The F-14 Tomcat Could Do Just About Anything

It was the 1980s, during the twilight of the Cold War, and many F-14 Tomcat pilots had mustaches to go along with their flair in the air. The F-14 Tomcat was the pride of naval aviation since it first flew in 1970. It became Hollywood famous and captured the imagination of the movie-going public with Tom Cruise’s portrayal as a naval aviator in Top Gun. Interesting call signs emerged for the pilots and back-seat radio intercept officers were entertaining. The flights looked exhilarating on the silver screen...