Southernbear Posted September 23, 2020 Posted September 23, 2020 This Forum post is dedicated to all the possible integrations the F-14A-D could have had during it's life time but just didn't quite fit the budget or the timeframe and were decided against. So come with me and explore what other options we could've seen on our favorite TOPGUN bird. AIM-120A/B: Many might already know about this one, but when the Navy approached Grumman for upgrades for the F-14 tomcat Grumman, given the budget estimated, gave them 2 options. Integration of the LANTIRN (Low Altitude Navigation and Targeting Infra Red for Night) Targeting pod or integration of the AIM-120 AMRAAM and it's software to replace the AIM-7. Of course due to DoD requirements of a diminishing Cold War threat and a need for a more multirole Navy the LANTIRN was chosen AGM-88 HARM: Now we get into the slightly more obscure weapons fitted to the F-14. Let me ask you...have you and your RIO buddy ever been tasked with a strike mission in you Bombcat only to be blocked by SAMs? Do you think waiting on the Hornets to do their job is boring? Well Grumman was way ahead of you. Grumman tried to stir some interest around the idea of giving HARMs to the F-14D...unfortunately the Navy and DoD weren't impressed at the time and were only semi interested in the proposal. A few Harm adapters were still built however for this weapon for stations 1B and 8B with 1 test flight on a F-14D Prototype. The HARM would again be dug up for the F-14D in the form of the Quickstrike upgrade, an interim solution to give the F-14D HARM, SLAM and Harpoons to keep it on deck till/if the Super Tomcat 21 aircraft could be completed. Of course this never happened with the F/A-18E/F seeming like the quicker solution and thus here we are today. AGM-62 Walleye: Last but certainly not least we have a slightly left field option, the AGM-62 Walleye...with *reasonable* success during Vietnam and the fact the F-14 already has a TV screen for a TV guided weapon for a short time AGM-62s were considered for the F-14. It was tested on the F-14 at the NAWC. The evaluation of the Walleye on the F-14 ended without clearance for operational use and unfortunately the program was cancelled. And there you have it, a quick and tidy little post about the "what if" and "we were this close" moments for weapons we could have seen on the Tomcat should the opportunity had presented itself. I hope you enjoyed and have a lovey day. :thumbup:
sublime Posted September 23, 2020 Posted September 23, 2020 (edited) First - dont take this wrong. Great post, interesting, id like if you added more. even about the F14 D which I know probably the least about here. That said - the title. what could have been. lets be fair - the F14 was in service 73 to 06. we got our moneys worth And lets also be fair, The fact the CIA went NUTS in 09 destroying old F14s over Irans aging F14A fleet speaks volumes about how badass a plane it really is. As far as walleyes by the by, Idk why, but in a DCE campaign F18s (standing in for A6s.. god I want a6s..) would SUCK with say cluster bombs or whatever. If I gave them walleyes theyd devastate anything Idk much about the A12 or even what itd look like. however I know the A6s couldnt be fixed. had to be replaced. Still nostalgia and IDK what makes me wish theyd just built a few hundred intruders more. again Heatblur - Ill literally give you a testicle and liver ( or lots of cash ) for an A6. if you cant get a license make a A6 and name it something else and change minor details! noone will notice! ;) even if we never get flyable I cant wait until I can escort AI a6s etc. They really really complement F14s well and are sorely needed for carrier ops. Everything else is afighter bomber. The A6 is a dead up carrier bomber. We need one. _ Edited September 23, 2020 by sublime
Southernbear Posted September 23, 2020 Author Posted September 23, 2020 (edited) First - dont take this wrong. Great post, interesting, id like if you added more. even about the F14 D which I know probably the least about here. That said - the title. what could have been. lets be fair - the F14 was in service 73 to 06. we got our moneys worth And lets also be fair, The fact the CIA went NUTS in 09 destroying old F14s over Irans aging F14A fleet speaks volumes about how badass a plane it really is. As far as walleyes by the by, Idk why, but in a DCE campaign F18s (standing in for A6s.. god I want a6s..) would SUCK with say cluster bombs or whatever. If I gave them walleyes theyd devastate anything Idk much about the A12 or even what itd look like. however I know the A6s couldnt be fixed. had to be replaced. Still nostalgia and IDK what makes me wish theyd just built a few hundred intruders more. again Heatblur - Ill literally give you a testicle and liver ( or lots of cash ) for an A6. if you cant get a license make a A6 and name it something else and change minor details! noone will notice! ;) even if we never get flyable I cant wait until I can escort AI a6s etc. They really really complement F14s well and are sorely needed for carrier ops. Everything else is afighter bomber. The A6 is a dead up carrier bomber. We need one. _ Glad you enjoyed it, yes I do know the bird did have a long and successful career but you never know what could've happened ;) As for the A-12 Avenger, this is it: The flying Dorito...I don't know too much about the project but it's cancelation did also effect the Tomcat (a small part of why the Tomcat was given the LANTIRN to take up some of the slack from the hole left by the A-6/A-7 and failed A-12) I wouldn't be surprised if it failed due to being over budget or too complex tho with this design :lol: This is whats left of her: Edited September 23, 2020 by Southernbear
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