Few types of aircraft owe their celebrity status to Hollywood to the extent that the F-14 Tomcat does, first, with the time-travel Pearl Harbor film The Final Countdown, and later with the hit movie Top Gun. While Hollywood may have cemented the F-14 in the public eye, it was Grumman engineers on Long Island that cemented the aircraft into the mind of naval aviators. When the F-14 was retired with considerable ceremony on 22 September 2006, after 36 years of service by the type, it was not because its capabilities had been eclipsed. Rather, it was because, like the SR-71, the aircraft was deemed too expensive to operate in an era following the collapse of the Soviet Union. Indeed, it was to counter the Communist threat that the Navy had sought a Fleet Air Defense fighter capable of carrying extremely long range air-to-air missiles, powerful radar to guide intercepts, as well as a heavy cannon for close air-to-air combat. Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara had insisted that the Navy and Air Force engineer a single aircraft to serve both branches and fill the Navy requirements, resulting in the F-111. The Navy variant of the F-111, the F-111B, did not meet the service’s requirements, and in 1968 the Navy stopped funding the F-111 program. This set the stage for the F-14 – which Grumman engineers were able to take from concept to first flight in only 22 months. Even today, there are many in the Naval aviation community who yearn for the Tomcat to still be part of the fleet. Contains more than 175 photos of which most are in full colour, line drawings and profiles. 80 pages.
Other Products You May Also Like:
Renew Your Subscription
by adminSupermarine Spitfire MK.XVI - Detail Photos CD
by adminFlying Scale Models Issue 163 - June 2013
by adminFlying Scale Models Issue 272 - July 2022
by admin
Shopping Cart
There are no items in your cart.Latest Products Added
Issue 203 - March 2023
by adminMAI Issue 211 - Feb 2023
by adminIssue 328 - Feb 2023
by adminIssue 137 - Feb 2023
by adminIssue 111 (1029)
by adminDroneZone/Rotorworld Issue Feb/March 23 Issue 42
by adminFlying Scale Models Issue 279 - Feb 2023
by adminIssue 202 - Feb 2023
by adminMAI Issue 210 - Jan 2023
by adminIssue 327 - Jan 2023
by adminIssue 136 - Jan 2023
by adminIssue 110 (1028)
by adminSlot - Issue 55
by adminFlying Scale Models Issue 278 - Jan 2023
by adminIssue 201 - Jan 2023
by adminMAI Issue 209 - Dec 2022
by adminIssue 326 - Dec 2022
by adminIssue 135 - Dec 2022
by admin