Ever watch the 1986 classic film
Top Gun? This is that jetfighter.
What You Need to Know: The F-14 Tomcat is far more than just some aerial movie star in your favorite 80s flick it was a beast in the air.
Long before being immortalized through its role in the 1986 classic film Top Gun, the F-14 Tomcat made a name for itself as a “true workhorse of naval aviation.”
The F-14 was preceded by the ill-fated Tactical Fighter Experimental (TFX) program, in part an effort by Defense Secretary Robert McNamara to procure a joint fighter for the Navy and Air Force. The resulting F-11B suffered from landing and weight problems, failing to satisfy the Navy’s need for a carrier-based interceptor. The F-11B project was finally aborted in 1968, and the Navy got a green light to procure a fighter more tailored to its specific needs. The F-14 grew out of the Navy’s search for long-range interceptors to run support for US strike groups, particularly against such Soviet bombers as the