Tomcats aren't very common here in Austria ;)
Thank you America for that amazing bit of kit. A genuine legend of the sky.
To this day the most beautiful fighter jet ever made!
i was in the navy on a aircraft carrier in the mid 80s i fueled them along with other US Navy planes of that era. the full after burners at night was real fun to watch 15 feet of white hot flame plus the thunder of the jet engines a full power
I was at this show, my dad was an electrician on the f14 for his whole career until he retired, he used to bring me to the hanger as a kid so I got to really see these things up close, badass planes 💪🏾
Love it! Hopefully we'll see it fly one day again...
That'll never happrn, because, all remaining airframes that were retired became museum pieces, and had their engines removed. The only way to see one of these felines In the air now, is to go to Iran, but, they're not at all friendly with our country.
@@johnosbourn4312 iran
@@johnosbourn4312 Which is a shame because we have a lot more in common with Iran than not. Vicious religious fundamentalism, for one.
@@johnosbourn4312 they probably have quite a few of them mothballed in the bone yard just case if so it wouldn't take too much at all to make them airworthy but it would never happen. I'm sure the pilots that flew it are all retired now and you'd have to go through training new pilots... Etc. It would be more trouble than it's worth
@@MuscleDad420 vicious religious fundamentalism? Did you just throw 3 ridiculous words together? Last I checked we never buried someone to their waist and stone them till they are dead because they broke some religious law.
Loved working on those. Baddest jet that was ever built.
When I was growing up, dad was stationed for a year at the NWS Charleston, as a corpsman. We lived for a while across the highway from the AFB there, and these things would do touch and gos on full afterburner if there was a carrier group nearby. The only things louder than these things were the B1Bs, which nearly flattened the house when they left on full afterburner. One of the highlights of my life was getting to ride in the RIO seat at the airshow at Andrews AFB once he transferred to NNMC. Needless to say it's been decades since they allowed that, but this has always been, and always will be my favorite strike craft. No other aircraft could compare to its durability, performance, ordnance, speed, and maneuverability for such a LARGE fighter.
And it was NOISY. We don't have enough noisy jets anymore. I know the various reasons we don't, but I'd gladly send tax dollars to bring back updated versions of this beauty. Screw VTOL and STOL, variable geometry wings had short takeoff down pat fifty years ago. Need to become a billionare and buy one.
What was an F-14 doing at an AFB?
@@bobelayer "airshow at Andrews AFB"...maybe just read it again.
She will be missed...gone too soon I believe she still could serve a purpose today....
I get a little Teary-eyed when I watch this Awesome Aircraft!!! So sad they retired this great fighter!!! 😔😔😔
Awesome bird. Saw one at the 1990 Chattanooga Airshow. Beautiful.
What a sweet demo! Gotta be one of the loudest planes I've ever heard in person. Wish I could still catch them at air shows!
Brian Phillips when i was 12 i got to see a whole squad of f14s with Desert, Jungle and other Paint schemes during Wings over Stockton in CA. Greatest Air Show in the world. I am so sad that i cant ever see anything close to it again. Especially sad that I will never see an F14 fly ever again.
Same here. I still remember watching them at the willow grove, pa air show when I was a kid.
Brian Phillips .....You can still see them at air shows...................in Iran
The A-6 with its turbojets was the loudest plane on the boat in the 80s
Would have love to have seen this in person! Loud for sure, but for me when the B1 Took off man that was the loudest I've ever heard was awesome!!
Loud and ferocious. I love it
I was at that air show! It was a great sight to see the Tomcats specially since I was active duty USN and was able to get very close to the action since my Squadron had an aircraft on display.
Two things
1.that thing went straight vertical with the gear down.
2. The high speed pass there were no candles lit.
A lot of people don't realize when the Tomcat and the Eagle are at the same operating weight, the Tomcat could kick the Eagle's butt all day long. Just look at that roll rate. This plane was designed to be an Interceptor but could fill the roll of Air Superiority Fighter once it got light.
Saw this demo several times in the 90's and early 2000's The F-14 was extremely loud engines had around 30k lbs of thrust each compared to the F-15 23k each F-18 is 17k each all in afterburner. I can remember one show at Salinas CA airport could hear car alarms going off all over the city after one F-14 ran though their show. You could feel the heat from the burner was amazing show nothing on video can ever really reproduce being there in person. What was cool about that show and the one at NAWS PT Mugu ca they had small crowd turnouts so you can get right up on the flight line at the Salinas show the Pilot and REO just sitting in chairs under their F-14 got to spend lot of time talking to them telling me about carrier landings how he got to be a navy fighter pilot that was 1992.
How come they say VF-101? That bird is sporting the insignia of the VF-32 Swordsmen on the vertical stabilizers.
I notice that too. This is obviously a VF-32 Swordsmen Tomcat and not an Grim Reapers one.
That sucks that the us navy retired it what a beautiful aircraft.
yes
Duderocks5539 no...what sucks is that they were sold to Iran.
It doesn't matter now. Their hull only has so many hours of life like all aircraft. There's a reason Iran doesn't use them much. With Iran, we're talking 30+ year old F-14A models. They can get no parts for them and have to fabricate them on their own to keep them flying. That puts reliability into question due to manufacturing tolerance variances, let alone alloy requisites for heat, pressure, etc. during flight. We're talking microns in precision tolerances here. So whatever Iran has left is a skeleton of what we had. They are using Russian avionics and power plants and weapons. The bird was due to retire after a valiant service by the US Navy. And the US government demanded wisely the scrapping of every one to keep parts from getting into enemy hands.
Nfarce have Iran's F14's ever flown? I thought our techs that delivered them and were offering support to Iran's airforce sabotaged the planes before high-tailing it out of there when the revolution started, essentially guaranteeing they'd never fly.
@@MrCool-qi7cy hey buddy ,with Iranian shah' ordered and their money's this project was built in our product line ( grumman ! ) for fighting with Soviets russia Migs ! but after the revolution of Iran everything gotta be changed !
this jet stole my heart and will always be remembered
Oh how I miss this BEAST of an aircraft. Majestic,yet brutal. My childhood fixation still lives today. Thanks for the upload mate.
It's not possible to watch a more magnificent aircraft, f-14/A10 forever...
F-14 the best fighter/interceptor of USA. Love from the Philippines. I saw one in Urdvard Hazy museum in 2009..
Listen that sound with good headphones! Amazing and brutal
It's glorious.👍
I remember being there and seeing this beautiful aircraft fly, along with all the others on that day. I was 7 years old then and I wanted to become a pilot for the longest time ever. It’s a shame I was born with only one kidney, otherwise I would’ve pursued this. Regardless, thanks for posting this video, brings back great memories!
Crying shame they're not used today. Outstanding and extremely capable aircraft.
Sad that they retired tomcat. To me it personified pure muscle and grace at the the same time. Makes you wonder why they did not keep newer upgraded one in service in a reserve land based role whether for training or guard units because of its long range and weapons capability. But then again it was an old design and expensive to maintain and basically outlived itself being in service for well over thirty years. To me it was one of the most beautiful aircraft to ever hit the the skies.
"Based on an old design...: has nothing to do with it. The F-15 and F-16 entered service in 1976 which is only 2 years after the F-14, and both are still in service. The US Navy had a smaller number of F-14 than any other combat aircraft and this made any production runs for spare parts more expensive because high volume equals lower cost per unit. They were not kept in reserve, but completely destroyed because of several attempts by Iran to steal parts to maintain their fleet of F-14's.
The Navy and American Government is greatly regretting not getting more.new D models or the suggested Super Tomcat. Russia is testing everyone again and China is building up it's long range arsenal. A long range interceptor is needed again. The F15, F22, F35, and F18 Rhino don't have the legs. The Amraam doesn't have the range of Aim 54 either.
@@TheUsmc0802 the F15 does in fact have longer legs/ The only real special thing about the tomcat was its AIM54 capability giving it the longest standoff range against bombers. IF the US ever got its hands on the European Meteor missile, it would essentially fill the standoff range, whilst also being capable as the AMRAAM against fighter sized targets
@Ultra CNC By that same logic one shouldn't compare the F16 and the Hornet? I think not. Ultimately the F14 competed on the export market for air forces against the F15 , just as the Hornet did against the F16. What made the tomcat superior in pure interception over the Eagle was really just the missile. The Aim54 giving it at the time unmatched standoff capability, but even then those were only really justified against bombers to protect the fleet. Today There would be no need for an Aim54. To large, heavy, overly expensive and impractical. And even if there is such a need for a missile with even longer ranges than the Aim120 family ( there are Aim120 replacement being built) there exists the MBDA Meteor missile, which does have superior range to the Aim120D on the market, whilst being practical as a main use missile against any aerial targets ( fighters included). The naval F35C already has longer combat radius on internal fuel alone than the tomcat did with EFT's. So the excuse that the Navy has a capability gap without the F14, because does not have an aircraft to match or exceed tomcats range, or integrate a missile for interception no longer has any validity. The Tomcat is simply a redundant and impractical aircraft to have kept around even if you did want to invest in modernizing the same old airframe. IN comparison the F15 has aged much better. iT has its age but by not having a variable sweep wing design, and not requiring a 2 man crew already made it more economical then the tomcat to maintain and operate.
And? No one is saying the f14 wasn't right for the navy during the cold War especially given the time frame it was introduced?
Stop trying to change the goal post. Not really much of an argument in favor of the f14 if really all it had going for it is "muh carrier operations".
And as for present day navy doesn't really require an Pure interceptor.. Now that generation 5 is out, generation 6 is already on the drawing boards. I seriously doubt that generation 6 will be as streamlined and inexpensive as gen 4 let alone being cheaper then gen 5. There really is no capability gap for having retired the f14 when they did. The war in the middle east has been operating in air supremacy environment and lugging laser or GPS based bombs, meaning aerial refueling was much more easily deployable. Now that there is need a possible need for deterring a neer peer adversary like china, there still isn't would be a justifiable need for a return of a tomcat. F35C mixed in with advanced super hornet fits needs well. You need to understand the navy doesn't have the budget or space on carriers to have aircraft variety like the us air force can afford. Air power projection from the sea is just 1 aspect of the navies role. The f35 may be expensive to maintain relative to typical gen 4, but its price has drastically dropped as is production has increased in the last years. Even looking on the export market, most of nato, and other allies of the west want the f35 over anything else on the market.It is well rounded multirole design with some of the most sophisticated technology offered. Its the most future proof design especially if your going to operate it for the length the legs aircraft have stuck around. It is a stealth aircraft and therefore has a immensely smaller radar cross section that the tomcat ( or any aircraft of that generation tbh), meaning it won't be detected by radars unless at relatively close ranges, giving it a first detection and first kill advantage. It has an aesa radar and much more modern avionics, and is the epitome of network centric air warfare. With the aim120d, or especially with meteor missile it in practical terms also serve as a superior interceptor to f14.
I miss living 5 mins from NAS Oceana. It was nice seeing tomcats in airshows as a kid. Hell, it was even nice seeing the F-18s every single day to remind me I still have freedom.
I love this fighter jet sooo much!! That roar as it turns sharply is soo satisfying
My first command. I miss this place, my hearing Is a little messed up but the lovely jet noise.
saw an F-14 demo when I was about 9 or 10 in the late 90s. I've been to several dozen air shows and it's either the F4 or F14 that is the loudest by for. Both just had this thunder in your chest that just doesnt happen now with the F15, 22 or 35.
The King is flying!
I have no idea why we didnt keep the tomcat just as an interceptor. The F/A-18 is great but its not nearly as good of a fighter or interceptor as the F-14 was. You will be missed F-14 ;_;
The reason is maintenance and age of the airframes. Although I wish they did keep it, so damn beautiful!
Costs. One set of tools, parts, pilots, mechanics, etc.
my Baby was brought down by the most heinous of foes.... Cheney's red pen!
Good interceptors against bombers, but not as a dogfighter against modern fighters. The only real advantage the F-14 had was its AIM -54 Phoenix missile which had an incredible standoff range, but it was only good for large lumbering bombers and maybe a cruise missile. The US did not keep any F-14 around and in fact destroyed them instead of parking them in the aircraft boneyard because in the past Iran had attempted many times to steal/smuggle spare parts to maintain their fleet of F-14's they inherited from the days when the Shah was in power.
Maintenance costs killed it, however the for real D models were new builds and should've been kept. The converted B models were definitely getting long in the tooth.
F14 aging really well and still looks one of the most beautiful fighter jets ever, especially its nose and wings cinfiguration are unique.
I was in VF-101 and two other Tomcat sea going squadrons after that.
NAS Oceana was my home for many years.
I even loved food at the Galley, our cooks were the best, aka Culinary Specialties today.
I wanna come back visit the O Club, then grab some chow.
They tell me McDonalds left the base, that sucks for my shipmates.
Sad that I didn’t get to see one fly but had the chance to touch and inspect one back in 2001 aboard USS Constellation - that was and F-14D from VF-2 Bounty Hunters from CVW-2
Very awesome video, I miss seeing the Tomcat at air shows.
Actually, the glove vanes were only used at high Mach numbers to make lift forward of the CG. They could be deployed manually above mach .7, and deployed automatically above mach 1.4. Operationally, they were found to be not worth the maintenance, so their actuators were removed and the vanes were wired closed on the F-14A, and deleted entirely from the F-14B/D.
liking the darker grey / lo-viz !!👍👍 are there any still flying , Stateside ??
Best looking jet fighter ever.
The US military has built many effective and brilliant airplanes... only two command, and demand respect just on sight. The 14 and the 15. The 14 should never have been retired. She was beautiful, merciless, elegant, and deadly. Such a shame
The most beautiful plane!
I was 11 years old in 1977 when I actually took a picture with this plane as my best friends dad was a top gun in Iranian air force. Given the design is over 50 years old, still it is one of the most beautiful and capable planes produced by USA. The unique roar of those two turbo fans still brings chill to my spine. It’s just so beautiful when you see them maneuver. Last time I saw one fly was in 1997 at moffet air base in Mountain view, ca. Still an amazing plane specially next to blue Angeles. Sadly, this multi role plane was killed by Israel agent who control state department and pentagon. They wanted to make sure none of the spare parts gets to Iran. Ironically, by killing this multi role plane, to this day US has remained vulnerable. The only other country beside US that ever acquired this plane was Iran. The story was that Northrop Grummon was having financial issues at the time they built this aircraft and Shah of Iran’s order of 380 of these planes saved them from bankruptcy. Sadly only 78 were delivered to Iran. The rest of the money was kept in US until it was finally released during Obama administration.
At first, I was gonna say BS but, thinking about it, it actually sounds legit. So, you're saying the $1.5B was the money the Shah sent to buy Tomcats?
I miss seeing this at the Cleveland air show. Such an awesome plane.
Oh the memories. Nice video.
Wish they could have continued this planes evolution, clearly the best damed aero recipe for Navy fleet defense.
Too expensive apparently and how much is the F35??????????
Sad to think that this air frame is now likely cut to pieces.
oh wow. it would be pretty cool if they brought tommy back with thrust vectoring nozzles and carnards. im sure im not the only one that thinks that... but thanks for your feedback.
9:22 *WORTH THE PRICE OF ADMISSION RIGHT THERE!!!* (yeah I know - airshows are "Free" - but you get the point!)
EXCLLENT!! Nice job on the video!!
At 10:14, the F/A-18 Blue Angels group leader to his team,"Ten hut, there is an officer on deck."
I see this Air show at Willow Grove in 2005.it was awesome performance
Growing up I remember always seeing these things flying way up overhead unfolding their wings
Fricken incredible!
At 04:32, it looks like an eagle swooping down on it's kill.
Wud of love to see this with modern updates and stealth adaptations!
Pity I wasn't there cos that was the best airshow display by a jet I've ever seen!
Kicks you in the chest as it passes love it!
In the OLD days of the F-14B/D, GE wonder engine;a half loaded Tomcat is light enough to tangle with any bug or bird driver. they look at the swing wings for my state of energy. leave them back(autosweep off), zone 2 and climb at them. they will turn into you going for the overshoot,use the brakes cut to 80% and turn left at 7.0 G and they always somehow end in front of you with there burners glowing and my Aim 9 barking. Fox 1 BABY!
Crew might be from VF-101 but the markings on the "Aluminum Cloud" sure look a lot like VF-32 Swordsmen to me. ?
That was an awesome display!
Another sweet demo again close display nice recording ☺
Thanks for watching. Captain and shift commander LaBonte 3 division force recon. L 7 square D usmc.
Very nice fantastic
No plane will ever top the Tomcat. All current planes don’t hold a candle in the wind to this beauty. Makes me sad whenever I see these videos knowing I will never see one fly again. Only way to see one is in a museum.
Or in Iran..
Flying!
The F-14 was a such a beast motherfucker. God I miss this thing.
I’m an Air Force guy and more partial to the F-15, but I will say that I don’t think the Navy should’ve retired the Tomcat so early. I lived in Tidewater for a brief moment & always loved seeing these planes flying over
It's time to buzz the tower....
I got to see this monster fly at the Cleveland airshow.what a treat.the Navy should develop another jet based on the tomcats platform...that would be something.
They had a B1B do the flyby during the twilight show with explosives , very cool stuuuff , i go almost every year.
Best jet ever
because at 00:25 it shows a good side view of the exhaust nozzles and it looks like the normal GE F110-400 engines that the F-14D uses
Absolutely beast of a jet.
2020 and still the best looking bird ever.
Oversea still have this plane as an interceptor but not us. What a poor decision to retire the Tomcat.
Xavier Horace
Iran was the only country we exported, that was the shah of Iran. They still fly a couple.
i think the F-16 uses similar engines but I have also noticed them on the F-15K slam Eagle as well
I think it might actually be the F-14B because it has the engines of the Super tomcat but that thing on the bottom of the canopy of the A
Saw them at Dayton a few times. Definitely the most impressive displays I ever saw. The F-35 at Paris was so sad. And they are killing the A-10! That's just so wrong.
Do you know ANYTHING about the Tomcat? The Tomcat had proven to be a more precise and effective attack aircraft than the Hornet and even the Strike Eagle. The Tomcat was one hell of an attack aircraft.
love this shame i never got to see one !
Is this the F-14D
Like they say. Anytime baby.
Who the hell is mowing the grass during this awesome display?
Brilliant, what a plane!
The sound of those pratt n Whitney's gives me goosebumps
07:25 any time play time.... "rebel cat"
What did the Squadron Leader tell the pilot after the moment at 08:30? "What you should have done was land that plane. You don't own that plane son, the taxpayers do!"
Awesome 👍
They are actually flying this a bit loose, Snort or Lung( Cincpacflt) would bend them putting on a show. There are certain aircrews that can make her cut perfect 45s on a bank. 8.96 overstresses on up. Snort did it nastier but tactical wise I believe Lung did it like a boss
Amazing aircraft. Muscle car of the sky.
the sweep pass looked cool as fuck !
samplethief: One of the great advantage of VARIABLE POSITIONED ANGLE WINGS was the ability of short take off, more close turn radio and better Delta wing mach speed performance, but really; the modern F-18 Super Hornet have better manouverbrability that any retired F-14 and any Mig-29, but in mach speed performance: the Tomcat and Mig-29 wins.
I can hear jester screaming in my ear
F-14D = Fly like a BOSS!
You're right that the F-14 wasn't intended to be a multi-role fighter but because it was modified for the attack mission, it extended its life by many years. I didn't say Hornets or Strike Eagles are bad attack aircraft, just the Tomcat was equal to or better in that role. To say it wasn't a good multi role aircraft is absurd.
As much as I love the F18 and the Raptor, The F14, in my opinion, is just gorgeous. It's too bad the cost of maintaining and technology side lined this beautiful killer. It's like a black mamba...admire from a distance. Get too close and its game over!
i have always been curious of that. are the carnards active such as aid the turning or are they just for stability and only stick out and never move besides that?
No other plane could carry the Phoenix missile, and strike from over 100 miles away.
YEEHAAA Jester's dead lol