The F-14 Tomcat is more than just a naval plane, it has marked an era in the same way that aircraft like the F-4 Phantom II, the different models of the mythical Mirage, the F-86 Sabre, the P-51 Mustang, and the Spitfire did. The uniqueness of its mission and having a single user (in addition to Iran) were not an obstacle for this exceptional fighter to gain respect and a reputation that few fighter planes have had throughout the twentieth century.

For thirty-five years of active naval service, the Grumman F-14 Tomcat was the foremost air superiority fighter of the Cold War, with continuing service as a fighter-bomber in the Gulf Wars. Two hundred thousand sailors, both pilots and "ground" crew, served in F-14 squadrons with the Tomcat over its decades of flight.This book is a grand remembrance of this great aircraft by those who flew it. Hundreds of pilots have included their favorite stories of the missions and planes that brought them home. Two hundred exceptional color photographs show the F-14 on the deck, in the air, and over the sea.

So formidable an opponent did the Iraqi airforce consider the F-14 that during the Iran-Iraq war, they ordered their pilots not to engage F-14s and the presence of one in an area was usually enough to empty it of Iraqi aircraft. Officially losses where tiny; only one F-14 was lost in aerial combat (to a MiG-21), one to a control problem and one downed by a ground-to-air missile. This book looks at the F-14's Iranian combat history and includes first hand accounts from the pilots themselves. It will consider key engagements and the central figures involved, illustrating the realities, successes and failures of the Iranian air campaign.

Becoming the best doesn’t happen overnight; you’ve got to work for it. Before becoming an instructor in the Navy’s Topgun program, Dave “Bio” Baranek was just another kid with a dream. Upon graduating from college, he joined the Navy with the goal of becoming a fighter pilot. But, his eyesight waning, he knew that he would never be able to reach that goal. Undaunted, he plowed ahead and found his niche as a radar intercept operator in the backseat of the sleek, new Grumman F-14 Tomcat. Join Baranek in Before Topgun Days as he takes you along for this greatest, most exciting time of his young life: training to become a naval flight officer. Taking place before the events recounted in his previous memoir, Topgun Days, Baranek brings to life the anxieties and excitement of entering the fast-paced world of fighter jocks. From a green recruit to an experienced flyer, discover what it took to become a Topgun instructor. Skyhorse Publishing, along with our Arcade, Good Books, Sports Publishing, and Yucca imprints, is proud to publish a broad range of biographies, autobiographies, and memoirs. Our list includes biographies on well-known historical figures like Benjamin Franklin, Nelson Mandela, and Alexander Graham Bell, as well as villains from history, such as Heinrich Himmler, John Wayne Gacy, and O. J. Simpson. We have also published survivor stories of World War II, memoirs about overcoming adversity, first-hand tales of adventure, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.

From Topgun to Squadron Command You’re in the cockpit of the legendary F-14 Tomcat fighter, blazing along at twice the speed of sound seven miles above the ocean and the carrier that hurled you off its deck. You’re practicing dogfighting with “aggressors,” guys on your side flying F-16s. You’re patrolling the tense skies above Iraq, and with the push of a button you can launch the 100-mile Phoenix missile that can blow a foe to scrap before you even see him. You are an expert in fighter tactics and aircraft carrier operations, and it all leads to your command of an F-14 fighter squadron of more than three hundred people. Sounds like a week’s worth of daydreams, but it’s all real-life in the career of Dave “Bio” Baranek, and he shares it with you in the exciting, superbly crafted new book, Tomcat Rio. Dave – callsign “Bio” – pulled his readers into the exciting world of the F-14 and the Navy’s TOPGUN program with his popular books Topgun Days and Before Topgun Days. Now he’s back with the rest of the story, as he reaches the top level of expertise and proves it, not just in graded competitions but also where it counts, where you shoot at them and they shoot at you. Dave also shares the challenges he faced. A deadly foe called complacency. Learning a whole new mission late in his career. The unexpected trials that come with leading a squadron in the dynamic environment of Naval Aviation. This third volume is full of adventures, lessons, and inspiration. If you are a casual reader, you’ll turn the last page as a dedicated Tomcat fan. To make it all even more real, Tomcat Rio includes dozens of Bio’s best and most acclaimed photos. Photographer George Hall hailed one shot as “one of the best Tomcat photos ever taken.” In words and pictures, Bio immerses you in rich detail. He pipes you aboard as a member of an F-14 squadron. You share the camaraderie of Type A personalities. You plan risky missions, going toe-to-toe against America’s most volatile foes. You can almost smell the pungent jet exhaust, almost feel the gut-wrenching G’s of a dogfight, as Tomcat Rio pitches you into the thick of it as only Bio can tell it. Strap in! You’re going for one fantastic ride.

For the past two years, while the sun was setting on the iconic F-14 Tomcat, aviation photographer and author Erik Hildebrandt has been capturing the final defining moments of the few remaining F-14 squadrons in the US Navy Fighter community. Anytime, Baby! is an unforgettable collection of final-phase Tomcat milestones captured and preserved forever in some of the most detailed and dynamic photographic compositions Hildebrandt has ever attempted. From riding along with VF-211, the last squadron to ever fly the F-14A, to flying with VF-32 on the last deployment of the F-14B in the Arabian Gulf in 2005, Hildebrandt has been witness to the end of an era. Anytime, Baby! is an important historic record as much as it is an artistic and beautiful tribute to the most popular American fighter in history. A true "must-have" addition for the aviation enthusiasts as well as former and current Navy and Marine Corp service personnel.

Equipped with well-balanced air wings, huge aircraft carriers have formed the backbone of the United States Navy's doctrine and strategy since the Second World War. Packing an enormous punch, their purpose is to exercise control over enormous portions of airspace - in the offence or defence.From the mid-1970s until the mid-2000s, the spear tip of the USN air wings was the famous Grumman F-14 Tomcat - widely considered one of the finest air superiority systems in the world. Originally designed as a fast, manoeuvrable and well-armed fighter, the Tomcat entered service as the ultimate long-range fleet defender and became the biggest, most complex and most expensive naval aircraft of its time. Including a unique and exceptional combination of flight characteristics, detection systems and weapons, it earned itself the status of a legend by the mid-1980s.The F-14 Tomcats of the US Navy achieved their first aerial victories during freedom of navigation exercises off Libya in 1981. However, the period during which they saw most combat followed several years later, during Operations Earnest Will and then Desert Storm, from 1987 until 1991.To date, very little has been published about the operations in question. Indeed, the widespread belief is that USN F-14s saw next to no air combat against Iran, and even less so during Operation Desert Storm in 1991. As so often, the reality is entirely different: Tomcats engaged dozens of opponents, often on the verge of the engagement envelope of their powerful AWG-9 radars and AIM-54 Phoenix long-range air-to-air missiles, and sometimes at such close ranges that their pilots selected 'guns'. Weather- and communications-related problems, but also the incredible discipline of their crews prevented them from scoring up to a dozen aerial victories: however, it is perfectly possible that they scored at least one, perhaps more previously entirely unknown aerial victories - and also lost one of their own to an enemy fighter.Richly illustrated by over 100 photographs and authentic colour profiles, 'Tomcats of the Storm' is an exclusive source of reference about some of least-well known air combats fought by US Navy's fighter crews in recent history.