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I was curious why the D was so ridiculed. From Wikipedia:

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The F-111D used the new Triple Plow 2 intakes, which were located four inches (100 mm) further away from the airframe to prevent engine ingestion of the sluggish boundary layer air that was known to cause stalls in the TF30 turbofans. It had more powerful TF30-P-3 engines with 12,000 lbf (53 kN) dry and 18,500 lbf (82 kN) afterburning thrust.

More significant– and problematic– were the Mark II avionics. These were digitally integrated microprocessor systems, some of the first used by the USAF, offering tremendous capability, but substantial problems during introduction. The main radar was the General Electric AN/APQ-114, with Doppler beam-sharpening, moving target indicator (MTI), and continuous wave mode for guiding semi-active radar homing missiles (which the standard AN/APQ-113 set lacked). This was matched with an Autonetics inertial navigation/attack radar system, Marconi Doppler radar for navigation, a horizontal situation display, an IBM processor, and a Norden integrated systems display, with modern multi-function displays (MFDs). These last proved to be a major source of trouble, serving to multiply the development problems experienced with the individual systems. Considerable acrimony between the contractors resulted, and it took years before the problems were solved. F-111 crews considered the -D the most capable (and user-friendly) version of the aircraft when everything functioned, but that was rare before the 1980s.
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Nothing like the systems on today’s warplanes. Looks like you were paving the way. Thanks for helping make us the lone superpower!

All F-111’s had problems also with fuel leaks. The sealant used in the built-up tankage had a tendency to liquify when exposed to heat and humidity (or possibly some other factor we never identified while I was working on them). I specialized in hanger queens. We’d get the fuel-system guys in to reseal the tanks while I was putting them back together after having them cannibalized. The first one they gave me had been deadlined for over a year. I had it flyable in less than 90 days. I got it back about 4 months later, leaking again. It seems to me that the -D model had more problems than the others, but I can’t swear to that; been a long time ago, and much water under that bridge. I’ve retrained twice since then, into radically different fields, and that was before I retired.

The original idea McNamara had for the F-111 was for it to be a fighter/bomber for both the Air Force and the Navy. Congress liked the idea of a one size fits all airplane and was willing to sink a lot of money into it's development. It never did work out for the Navy (too big for carrier deployment) and it really was of no use as an air to air fighter (poor performance in this arena due mostly to it's size). It was an excellent bomber though. It was the first aircraft to utilize Terrain Following Radar which allowed it to penetrate North Vietnamese radar networks by flying underneath their coverage.

Your comment on our triumph in the cold war is appreciated, but my part in that effort was inconsequential. There is a little known American who played a key role in developing the strategy that eventually brought the soviets down. His name was John von Neumann.

Johnny (as he was know by friends) was one of the worlds most gifted mathematicians. I think his work is vastly under appreciated. He made key contributions in the fields of Logic, Quantum Mechanics, Economics, Nuclear Armaments (Manhattan Project), and Computer Science. He was a fierce anti Communist who so distrusted the Soviets that he proposed a preemptive strike to knock them out before they achieved nuclear weapons.

His work in Economics led to the development of Game Theory which he applied to the problem we faced with the Soviets. He was able to convince Eisenhower that the only practical path was to stay ahead of the Russians in the arms race. He felt, I think correctly, that if we were to fall behind that they would attack us. He stated that they would eventually fall because of their inability to keep up with us. Ronald Reagan proved this true when he rebuilt our military after it had stagnated in the aftermath of Vietnam. Had the Democrats been on the ball we could have ended the cold war several years earlier.