USN Retro-Photo of the Day: A Mighty F-14 Tomcat--King of the Fighter Jets--Dominating Air and Sea!

United States Navy ^ | March 1, 1991 | Lieutenant Commander Ken Neubauer, U.S. Navy

[EnjoyingLife]

A U.S. Navy F-14A Tomcat, assigned to Fighter Squadron 102 (VF-102), makes a transonic high-speed flyby past the aircraft carrier USS America (CV-66) on 1 March 1991. The photo was taken while the USS America was stationed in the Red Sea. The large white "vapor cone" created by the F-14A Tomcat is technically called a Prandtl-Glauert Condensation Cloud or Prandtl-Glauert Cloud.

3000 x 1997 pixels . . . 2002 x 1332 pixels . . . via http://chamorrobible.org/gpw/gpw-20061112.htm

The Photographer 
Lieutenant Commander Ken Neubauer, United States Navy  

Dr. Mark S. Cramer's "Prandtl-Glauert Condensation Clouds" Tutorial 
http://web.archive.org/web/20070510225616/www.fluidmech.net/tutorials/sonic/prandtl-glauert-clouds.htm

[xkaydet65]

You know what the old drivers say.”Hornets by mandate. Tomcats by choice!!

[knarf]

WAAAYYYY Kewl !!!

[Glenn]

That, um, excites me.

[VR-21]

You know what the old drivers say.”Hornets by mandate. Tomcats by choice!!

I remember a GI Zippo lighter from a VF (F4Phantom) squadron during my WESTPAC that said "Better a sister in a whorehouse, than a brother in a Tomcat squadron." Yea, I'm old.

[Jack Hydrazine]

Hornets are half the fighter plane that the Tomcats are when you do a side-by-side comparison of their capabilities. Nothing like having dumbed-downed military machinery.

[edpc]

That’s a negative, Ghostrider, the pattern is full.

[Vroomfondel]

ping

[mamelukesabre]

Cheer up.

Iran still uses them, LOL

[AFreeBird]

Got wood?

[max americana]

The first reason why I love F-14’s was because they were the fighter plane that was in the anime series ROBOTECH when I was a kid. Including the skull and bones’ insignia in the tail section.

[Jack Hydrazine]

But they can’t get spare parts for them because we literally cut up all of our retired F-14s into little bitty pieces.

[castowell]

If the date is March 1, 1991 and this is USS America, then this is the Persian Gulf and not the Red Sea.

Sorry for the quibble alert.

[btcusn]

I remember a GI Zippo lighter from a VF (F4Phantom) squadron during my WESTPAC that said “Better a sister in a whorehouse, than a brother in a Tomcat squadron.”

I remember it as ‘The Marines”
They get paid more and screwed less.
Covering my butt here, I have never met a Marine I wouldn’t be proud to call a friend, met a few that I wouldn’t let in the house though!!

Jack

[ScreamingFist]

Hornets are half the fighter plane that the Tomcats are when you do a side-by-side comparison of their capabilities. Nothing like having dumbed-downed military machinery.

Yes. They are half the machine, literally RCS wise. Tomcat has the RCS of a battleship and can't out maneuver squat in close.....which is why they were replaced....;)

[mamelukesabre]

And now we’re going to use our F15s for target practice, I think. Maybe that was our F16s.

[AFreeBird]

Cutting up a Tomcat (I don’t care the reason) is a criminal act. The perps should be executed.

[Slump Tester]

"Iran still uses them, LOL"

Do they have all 3 idiot lights on the "heads up" display?

[Yo-Yo]

Gotta be worth a Navair ping!