The F-14 first flew on 21 December 1970 and made its first deployment in 1974 with the U.S. Navy aboard USS Enterprise (CVN-65), replacing the McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II.And while the F-14 is still remembered for its on-screen exploits, the US Navy no longer operates the jet (production ceased in 1991, and the Navy retired the jet in 2006), yet some question whether the plane was retired too early.How do the two aircraft compare The F-14 is much faster and more powerful than the F/A-18, with a top speed of 2.34 Mach, while the Super Hornet reaches Mach 1.8. The F/A-18, however, is more agile than the F-14 as it only needs one pilot instead of two.
Can you own an F-14 : You couldn't purchase one. When they were decommissioned, they made sure they couldn't be made flyable for one.
Why F-14 was retired
The final 'D' version of the F-14 Tomcat still had reasonable airframe life left in them and theoretically could have continued for a few more years. That, however was not the primary motivating factor behind their retirement. The reasons for its retirement were mostly strategic, cost and mission related.
Why is the F-14 so popular : The F-14 had the capability of destroying ANY opposing aircraft ANY where in the world. No other Cold War aircraft had the single mission capability to send two nuggets on a “standard” mission from the CV and trap two Aces a few hours later. The AIM-54 and the AWG-9 enabled incredible combat capability.
ten F-14s
First of all, the F-14 is not an air superiority fighter. It is an interceptor, designed to engage attacking Soviet bombers hundreds of miles away from the carrier. The F-18 was an air superiority fighter. There are exactly ten F-14s left in the U.S., and none of them are in flyable condition.
In an actual dogfight, the F-14 would really have its hands full vs a MiG 29 & given an equal start & pilots of equal skill it would be more likely to lose to the MiG than beat it. Given an engagement initiated from long range, the advantage would lie with the F-14 & it would likely win.
Can F-14 beat F-35
Could an F-14D beat an F-35C in a dogfight No. Even the most advanced Tomcat model, the F-14D would have an extreme deficit to overcome in aerial combat with an F-35C.Why did the US Navy choose to retire their F-14 Tomcat instead of upgrading them Cost and operational flexibility. The F18 not only replaced the F14 it could replace nearly all the carriers fixed wing aircraft so we have economy, flexibility and commonality for parts.The F-14 was fast—there's no doubt about it. And while its sweeping wing system, which adjusted automatically for optimal performance at any speed or altitude, made the big, heavy fighter surprisingly nimble, there was more to the F-14 than fancy wings.
Could an F-14D beat an F-35C in a dogfight No. Even the most advanced Tomcat model, the F-14D would have an extreme deficit to overcome in aerial combat with an F-35C.
Is F-14 faster than F-22 : Looking closely at available specs, the F-14 is clearly among the fastest aircraft to ever exist and is without question on par with the F-22, which is listed as being able to reach Mach 2.2.
Could an F-14 beat a F-22 : Sadly, the only way an old F-14 might be able to kill the F-22 would be a kamikaze strike. Something Iranian pilots might want to consider, as they could very well someday use their old F-14s against U.S. F-22s.
Why did the U.S. destroy all F-14s
The fighter was also used in various roles over Iraq and Afghanistan through the 1990s and early 2000s. It was the plane featured in the motion picture Top Gun (1986). After 2006 the United States destroyed its mothballed F-14s as part of an effort to keep usable parts from reaching Iran.
The Soviet Union did not have aircraft carriers with catapults; hence, no Soviet aircraft could be a true rival of the F-14. The only Soviet long endurance (by design) fighter/interceptor is the Su-27. This is the closest Soviet plane similar to the F-14. Another close call is MiG-31, but it lacks endurance.In an actual dogfight, the F-14 would really have its hands full vs a MiG 29 & given an equal start & pilots of equal skill it would be more likely to lose to the MiG than beat it. Given an engagement initiated from long range, the advantage would lie with the F-14 & it would likely win.
Can F-14 beat F-22 : Phoenix can't hit an F-22 and F-22 runs in supersonic circles around F-14 without even use of afterburner, there is no contest. The F-22s only real advantage is to get in quickly without be seen, too soon any way.