[Rokke]

ping

[leadpencil1]

[Kornev]

Hurry up and get the F-35 running...

[Zhangliqun]

But can the Hornet handle the Phoenix missile system which can simultaneously track and shoot down 6 targets at ranges "in excess" of 54 miles? I think not. No other fighter in the world has that kind of stand-off capability.

I think giving up the F-14 is a bad idea...

[SeeRushToldU_So]

They are awesome and fearful.

[Dragoro]

Kinda sad to see it go....

[Zhangliqun]

Or -- here's a thought -- they could just make new F-14's!

[discostu]

Not exactly the graveyard. AMARC is a long term storage facility. Were the feces to ever seriously hit the rotating device most of those planes are flyable in under a week, strategically it's our third string airforce. And a really fun chunk of land to drive through.

[Recovering_Democrat]

Isn't this another piece of weaponry that helped us win the Cold War and the Gulf War that John Kerry opposed?

[Bombardier]

The fighter immortals:
P-51 "Mustang" (Best ever, in my opinion)
F-86 "Sabre"
Supermarine "Spitfire"
Hawker "Hurricane"
Focke-Wulf 190
F4U "Corsair"
F-4 "Phantom"
F-14 "Tomcat"

You'll note, I gave props to more US Navy than US Air Force aircraft (the F-4 was originally a Navy aircraft), which is saying something coming from an Air Force type. The F-14 can still outfly, outshoot and outfight any other aircraft in the world. I hope those dickheads at the Pentagon give this a looooooooooooooooooooooong second thought. There may come a point when they need the Tomcat back to claw an enemy.

[Severa]

VF-31 Tomcatters. Kicking ass and taking names since 1935. Second oldest fighter squadron operating in the Navy today

[Long Cut]

Your favorite bird's walking the last mile.

The 'Cat will be missed, sorely.

[VadeRetro]

“It’s still the best fighter jet in the world,” said Lt. Andrew McLean, a VF-31 Tomcatter with three years’ experience at the F-14 controls.

John Kerry in his first Senate run in 1984 proposed canceling this plane's budget (and the F-15 and the F-16 and the B-1 and the B-2).

[Cold Heat]

Sorry to see these gals go.

They have been a real asset for many years.

[Severa]

I live just a few miles away from where the Tomcatters are based and I tell you what, there is NOTHING like seeing one of these birds screaming across the sky with its wings swept back. My kids LOVE watching the jets go overhead (even my oldest one, high functioning autistic as he is)

If we're still here in Sept (waiting on husband's orders after, get this, Navy Class A Aircraft Mechanic school) we're going to the NAS Oceana air show. Always a great show and the kids love seeing the planes up close.

[CyberCowboy777]

The F-14 has been the stuff of legends.

[Long Cut]

[yarddog]

I always liked the looks of the F-14 although the F-15 is even prettier imo.

The Phantom is ugly. although it's predecessor, the F-101 Voodoo was a real beauty.

The most beautiful plane ever was the Spitfire.

[HP8753]

Revvin' up your engine
Listen to her howlin' roar
Metal under tension
Beggin' you to touch and go

Highway to the Danger Zone
Ride into the Danger Zone

Headin' into twilight
Spreadin' out her wings tonight
She got you jumpin' off the track
And shovin' into overdrive

Highway to the Danger Zone
I'll take you
Right into the Danger Zone

You'll never say hello to you
Until you get it on the red line overload
You'll never know what you can do
Until you get it up as high as you can go

Out along the edges
Always where I burn to be
The further on the edge
The hotter the intensity

Highway to the Danger Zone
Gonna take you
Right into the Danger Zone

Highway to the Danger Zone

[Myrddin]

I was standing on the tarmac at Miramar NAS with a bunch of other Boy Scouts when the first F-14 touched down. I think the Secretary of the Navy was a passenger in the RIO seat on that flight. Sad to see them retired.