F-14 Tomcat: Meaning (information, definition, explanation, facts)

The Grumman F-14 Tomcat is a United States Navy supersonic, twin-engine, variable sweep wing, two-seat strike fighter. The Tomcat's primary missions are air superiority, fleet air defense and precision strike against ground targets.

The F-14 has visual and all-weather attack capability to deliver Phoenix and Sparrow missiles as well as the M-61 gun and Sidewinder missiles for close in air-to-air combat. The F-14 also has the LANTIRN targeting system that allows delivery of various laser-guided bombs for precision strikes in air-to-ground combat missions. The F-14, equipped with Tactical Air Reconnaissance Pod System (TARPS) is the Navy's only manned tactical reconnaissance platform.

The F-14 entered the fleet in 1973, replacing the F-4 Phantom II. The F-14B, introduced in November 1987, incorporated new General Electric F-110 engines. In 1995, an upgrade program was initiated to incorporate new digital avionics and weapon system improvements to strengthen its multi-mission competitive edge. The F-14D, delivered in 1990, was a major upgrade with F-110 engines, new APG-71 radar system, Airborne Self Protection Jammer (ASPJ), Joint Tactical Information Distribution System (JTIDS) and Infrared Search and Track (IRST). Additionally, all F-14 variants were given precision strike capability using the LANTIRN targeting system, night vision compatibility, new defensive countermeasures systems and a new digital flight control system.

The F-14 is currently scheduled to be retired from the U.S. Navy arsenal in the year 2010. It is to be replaced by the McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Super Hornet.

The F-14 is reputedly named for late Vice Admiral Thomas Connolly, whose testimony before the Senate was critical in the cancellation of the deeply-flawed TFX project. Ironically, much of the F-14's equipment was re-used from the TFX, including the radar, Phoenix missile, and the Pratt & Whitney TF30 engines.

The Tomcat had extremely limited foreign export sales, but its foreign export sales make for one of the more colorful events in its history. The United States in the late 1970s supplied F-14's to Iran, only to have them fall into the hands of the Islamic Republic of Iran after the 1979 revolution. From that point forward, Iran used the fighter primarily as an airborne radar controller, escorted and protected by other fighters. Iran was unable to regain any substantial ability to maintain the aircraft after that (despite receiving spare parts and missiles for the aircraft during the Iran-Contra affair) and their ability to operate the aircraft as of 2004, while unknown, is estimated to be extremely limited.

General Characteristics

• Function: Carrier-based multi-role strike fighter
• Contractor: Grumman Aerospace Corporation
• Unit Cost: US$38 million
• Propulsion:
  • F-14A: Two Pratt and Whitney TF-30P-414A turbofan engine with afterburners. Upgraded with F110 engines to F-14B standard.
  • F-14B and F-14D: Two General Electric F110-GE-400 turbofan engines with afterburners
• Thrust:
  • TF-30P-414A: 20,900 lb_f (93 kN) static thrust per engine
  • F110-GE-400: 27,000 lb_f (120 kN) static thrust per engine
• Length: 61 ft. 9 in. (18.6 m)
• Height: 16 ft. (4.8 m)
• Maximum Takeoff Weight: 72,900 lb. (32,805 kg)
• Wingspan: 64 ft. (19 m) unswept, 38 ft. (11.4 m) swept
• Ceiling: Above 50,000 ft. (15,000 m)
• Speed: Mach 2+
• Crew: Two; pilot and radar intercept officer (RIO)
• Armament: Up to 13,000 lb. (5,900 kg) to include AIM-54 Phoenix missile, AIM-7 Sparrow missile, AIM-9 Sidewinder missile, air-to-ground precision strike ordnance, and one M61A1/A2 Vulcan 20-mm cannon.
• First flight: December 1970

• United States Navy
• Iranian Air Force (F-14A)