"F-14 Bombcat. The US Navy's Ultimate Precision Bomber" AirForces Monthly Publication

"F-14 Bombcat. The US Navy's Ultimate Precision Bomber" AirForces Monthly Publication

• History and development
• Combat proven
• Aircrew accounts

Early Development
An iconic Cold War fighter, the F-14 Tomcat came into its own as a precision strike aircraft in the twilight of its career when threatened with premature retirement.

andlsquo;Bombcatandrsquo; Blooded over Bosnia
The long-running conflict in the Balkans provided the F-14 community with the opportunity to test the Tomcat in its new role as a bomber. VF-41 andlsquo;Black Acesandrsquo; made history when, operating closely with Hornet units from CVW-8, the unit attacked targets in Bosnia.

LANTIRN Revolution
By the time VF-41 blooded the andlsquo;Bombcatandrsquo; over Bosnia in September 1995, the aircraft was well on the way to becoming a precision strike-fighter rather than just a andlsquo;dumbandrsquo; bomber thanks to a programme instigated andlsquo;under the radarandrsquo; within AIRLANT. Key individuals responsible for providing the F-14 with the capability it needed to drop LGBs and, ultimately, GPS-guided weapons, recall how the aircraftandrsquo;s frontline fortunes were revitalised.

The LANTIRN Demo
Capt Alex andlsquo;Yogiandrsquo; Hnarakis was tasked with proving that the LANTIRN pod would indeed turn the F-14 into andlsquo;the multi-mission strike fighter and FAC(A) platform it was always capable of beingandrsquo;

andlsquo;Bombcatandrsquo; CO
Topgun instructor and F-14 RIO Cdr Dave andlsquo;Bioandrsquo; Baranek returned to the fleet for his command tour just as the andlsquo;Bombcatandrsquo; came of age with the advent of the LANTIRN pod.

Air-to-Ground Training
The tuition of Tomcat crews in how best to use their air superiority fighter as a precision bomber evolved during the 1990s, particularly following the advent of the LANTIRN pod.

Operation Southern Watch
Aside from brief campaigns in the Balkans and Afghanistan, combat operations for F-14 pilots and RIOs took place almost exclusively over Iraq post-Desert Storm. In the wake of this conflict, a no-fly zone was created over southern Iraq, and for 12 long years Tomcat crews drilled holes in the sky policing this area.

Balkans Bombers
Almost four years after the Tomcat madie its combat debut as a bomber over the Balkans, the aircraft was back in the same theatre proving its worth in the precision strike role - both in delivering ordnance and, more importantly providing guidance for other aerial assets.

Operation Enduring Freedom
By the autumn of 2001, the venerable F-14 had been developed into a truly multi-role fighterbomber, with more mission taskings than any other aircraft then embarked in a US carrier. It was now set to play a leading role in the conflict over Afghanistan, rather than being the bit-part player it had been in Desert Storm.

Operation Iraqi Freedom I
In the vanguard of the fight during OIF I, the 52 Tomcats committed to the liberation of Iraq flew air defence, precision bombing, FAC(A), SCAR and photo-reconnaissance missions.

Operation Iraqi Freedom II/III
The Tomcat had been a resounding success in OIF I, five squadrons using the venerable jet as a multi-role strike aircraft across Iraq in support of the US-led Coalition in what proved to be a onesided war. The insurgency that erupted in the wake of this victory would test naval aviation in a way that the original campaign had not, however.

Last Catfight
The Tomcatandrsquo;s final operational deployment saw the jet at the andlsquo;tip of the spearandrsquo; during CVW-8andrsquo;s commitment to OIF III in 2005-06, the 22 F-14Ds of VF-31 and VF-213 flying from the familiar deck of andlsquo;the Big Stickandrsquo; andndash; USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71).