Jet set for Reagan library event (F-14 will be exhibited)

Los Angeles Daily News ^ | 8/14/05 | Eric Leach

[Mark]

SIMI VALLEY- An F-14 Tomcat fighter jet will be hoisted into a permanent display area next week close to the nearly completed Air Force One Pavilion at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum.

The 30,000-pound Northrop Grumman aircraft will be carried by a crane outside the pavilion in a ceremony celebrating Reagan's "peace through strength" strategy and marking a milestone in the making of the Air Force One Pavilion.

"This is the last of the really large artifacts coming to the library to complete the Air Force One Pavilion," said Melissa Giller, director of communications for the Reagan Library. "Although the F-14 will sit on the Peace Plaza and not inside the pavilion, it helps complete the story of President Reagan's initiative of peace through strength."

There will be standing room only for the Aug. 22 ceremony as the aircraft is craned over a 35-foot-high outdoor colonnade viewable from the Peace Plaza.

Following the aircraft's placement, Rear Admiral David Venlet will discuss the role of the F-14 in current warfare. Venlet received the Distinguished Flying Cross for his role in the shooting down of two Libyan Su-22 aircraft in 1981, marking the first combat kills for the F-14.

"This incident played a critical role early on in the Reagan administration as it sent a clear message to those governments who chose to provoke the United States," said R. Duke Blackwood, executive director of the Ronald Reagan Library and Foundation. "The Tomcat went on to serve an important role in President Reagan's rebuilding of our defenses and will forever remind us of the importance of a strong military."

The F-14 will be trucked from Point Mugu to the Reagan Library overnight to avoid problems with traffic, starting Saturday, and arriving around 3 a.m. the next day, Giller said. Library officials will have to take out some light posts to bring the plane to a point where it can be carried by crane to the Peace Plaza at the Aug. 22 ceremony.

It will be placed on the surface of the Peace Plaza and possibly mounted on a pedestal there in the future, officials said.

The $31 million, 87,000-square-foot, Air Force One Pavilion is scheduled to open this fall to showcase the Boeing 707 known as "The Spirit of 76" that was moved to the Reagan library in 2003.

The 707 flew 445 missions as Air Force One for Reagan from 1981 to 1989 and was also used by presidents Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton and both George H.W. and George W. Bush.

Inside the pavilion, Air Force One sits on a pedestal as if flying out over the open hills of Simi Valley.

A catwalk leads into Air Force One just behind the cockpit, and visitors will be able to look out the cockpit windows, then tour the plane to see it as Reagan did. The pavilion will include exhibits explaining Reagan's role in ending the Cold War.

Motorcycles and a police car from the Reagan era, donated by the Los Angeles Police Historical Society, will be set up inside, representing a presidential motorcade.

The pavilion also will house a Marine One helicopter and presidential limousine.

The pavilion is visible from Tierra Rejada Road between Simi Valley and Moorpark and is built in the same Spanish mission-style architecture as the rest of the Reagan library and museum. At the entrance to the Air Force One Pavilion will be a replica of the White House Rose garden, which should be in bloom for the opening.

-- Eric Leach, (805) 583-7602

eric.leach@dailynews.com

IF YOU GO

The F-14 Tomcat jet will be lifted into place in a program beginning at 10 a.m. Aug. 22. The event is free to the public. Complimentary parking shuttles will run on Presidential Drive throughout the day. The Reagan Library and Museum at 40 Presidential Drive in Simi Valley is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Visitors may visit the library and scenic grounds, including Ronald Reagan's grave for free, but admission for the museum is $7, or $5 for people over 62 and $2 for children 11 to 17. Children 10 and under are free. For further information, call (800) 410-8354 or go to www.reaganlibrary.com.

[USNBandit]

30,000-pound Northrop Grumman aircraft

They stripped that one down quite a bit. Empty weight on an operational model is 42,000lbs. Max Cat Shot 76,000lbs (that hurts), Max Trap 54,000lbs (unless you were on the U.S.S. America).

[mad_as_he$$]

Beg to differ about best fighter. F-15's are 118 to 0 in aerial combat. Now Tomcats are by far the best NAVY fighter.

[moehoward]

Maverick requesting fly-by...........

[Pukin Dog]

Eagles are 118 to 0 in aerial combat because there are very, very few folks stupid enough to take on the Tomcat. Eagle drivers will tell you about a few exercises where they were glad that we were not keeping score. Just remember, the Tomcat could lock, shoot and down an Eagle before ever showing up on Eagle radar. If you doubt me, ask your favorite Russian what aircraft they were most afraid of.

[csvset]

Venlet received the Distinguished Flying Cross for his role in the shooting down of two Libyan Su-22 aircraft in 1981, marking the first combat kills for the F-14.

Cool. I was stationed on the Nimitz, V-2 Division, Waist Cats. 'Round the clock operations for three days.

I had been on the ship for a month and a half.

Wayback then , the Capacity Selector Valve, (CSV), was located in the Launch Valve Enclosure. Anyways, it was my job to verify that the CSV displayed the proper setting prior to the aircraft being launched. Pretty impressive stuff when you're a bootcamp.

[Pukin Dog]

For reasons I guess you will never understand, I have no need or desire to prove anything to you. I would suggest you put down the bottle, because you are not very lucid at these times. Were what I say just 'talk', that would be one thing, but since it isn't, you and your nonsense do nothing to raise my ire. When and IF you have something constructive to add from your lay-person's perspective, I'll be waiting for it; but don't hold your breath waiting to get a rise out of me. If you have an issue with the admins, I suggest you take it up with them.

[Pukin Dog]

Something I understand even less, is why you have nothing better to do than follow me from thread to thread, attempting to get under my skin. I would guess that my humorous posts outnumber my serious posts by 10-to-1, but you wont find me allotting time to making snide remarks, and injecting them into conversations where I have not either been addressed or have nothing to add to the discussion beyond my own vitriol. Many folks tire of that kind of crap, and it is not abnormal to ask the moderators to ask the offender to refrain from posting to an individual. Happens all the time, so if you think there is something odd about it, again, you should take that up with the Moderators. People can have disagreements; I have more than most, but when the game is over, it should be over. Whatever your issue is with me, fine. Keep it, love it, live it. Just stop posting to me. If you don't, I am confident that the Moderators will ask you nice, and then if you don't stop, they will likely remove you. So, it is really up to you.

[Pukin Dog]

Thanks for the high-cover. It was the -N. Aggressors squadrons and TopGun instructors used them to simulate advanced enemy tactics.

[Pukin Dog]

Please don't be. While it was a fun career, it really doesn't do much to train you as a functional human being. To a man, the best flyers I knew, were also not the best people mankind had to offer, if you know what I mean?

[billbears]

Perhaps I missed it in the article, but how much was the government reimbursed for the plane, not to mention the expenditure to transfer it to the park?

[tanknetter]

Max Trap 54,000lbs (unless you were on the U.S.S. America).

Let me take a guess ... the weight for trapping on the America was substantially lower because they were afraid that the aircraft would end up on the hanger deck without having to use the elevators, right?