A sad, sad day in aviation...

[Mike]

Look at this guys!

The end of an aera....   
    

http://www.navytimes.com/static.php?f=lastF14flight080206.php


I don't know what to say.....

[Turbomallard]

A popular patch for the units transitioning has a drawing of the Tomcat character that's been used for the F-14 and a slogan that reads "Honets by mandate, Tomcats by choice."

Indeed.

I expect Chuck will have something to say on the matter in a future strip, yes? Maybe have a Tom Cruise chicken stop by Roost Air...?

I spent the day at home scanning 220+ photos that John Monnett loaned me from his personal collection (stuff we didn't have time to scan during my visit Tuesday). Looked at and evaluated a hundred or two more. I don't want to even touch a bleepin' flatbed scanner for a month! (But I'll be scanning again tomorrow...)

TM

[switchtech]

So long "Tom" - we knew ya neither as well nor as long as we would prefer.  Blue skies.

jbs

[Baradium]

They've already got the last tomcat to trap (and depart) on display in the Naval Aviation Museum at NAS Pensacola.  But yes, it is sad.

[spacer]

Hehehe... Hans tries to get a surplus Tom after finally watching Top Gun...?

Ok, maybe a *little* off the wall.

[tundra_flier]

I don't know about the Navy, but I understand that Air Force policy is that no aircraft that's gotten an air to air kill will ever be scrapped...

[Frank N. O.]

It really is a sad day, the Tomcat together with the Valkyrie, Blackbird and Black Widow II are my favourite modern military planes. The look of a Tomcat in the air is without equal.

Do they normally scrap the planes or are some of the shells sold privately? I for one have seen a Sabre parked extremely tightly in a garden in DK, a very small garden might I ad, not at all a millionaire's home. A Tomcat in Jolly Rogers livery with the black tailfins with scull and crossbanes and yellow/white trim would look awesome! But maybe it's not respectful to just let it sit there without engines never moving again?

Frank

[spacer]

There's an F-111 sitting in front of a surplus store on I-30 in Texas. If they can sell one of those, I don't see 'em having too much of
a problem selling a (demilled maybe) Tomcat.
I've been reading Ragwings and Heavy Iron by Martin Caidin, and he's pretty clear on the government's lack of historical foresight
when it comes to retiring equipment. For instance, anyone see the footage of the guv'mint dozers pushing a bunch of P-38s into a hole? Brung a tear to my eye, it did.

[FlyingBlind]

You have to be bloody kidding me !?!?!?!?!?!

I love the F-14 Tomcat! Honestly....cooome oooon 

i liked how they paid respect - 7 yellow shirted officers doing the marks in unison.

[Ted_Stryker]

Well, a great plane retires... but at least we got to see her in action in so many films and conflicts!

The trouble with them is the maintenance now... it's just too expensive, and the technology in them is at about it's limit of upgradeability for the age of the airframes.  There have been an increasing number of explosions due to structural failures around the main fuselage too, resulting in ejections, and a few fatalities of late.

I'll be sad to see her go, but at least we have a terrific replacement in the F/A-18, especially the later E, F, and G models now

Onward and upward!

On the other hand, the A-10 Thunderbolt is still out there... the USAF has not yet been able to decommission them... every time they try, they find out they have nothing else in inventory quite like them, nor as tough as them, and call them back into service    B-52's are still active out there too!  Sometimes things go by the wayside... then others seem to stick around perpetually.

Just remember, there's always the USAF Museum and Navy Museum.... not to mention the Smithsonian... where you'll be able to still ogle these great planes 

[tundra_flier]

For instance, anyone see the footage of the guv'mint dozers pushing a bunch of P-38s into a hole?

Haven't seen the footage, but did hear about it.  On a similar note, I understand our previous president ordered the A-6 inventory turned into an artificial reef somewhere in the Gulf of Mexico.    Not good enough for the US anymore, but we sure as heck didn't want to risk them being used against us!

My personal favorite plane that got set aside was the F-20 Tigershark.  By far the slickest, meanest looking fighter every IMO.  Not only was it rejected by the US Airforce (I understand they re-wrote the requirements at the last minute to favor the F-16 since they already had some in inventory) but Northrope wasn't allowed to sell it over seas as an upgrade to the F-5.  Seems the airforce didn't want it, but acknowleged that it was a better fighter/interceptor than the F-16 and didn't want to risk going up against it someday.  Particularly impressive for its day was the fact that it could go from dead cold to 10,000ft in 5 min with no support equipment.  I watched a video of that once, Starts with the pilot running from a jeep to the plane, climbing in, retracting the ladder and steps, firing the engine, turning onto the active and blasting straight up!

Phil

Phil

[Ted_Stryker]

For instance, anyone see the footage of the guv'mint dozers pushing a bunch of P-38s into a hole?

Haven't seen the footage, but did hear about it.  On a similar note, I understand our previous president ordered the A-6 inventory turned into an artificial reef somewhere in the Gulf of Mexico.    Not good enough for the US anymore, but we sure as heck didn't want to risk them being used against us!

My personal favorite plane that got set aside was the F-20 Tigershark.  By far the slickest, meanest looking fighter every IMO.  Not only was it rejected by the US Airforce (I understand they re-wrote the requirements at the last minute to favor the F-16 since they already had some in inventory) but Northrope wasn't allowed to sell it over seas as an upgrade to the F-5.  Seems the airforce didn't want it, but acknowleged that it was a better fighter/interceptor than the F-16 and didn't want to risk going up against it someday.  Particularly impressive for its day was the fact that it could go from dead cold to 10,000ft in 5 min with no support equipment.  I watched a video of that once, Starts with the pilot running from a jeep to the plane, climbing in, retracting the ladder and steps, firing the engine, turning onto the active and blasting straight up!

Phil

Phil

Not sure if this is true or not, but I did hear that the Tigershark had a problem with stall recovery similar to the problems that plagued the F-104 Starfighter.  Again, not sure if it's true... but if it is, it would also explain the F-16's eventual win.

[Frank N. O.]

I was wondering, I'm sure we've all seen the videos of a Tomcat going past between two military ships in supersonic speeds and another without sound with slowmotion where it breaks the barrior directly as it's next to the ship. Was the Tomcat the fastest plane at sea-level?

Frank

[tundra_flier]

For instance, anyone see the footage of the guv'mint dozers pushing a bunch of P-38s into a hole?

Haven't seen the footage, but did hear about it.  On a similar note, I understand our previous president ordered the A-6 inventory turned into an artificial reef somewhere in the Gulf of Mexico.    Not good enough for the US anymore, but we sure as heck didn't want to risk them being used against us!

My personal favorite plane that got set aside was the F-20 Tigershark.  By far the slickest, meanest looking fighter every IMO.  Not only was it rejected by the US Airforce (I understand they re-wrote the requirements at the last minute to favor the F-16 since they already had some in inventory) but Northrope wasn't allowed to sell it over seas as an upgrade to the F-5.  Seems the airforce didn't want it, but acknowleged that it was a better fighter/interceptor than the F-16 and didn't want to risk going up against it someday.  Particularly impressive for its day was the fact that it could go from dead cold to 10,000ft in 5 min with no support equipment.  I watched a video of that once, Starts with the pilot running from a jeep to the plane, climbing in, retracting the ladder and steps, firing the engine, turning onto the active and blasting straight up!

Phil

Phil

Not sure if this is true or not, but I did hear that the Tigershark had a problem with stall recovery similar to the problems that plagued the F-104 Starfighter.  Again, not sure if it's true... but if it is, it would also explain the F-16's eventual win.

Haddn't heard that.  The artical I read in Smithsonian Air & Space back around `89 said the test pilots all favored the F-20.  But since the Air Force already had F-16's in inventory, and spare parts, and trained maintenance personel, they changed the requirements at the last min to Multi-role fighter/attack from a pure fighter/interceptor.  Since the F-16 entry was an attack aircraft that had been reconfigured for air superiority in the first place...  Actually a very logical decision on their part, guess that's part of what makes it so unbelievable. 

I'd have trouble believing the F-20 had any serious flight problems since it was a progression of the T-38/F-5.  But then little changes can have a huge impacts on handling too, different airfoil, balance etc.

[Baradium]

Haddn't heard that.  The artical I read in Smithsonian Air & Space back around `89 said the test pilots all favored the F-20.  But since the Air Force already had F-16's in inventory, and spare parts, and trained maintenance personel, they changed the requirements at the last min to Multi-role fighter/attack from a pure fighter/interceptor.  Since the F-16 entry was an attack aircraft that had been reconfigured for air superiority in the first place...  Actually a very logical decision on their part, guess that's part of what makes it so unbelievable. 

I'd have trouble believing the F-20 had any serious flight problems since it was a progression of the T-38/F-5.  But then little changes can have a huge impacts on handling too, different airfoil, balance etc.

The B-1900 has a lot of extra pieces to make it more stable due to the changes they made to the Kingair 200 design to make a 1900 airliner.  We've got stubs stinking out everywhere. 

Taillets and Stabilons are the most obvious if you see one up close.

We might never know for sure on the F-20....