Though it's not being widely reported, this week marks [a href="vny!://www.ecanadanow.com/us/2006/09/21/us-navy-retires-the-f-14-tomcat/"]the end of the line for the F-14 Tomcat[/a] in US Navy service. First flown in 1970, the Grumman F-14 Tomcat was easily one of the world's most powerful, advanced, and deadly aircraft for many years, capable of flying at Mach 2.3 and firing its half-dozen Mach 5 AIM-54 Phoenix air-to-air missiles at targets as much as 100 miles away.
Having been gradually replaced during the last several years by the newer F/A-18E/F, the last of the aircraft in US service will be officially retired on Friday, September 22nd in a ceremony at Virginia's Oceana Naval Air Station. However, at least a few F-14s will continue to fly for a few more years: Iran — which took delivery of 79 aircraft before the overthrow of the Shah — still flies the plane, though only a small number (perhaps ten or twenty) are believed to still be in service due to a lack of spare parts and attrition.
Great tribute video: [a href="vny!://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7069648842128183770"]vny!://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7069648842128183770[/a]
