January 7, 2024
The U.S. Navy's F-14 Tomcat Fighter: Retired Too Early?
The F-14 Tomcat is one of the most iconic fighter jets in aviation history, but the F-14's transcendent status comes not from the jet’s performance (although the jet performed admirably).
by Harrison Kass Follow Harrison Kass on TwitterL
The F-14 Tomcat is one of the most iconic fighter jets in aviation history, but the F-14's transcendent status comes not from the jet’s performance (although the jet performed admirably).
Rather, the F-14’s status was largely cemented through cinematic depiction – in 1986s highest-grossing film, Top Gun.
If you’re reading an article about the F-14, you probably don’t need much of a refresher on the Top Gun synopsis. The film launched Tom Cruise into superstardom, an orbit he still inhabits almost forty years later. But along with Tom Cruise, the F-14 was launched from the realm of military aviation and into the realm of popular culture. The swept-wing, two-seater became emblematic of US air power over land and sea at the height of the Cold War – the chosen vessel of Tom Cruise and Val Kilmer and Anthony Edwards.
And while the F-14 is still remembered for its on-screen exploits, the US Navy no longer operates the jet (production ceased in 1991, and the Navy retired the jet in 2006), yet some question whether the plane was retired too early.
https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/us-navys-f-14-tomcat-fighter-retired-too-early-208412
