Remembering the F-14 by CDR Jim “Puck” Howe, USN

The F-14 Tomcat was tough love. Anyone associated with the magnificent warbird knows exactly what I mean by that statement. Whether you made it, fixed it, or flew it, nothing about the F-14 was easy. But it was also rewarding in a way that only something exacting can be. From the first time I cycled the controls while a student in VF-101 until my last flight in the last US Navy F-14 to ever fly, I was hooked. I often reflect on my time in the F-14, and it nearly always brings a smile to face. (There are a couple of TF30 engine stalls that weren’t happy times.)

One of the characteristics I cherished most about the Tomcat and its community can only be labeled as “flexibility”. When I was a young student in 101, the Tomcat was just starting to develop the air-to-ground capability that had been inherent in the plane since its creation. Looking back, it’s pretty funny: we didn’t really have any idea what we were doing. It wasn’t exactly giving a loaded gun to a child, but it was close. Moreover, no one really seemed too serious or too happy about the F-14’s potential to become a “Strike Fighter”. We were purebred Fighter Pilots: stuck-up, arrogant, and shameless. We sang “You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling” and made it look cool. Dropping bombs was for people who didn’t make the cut. But our leadership kept telling us that a single-role aircraft would not be long for a newly cost-conscious Navy. If we didn’t figure out bomb dropping, and quickly, the Tomcat was going to fade unceremoniously into oblivion. Enter “flexibility.”

Within five years, the F-14 went from being a Cold War relic protecting the Battle Group from Bear and Backfire raids that were never going to happen, to being the LANTIRN-carrying, self-escorting Strike Fighter of choice. The Tomcat, with its two-seat cockpit, a big payload, and more gas, greater speed, and greater bring-back than the F/A-18, had become the “Bombcat.” Much to the chagrin of our Hornet brethren, the toughest missions were now doled out to Tomcat squadrons.

By the time Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) rolled around, the F-14 was the centerpiece of the carrier-borne strike package. We had the Joint Tactical Information Distribution System (JTIDS), Infrared Search and Track (IRST), the Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM), big motors, and the best Forward-Looking Infrared (FLIR) targeting system in the Navy. Add an extra pair of eyes and a Phoenix missile, and the jet was as close to unstoppable in the strike role as any in history. During that 30-day period in spring of 2003, the Tomcat’s strike capability was never more apparent.

The F-14D had been cleared to carry JDAM just before OIF, and following emergency evaluation and fielding of the software required to actually employ the weapon, all F-14s over Iraq were armed with our latest weaponry. This quick turnaround on software evaluation and fielding was another testament to the Tomcat community’s uncanny ability to get the job done. Literally days before the start of what would later be called “Shock and Awe,” software engineers from China Lake and Weapons School instructors from Oceana were busy loading the latest Operational Flight Program (OFP) into all of the operational F-14Ds in the U.S. Navy’s arsenal.

I’ll never forget manning my jet late one night in March with LT Mark “FUN” Mhley following me; briefing me on how to employ JDAM. As I finally finished the preflight, I turned to FUN and said “Brother, I need the Reader’s Digest version. Remember, I’m attention deficit, it’s dark, and I have DCAG (Deputy Commander of the Air Group) in my trunk. Make it fighter pilot-proof!” And he did. And three hangars at Baghdad International Airport would later collapse as my JDAM hit dead-center. For thirty days, Tomcat bombs rained down on fortified Iraqi positions. And the Tomcat never performed more brilliantly in her distinguished history. We had truly saved the best for last.

As the Tomcat’s reign came near an end, another unique quality she possessed became readily apparent - her widespread appeal. She was loved like no other aircraft. This became evident to me during the F-14’s final at-sea period in July 2006. It was only a quick, 14-day cyclic operations refresher for Air Wing Eight, but over 40 reporters from around the world showed up to document the occasion. It was only then that I recognized the allure and significance this jet had maintained for so long. So many wonderful people came from around the world not only to record the moment, but to pay tribute as well. I talked to many of those people and was fascinated to hear how the Tomcat had touched their lives too. It was a bond we all shared, and will always share. I can’t imagine that connection forming over any other aircraft.

Even as the Navy’s final F-14 (Felix 101, BuNo 164603) shut down for the last time at Republic Airport in Farmingdale, NY on October 4, 2006, the Tomcat was still a relevant, formidable beast. For over thirty-five years, the Tomcat ruled the skies. It retired as the longest-tenured fighter aircraft in the Navy’s history, and as the Navy’s last true fighter.

As I prepare to retire next year, I can’t help but think about the aircraft and people that shaped my entire adult life. There have been highs (too many to count), and lows (I can’t think of many – I guess those brain cells were weak!), and memories I’ll prize forever. But my greatest professional achievement will always be the simple fact that I had the honor of being a “Tomcat Guy!”

Photos by William Barto, Michael de Boer, Neil Dunridge, Liza Eckardt, Paul Filmer, André Jans, Max di Mele, Mark Munzel, and Kevin Whitehead.

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