"Laura O''Leary" wrote in message news:...
Well, the bigger issues are requirements and cost. The requirement for a
fighter to be able to engage and destroy a target at the long range of the
Phoenix just isn't there anymore. The ROE is too restrictive to allow for
the engagement of targets at that range. The cold war days of protecting
the fleet from the big bad Soviet bombers are long gone. As for the cost,
the F-14 is the highest in maintenance man-hours per flight in carrier
aircraft. (The EA-6B is the next highest in maint man-hours and will
follow the Tomcat into the Super Hornet world). Besides the maintenance
man-hours, the availability and mission capability ratings of the Toms
isn't nearly as good as the Super Hornet. While the Tomcat does do a
fantastic job filling the role of a pseudo-medium range bomber, the recent
trend is to deliver smaller war heads to reduce collateral damage. But,
the days of going out and carrying in excess of twenty 500-pound dumb
bombs have already passed. The joint battlespace doesn't require the CV to
deliver that type and quantity anymore. The Air Force has to fill the
role of heavy bombers which would carry numerous PGMs and the Navy has the
Super Hornet to attempt to fill the pseudo-medium bomber which would also
use PGMs. In summary, the Tomcat is a great aircraft whose day has
unfortunately passed, but current requirements and fiscal responsibilities
make the Tomcat no longer viable.

"Tamas Feher" wrote in message
...
It seems there is credible evidence for around 130 air-to-air
F-14 kills, with some 40 of those been AIM-54 kills.

Except for the fact that CIA ordered US ground crew in Iran to sabotage
Phoenix related gear in Tomcats' radars as soon as the shah fell from
power.

Otherwise the AIM54 was never meant to be used against small and agile
targets like fighter bombers, which Iraq had. In contrast a cruise
missile or a bomb-laden Tu-95 cannot do the immelman, so they are easy to
hit with a big and necessarily sluggish missile from 70 nm.

Otherwise all variable wing planes suck a great deal: heavy,
trouble-prone, cost a lot to maintain, wings mecha takes up precious
place in the fuselage, won't survive battle damage. No wonder the USN is
retiring all Tomcats. The MiG-23 has long hit the scapyard most places.
Remaining F-111 has been deported to a place where planes normally fly
upside-down. The Tornado flies only because anything else is better than
an F-104.