The F-14 is a two-seat supersonic multi-role carrier-based fighter developed by Grumman in accordance with the requirements of the US Navy's fleet air defense and escort in the 70s and 80s of the 20th century, which is used to replace the Navy's F-4 fighter. The F-14 carrier-based fighter is a two-seater variable-swept wing fighter. With advanced equipment and superior performance, it is currently the main aircraft of the US Navy. It can perform escort, fleet air defense, interdiction and close support missions.
The U.S. Navy's F-14 "Tomcat" fighter is a two-seater, twin-engine, variable-sweep wing heavy carrier-based fighter, the so-called variable sweep wing means that the sweep angle of the aircraft wing can change with the change of the aircraft's flight state, and the sweep angle becomes larger at high speed, just like the eagle dive, which can reduce the drag of high-speed flight. When flying at low speeds, the wing sweep angle becomes smaller and the wing is straight, which can increase lift. The variable swept wing of the F-14 is controlled by an electronic computer, which is also the first new technology adopted in the world, which can make the F-14 always maintain the best flight condition in air combat, so that the F-14 can maintain a favorable posture in air combat.
The F-14 is the heaviest carrier-based aircraft in the world, with the longest air-time and the largest combat radius. The most unique move is its advanced fire control system, the radar of this fire control system, codenamed AN/AWG-9, can detect large aircraft at a distance of 320 kilometers, and for small targets such as fighter jets, the detection distance is also about 240 kilometers. Not only that, this fire control system can also track 24 targets from ultra-low altitude to 30,000 meters at the same time, and simultaneously guide 6 AIM-54A air-to-air missiles to attack 6 targets at different altitudes and different distances. These features are very advanced even today, and in the early 70s of the 20th century, they were already very "advanced". Even more "advanced" is that the F-14 fighter is equipped with the AIM-54A "Immortal Bird" long-range air-to-air missile with a range of up to 120 kilometers, becoming the world's first fighter with long-range combat capabilities. In addition to the six Immortal Bird missiles, the F-14 can also carry two AIM-9 Sidewinder short-range air-to-air missiles to attack enemy aircraft that have escaped the Immortal Bird missiles. In addition to missile weapons, the F-14 is equipped with an M61AI Vulcan six-barreled 20mm cannon, which is the prototype of the Phalanx gun equipped on U.S. surface ships, with 575 rounds of artillery on board for close-range air combat. If the F-14 does not carry the "Immortal Bird" missile, it can also carry 4 AIM-7 "Sparrow" medium-range air-to-air missiles and 4 "Sidewinder" short-range air-to-air missiles for medium-range air combat. To operate these complex electronics, the F-14 is equipped with two pilots, one who flies the aircraft, while the other operates the electronics full-time. In the anti-aircraft defense system of the U.S. Navy aircraft carrier task force, the F-14 plays an extremely important role, and the typical combat mode is to carry out combat patrols at 160~320 kilometers or even more away from the periphery of the fleet, and under the command of the fleet's E-2C "Hawkeye" early warning aircraft, the "Immortal Bird" missiles and "Sidewinder" missiles are used to intercept the enemy's incoming aircraft and missiles. In the attack operation of the task force, the F-14 accompanies the attack aircraft group to cover its own attack aircraft group to attack the enemy's ground targets or enemy fleet, or penetrates deep into the enemy's defense line and engages in air combat with enemy fighters to seize air supremacy. Although the F-14 has a large bomb load of 6,577 kilograms, because the F-14 is expensive, the US military stipulates that it must not be used to carry out ground attack missions unless it is absolutely necessary.
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The F-14 is one of the most equipped and technologically advanced fighters in the world today. Due to its high purchase price, the U.S. Navy has to adopt a high-end and low-end approach, using the F/A-18 fighter/attack aircraft with a wide range of performance and affordable prices to be used with the F-14. In the Gulf War, seven aircraft carriers of the US Navy carried 99 F-14 fighters and flew 4,182 sorties, with a total of 14,248 flight hours, with an average of 3~4 hours per sortie, which is longer than that of other aircraft in the Navy. The F-14 has escorted carrier-based attack aircraft, AWACS aircraft, etc., and has escorted B-52 strategic bombers that took off from Diego Garcia to attack Iraq. During the war, the F-14 was responsible for 4 24-hour air combat patrol areas, three of which were located in the Persian Gulf and one in the Red Sea. Tactical aerial reconnaissance is carried out day and night to provide intelligence for the detection of "Scud" missiles. The F-14 made 6 interceptions of Iraqi aircraft and shot down 1 helicopter. During the battle, 1 F-14 was shot down by a surface-to-air missile. As the years passed, the F-14 gradually grew older, and the US Navy began to consider the successor of the F-14 in the 80s of the 20th century. The U.S. Navy's plan to develop an advanced carrier-based fighter based on the U.S. Air Force's future stealth fighter, the F-22, was initially abandoned, but the plan was opposed by the U.S. Congress due to its huge cost and was eventually withdrawn. As a result, the US Navy plans to produce another 127 F-14D fighters and convert more than 400 existing F-14A into F-14Ds. But after the end of the Cold War, with the collapse of the Soviet Union, the U.S. Navy suddenly lost its opponents, and the development and equipment of the F-14D also lost its urgency, plus the F-14D is expensive, up to $100 million per aircraft, even if it is produced in batches, it will cost at least $80 million, such an expensive price makes the F-14D very anachronistic, and finally failed to get the approval of the U.S. Congress. In this way, the F-14D was discontinued in 1993 after 37 were produced and 18 were converted from the F-14A, and the entire production of the F-14 came to an end.