US Navy F-14 Tomcat Units of Operation Iraqi Freedom (Combat Aircraft, 52)

One of the best F14 Tomcat books on its evolution from pure air-to-air fighter to one of the top all-around aircraft that could do all the mission requirements, and do it better than anyone else. Many of the Grumman Tomcat 21 upgrades and production would have made the big fighter the premier airplane into the next 30 years at a fraction of the cost of the F22 and F35 programs. The "interim " F18E/F Hornet, despite all its improvements, remains too short legged to do the role of the airplane it repaced. Alas, it will be around for a long time, as the Navy has nothing else to fall back on, due to the mis-guided Pentagon decision to eliminate the Tomcat program. You reap what you sow. And the Navys reaping has just begun.

Well written, and an enjoyable read for any pilot or fan of the Tomcat.

Vet interesting

Yet again Osprey have produced a conscise but excellent history cataloging the use of the F-14 units over Irag.Good pictures and profiles. The book also draws heavily on first person accounts from the pilots who flew the missions.Highly recommended.

Great book extremely detailed to my own memories of some of the birds I worked on and with over the years.

Great research material for scale-modellers and enthusiasts.

great book

Perfect! 😀

Libro pieno di curiosità su uno degli aerei militari più famosi e mitici della storia e le operazioni svolte durante l’ultimo conflitto in cui ha trovato utilizzo prima del ritiro.Indispensabile per chi nutre ammirazione verso questo iconico Jet militare.

Loved the stories from the sundown of this amazing aircraft. Good research into the F-14’s deployment in Operation Iraqi Freedom.

must have for F-14 fans and other people intersted in Military Aviation

Sehr gutes Buch über die US Navy F-14 Tomcats in OIF! Sollte in keiner Sammlung fehlen.

ついに全機退役目前となった、トムキャットの最後の実戦であるイラク戦争時の写真集が出た。写真は全体的に少な目で、多くても1ページに2枚で少々物足りない。ほとんどはカラーとモノクロが交互にページとなっていて、読みのもの傾向が強い。戦争中なので写真が少ないのか極秘扱いなのか....。中央部には割に正確なマーキングのイラストがあり、爆撃マークやワンポイントの機種のマーキングなどもある。湾岸戦争の時とは異なり今回は手書きのマーキングといったものは、ことトムキャットに関してはなかったようである。日本のマニア向けか4章はVF-154ブラックナイツとなっており写真も多い。3章ではVF-2、5章でVF-32とVF-213、6章でVF-11とVF-103となっている。数少ないTomcatの実戦の記録集として、公表されている写真も多いがマニアなら持っていなければならない1冊である。