New special edition of AirForces monthly - all about the "Bombcat"

[BlackLion213]

Hello fellow Tomcat aficionados,

 

I recently discovered this special edition of AirForces Monthly at Barnes and Nobles:

 

 

It's a nice summary of the Tomcat's transition from pure A-A to precision strike. It appears to be all original content with a lot of photos that I are not previously published (or at least that I have not seen before).

 

Worth checking out, it's been a while since the F-14 received attention with something like this, I love reading these stories (includes an article from "Bio" Baranek while he was CO of VF211. These articles are particularly salient to the upcoming F-14B (Baranek was CO from 1997-98 - mid-90s-ish ;)).

 

Plus, I can't resist a publication with a Black Lion on the cover. :D Plus, how can you resist a squadron named for a big cat flying an airplane nick-named for a cat! :megalol:

 

-Nick

[Frisco1522]

You guys need to stop finding all these F-14 reads...my wallet can't handle! :lol:

Plus I have to save $60 or whatever the F-14 will come out at release as.

 

Frisco1522

[BlackLion213]

You guys need to stop finding all these F-14 reads...my wallet can't handle! :lol:

Plus I have to save $60 or whatever the F-14 will come out at release as.

 

Frisco1522

 

Yeah, tell me about it. My wife went to the checkout to buy this one while I watched our 6 year-old read kids books. She called me: "this magazine costs $16, are you sure you want it?? Sure? Really sure??".

 

Luckily this website has it for sale for $4.99:

 

https://pocketmags.com/viewmagazine.aspx?catid=955&category=Aviation+%26+Transport&subcatid=188&subcategory=Aviation&title=Aviation+Specials&titleid=790&issueid=101454

 

Of course, I find this once I get home....

 

-Nick

[BlackLion213]

Interesting update: I just started scratching the surface of these articles and they are quite interesting. I've read a lot about the Tomcat over the years, but there are some details about the integration of LANTIRN and politics of Tomcat operations that I find really interesting.

 

I knew that LANTIRN went operational with a tiny budget and little testing, but it turns out there was almost no testing (2 official demos - as in 2 flights). There was also a huge amount of luck that the system worked. There were no real software changes to the F-14A and B (since developing and testing those is really time intensive and expensive - something LNS certainly knows ;)). Luckily, the inputs from LANTIRN displayed on the main TID in parallel with inputs from the AWG-9 and INS systems. To the "untrained" eye, they looked well integrated, but it was more or less luck that they displayed well together. They also used test gear from AMRAAM and AIM-9X testing to align the LANTIRN with the airframes orientation in space. Otherwise, all the work was simply directing the inputs into the Tomcat's archaic systems.

 

I bet that LNS has great references for the F-14B project, but this edition sells for around $5-10, might be worth checking out to see if contains little details that could help your work on the A-G portion of the project. (BTW, the LANTIRN pod is really similar to the Litening pod of the A-10C - except LANTIRN is older and less capable IIRC).

 

Finally, it seems that the Tomcat community leadership chose not to integrate the AMRAAM, it was in the budget for 1994 (?). However, there was pressure to decommission the Tomcat within the next couple of years. According to this article, some were pushing to keep the A-6 and retire the Tomcat first - using the Tomcat's funds to upgrade and maintain the A-6.

 

Instead of AMRAAM integration, the Tomcat community used the funds to start integrating and testing A-G ordinance. They needed to stay cost neutral or the pressure to retire the fleet would mount further.

 

It really is amazing, the Tomcat went from the edge of complete retirement in 1994 to the premier precision strike platform of the USN in 18 months - cleared to carry LANTIRN, GBUs, and iron bombs - with minimal testing and no additional operational expenses. It would then go on to pioneer the FAC(A) role with it's unique combination of sensors, loiter time, speed, and payload - even ground based during OIF since the USAF didn't have a similarly capable platform for the role. BTW, one of those forward deployed FAC(A) birds (all from VF-154) was built in 1974! Such a great story.

 

LNS really has picked a project with the Tomcat. One of the best parts is that this module could evolve for years with new sensors, roles (like adding TARPS, FAC(A), or precision strike for the F-14B or later for the F-14A), mission sets, theaters for historical missions (Kosovo, Southern Watch, Afghanistan). This potential is only matched by the remarkable evolution of the actual aircraft.

 

Such a shame we can't still see them in the air...but a great alternative is coming!

 

Have a good night and check out the articles!

 

-Nick

[QuiGon]

Thank you for outlining that. It's indeed very interesting :thumbup:

[Nemax]

Thanks for sharing. I just ordered a copy from here:

http://shop.keypublishing.com/product/View/productCode/SPECCAT/F-14-Bombcat

[Dudikoff]

Definitely an interesting read. I went for the cheap pocketmags version to see what's it about, but now I wish I went for the printed version.