F-14 Tomcast

The first big-screen appearance of the F-14 was in the 1980 sci-fi adventure The Final Countdown, which has gained fans and respect as the years go by.

We get the full story from a former Tomcat pilot who flew many of the memorable scenes in this Tomcat classic. Al “Shoes” Mullen was a lieutenant in VF-84 who had recently completed the Navy’s TOPGUN training when he was sent to Key West to film some unknown movie.

A great story-teller, Shoes describes how the movie-makers struggled to effectively and safely film the aerial action, and gives his reaction to the famous scene where it looks like a Tomcat almost flies into the water. In addition to his role in the film, Shoes has amusing stories about his time in the Training Command and his later tour as a TOPGUN instructor.

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After 20 years of strictly air-to-air missions, the F-14 community embraced air-to-ground, including the challenging role of Forward Air Controller – Airborne (FAC-A). This episode addresses the Tomcat’s performance in FAC-A as well as the big picture of this demanding mission.

Retired US Navy Captain Paul “PK” Averna was an F-14 pilot and instructor at Strike Weapons and Tactics School, Atlantic (SWATSLANT) who was personally involved in launching FAC-A training in the F-14 community. In addition to technical details of the mission and weapons associated with FAC-A, PK compares the Marine Corps MAWTS training program with the TOPGUN program, and discusses related missions such as Combat Search and Rescue.

PK’s comments range from writing mission notes on the canopy to combat missions over Bosnia: “NATO forces surrounded an ammo depot held by the Serbs. … The ground FAC said, ‘We need a show of force here.’ … I ended up peeling off … and thumping the ammo depot. … They gave up their guns right then.”

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* * * Update: While some viewers challenge the veracity of our guest, we stand by him. * * *

Most people familiar with the F-14 know Iran was the only country outside the US to operate the big fighter, but they likely know little of the Persian Cat otherwise. This candid interview with a former Iranian Tomcat pilot takes viewers where few have gone: inside the Iranian F-14 program.

We hide the identity of our guest for his personal security, but we get the full story of his experience: his selection for Tomcats, what he thought of his instructors, the condition of the aircraft and facilities, and even some war stories. He talks about practice intercepts with the MiG-25, use of the F-14 as a “mini-AWACS,” and attitudes toward external threats such as American and Israeli forces.

We avoid political issues but as the interview progresses, our guest says he cannot talk about the military forces without touching on certain political aspects--and his revelations are surprising.

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When introduced, the Grumman F-14 Tomcat set new standards for maneuverability and controllability, making it a great dogfighter.

On this episode, a renowned Tomcat driver describes those capabilities and goes further, providing valuable insights on topics from flying skills to US Navy training programs.

Retired US Navy Captain Sam “Slammer” Richardson takes us from his early days in pilot training to his time as the CO of the F-14 training squadron (aka the RAG), where he flew A-model Tomcats and won dogfights against student pilots in D models to teach them how to be better pilots. A former TOPGUN instructor, Slammer shares his thoughts on learning that “trick maneuver,” how to become a good Tomcat pilot, and launching the program that changed Navy F-14 training. He also debriefs his famous engagement where he gunned a MiG-29 (in training).

With more than 2,700 F-14 flight hours, Slammer says, “The Tomcat was an easy airplane to fly, but hard to fly well.”

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The AWG-9 radar and weapons control system was one of the defining features of the F-14A Tomcat. Its multi-target track and missile control capabilities were unique, particularly when paired with the remarkable AIM-54 Phoenix. However, a skilled RIO was required to achieve peak performance.

On this episode, former F-14 RIO and TOPGUN instructor, retired US Navy Captain Ken “Wahoo” Ginader, takes us through the Tomcat weapons system’s strengths, reveals secrets, and dispels myths.

Wahoo gives a great overview of what it was like to operate this airborne powerhouse and reveals unexpected comments on the Iran hostage rescue mission of 1980. He also tells some exciting stories of missile exercises that demonstrated the Tomcat’s prowess.

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What was it like to fly the F-14A Tomcat in the early days when everything was new and different?

Retired US Navy Vice Admiral Marty "Streak" Chanik and Captain “Ler” Brad Poeltler, members of the VF-1 “Wolfpack” for the F-14's second operational deployment (1976-77), share vivid memories and exciting flying stories from how they were initially admitted into the competitive F-14 program to what it was like flying the Navy’s sizzling hot new fighter. They talk about some of the Tomcat’s amazing new capabilities as well as flaws that had yet to be repaired, which led to Ler watching his wingman eject on one particular training mission.

When asked which systems worked and which didn’t, Streak and Ler's replies were somewhat surprising, which can also be said about some of their missions and training. But they agreed the Tomcat was one “amazing” aircraft.

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The Grumman F-14 Tomcat was the US Navy’s frontline fighter for 30 years. A revolutionary design when new, the 'big fighter' remained potent throughout its illustrious career. But aircraft like this don’t come easy, and the Tomcat experienced significant development challenges during flight test.

Legendary Grumman test pilot Kurt Schroeder pulls back the curtain on the F-14’s design and flight test program, providing little-known facts and stunning insights throughout the interview. Growing pains, design innovations, amazing performance – Kurt tells all with an engineer’s insight and laid-back test pilot delivery.

His conclusion pretty well sums up the Tomcat: “For a whole bunch of reasons, I would tout the F-14 as the absolute best designed airplane you can envision."

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Fighter Pilot Podcast founder, Vincent "Jell-O" Aiello, introduces former F-14 Tomcat pilot Craig "Crunch" Snyder and RIO Dave "Bio" Baranek who will host season 1 of this podcast.

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