F-14A Early
Contents
Description
The F-14A Tomcat (Early) is a rank VIII American jet fighter with a battle rating of 12.3 (AB/SB) and 12.7 (RB). It was introduced in Update "Danger Zone".
General info
Flight performance
The F-14A might be seen underpowered compared to other aircrafts, primarily the F-4J Phantom II and other Phantom variants such as the FG.1 Phantom. While it is true that the engines are not as powerful, the flight performance of the F-14A is much better when it comes to top speed and energy attacks. The F-14A is not a turnfighter as the F-5 and does not turn as fast compared to other energy fighters, but holds a significant engine power for fast acceleration as well as reaching high altitudes in a relatively short time. Thanks to the variable wing swept, it is able to move its center of mass and thus, increasing or deducing its roll rate. High swept means higher speeds at reduced roll rate and viceversa; low swept means slower speeds at an increased roll rate.
| Characteristics | Max Speed (km/h at 12,192 m) |
Max altitude (metres) |
Turn time (seconds) |
Rate of climb (metres/second) |
Take-off run (metres) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AB | RB | AB | RB | AB | RB | |||
| Stock | 2,202 | 2,191 | 16764 | 24.4 | 25.1 | 178.4 | 170.5 | 750 |
| Upgraded | ___ | ___ | __._ | __._ | __._ | __._ | ||
Details
| Features | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Combat flaps | Take-off flaps | Landing flaps | Air brakes | Arrestor gear | Drogue chute |
| ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | X |
| Limits | Wings (km/h) | Gear (km/h) | Flaps (km/h) | Max Static G | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Combat | Take-off | Landing | + | - | |||
| Min sweep | 1,359 | 518 | 1,200 | 873 | 416 | ~10 | ~4 |
| Max sweep | 1,555 | ~12 | ~4 | ||||
| Optimal velocities (km/h) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Ailerons | Rudder | Elevators | Radiator |
| < ___ | < ___ | < ___ | N/A |
Engine performance
| Engine | Aircraft mass | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Engine name | Number | Basic mass | Wing loading (full fuel) | ||||||
| Pratt & Whitney TF30-P-412A | 2 | 18,545 kg | 493 kg/m2 | ||||||
| Engine characteristics | Mass with fuel (no weapons load) | Max Gross Weight | |||||||
| Weight (each) | Type | 18m fuel | 20m fuel | 30m fuel | 45m fuel | 62m fuel | |||
| 1,802 kg | Afterburning low-bypass turbofan | 20,750 kg | 20,905 kg | 22,085 kg | 23,855 kg | 25,895 kg | 30,935 kg | ||
| Maximum engine thrust @ 0 m (RB/SB) | Thrust to weight ratio @ 0 m (WEP) | ||||||||
| Condition | 100% | WEP | 18m fuel | 20m fuel | 30m fuel | 45m fuel | 62m fuel | MGW | |
| Stationary | 4,860 kgf | 8,019 kgf | 0.77 | 0.77 | 0.73 | 0.67 | 0.62 | 0.52 | |
| Optimal | 5,808 kgf (1,555 km/h) |
12,692 kgf (1,555 km/h) |
1.22 | 1.21 | 1.15 | 1.06 | 0.98 | 0.82 | |
Survivability and armour
The F-14A is one of the few aircraft to stay at the border between a small flare count and a high one. It holds x60 countermeasures, a decent amount of flares that can keep the Tomcat on the air for longer. Due to the massive engines, the IR signature of the aircraft is not an easy thing to conceal when fighting heat-seeking missiles. Afterburners should be turned off and preferably throttle should be reduced while dumping flares. This is to ensure that IR guided missiles track the flares and not the engines. Due to the massive size compared to other aircraft, the chances of a successful hit from enemy anti-air, both missile and cannon, are higher compared to other aircraft, such as the AV-8 or F-5. This should be taken into consideration as proximity fuzes will trigger with more ease as the wingspan of the Tomcat is considerably larger than most jets seen in game.
Modifications and economy
| Flight performance | Survivability | Weaponry | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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|
|
Armaments
| Ballistic Computer | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| CCIP (Guns) | CCIP (Rockets) | CCIP (Bombs) | CCRP (Bombs) |
 |
|
|
|
Offensive armament
The F-14A Early is armed with:
- A choice between two presets:
- 1 x 20 mm M61A1 cannon, cheek-mounted (676 rpg)
- 1 x 20 mm M61A1 cannon + 60 x countermeasures
Suspended armament
The F-14A Early can be outfitted with the following ordnance presets:
- Without load
- 2 x AIM-9D Sidewinder missiles
- 4 x AIM-9D Sidewinder missiles
- 4 x AIM-9G Sidewinder missiles
- 4 x AIM-9H Sidewinder missiles
- 6 x AIM-7E Sparrow missiles
- 6 x AIM-7F Sparrow missiles
- 6 x AIM-54A Phoenix missiles
- 14 x 250 lb LDGP Mk 81 bombs (3,500 lb total)
- 14 x 500 lb LDGP Mk 82 bombs (7,000 lb total)
- 4 x 1,000 lb LDGP Mk 83 bombs (4,000 lb total)
- 4 x 2,000 lb LDGP Mk 84 bombs (8,000 lb total)
- 16 x Zuni Mk32 Mod 0 ATAP rockets
The F-14A is the first aircraft in game to have access to Active Radar Homing missiles with internal navigation. While it is mostly used for air defense and anti-air duties, it holds decent ground pounding abilities that are nothing new to American pilots. The F-14A has access to a wide variety of weapon selections due to having 'Custom Loadouts' feature. Depending on the needs of the pilot, one can carry different loadouts for different needs. Some may prefer the use of the AIM-7F over the AIM-54 due to the fast acceleration and good performance in short-medium ranges. A recommended loadout to carry is the following: x4 AIM-54A, x2 AIM-7F, x2 AIM-9 (on preference). It holds the power to fight on all ranges, being able to launch AIM-54A at unaware targets and then engage other with Sparrows, later to dogfight at close ranges with Sidewinders.
Custom loadout options
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |  | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 250 lb LDGP Mk 81 bombs | 8* | 6 | ||||||
| 500 lb LDGP Mk 82 bombs | 8* | 6 | ||||||
| 1,000 lb LDGP Mk 83 bombs | 2* | 2 | ||||||
| 2,000 lb LDGP Mk 84 bombs | 2*† | 2 | ||||||
| Zuni Mk32 Mod 0 ATAP rockets | 8 | 8 | ||||||
| AIM-7E Sparrow missiles | 1 | 2 | 1, 2* | 1 | ||||
| AIM-7F Sparrow missiles | 1 | 2 | 1, 2* | 1 | ||||
| AIM-9D Sidewinder missiles | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||||
| AIM-9G Sidewinder missiles | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||||
| AIM-9H Sidewinder missiles | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||||
| AIM-54A Phoenix missiles | 1 | 2* | 2† | 1 | ||||
| * Use of dual Sparrow missiles on hardpoint 4 prevents use of the marked options on hardpoint 3 † The AIM-54A Phoenix missiles on hardpoint 4 cannot be carried in conjunction with 2,000 lb LDGP Mk 84 bombs on hardpoint 3 | ||||||||
Usage in battles
The F-14A Tomcat is an energy and air-superiority fighter and should be used as such. A mix between long-range weapons and short-range weapons must be used at pilot's discretion. It is adviced to never turn fight with the Tomcat unless absolutely neccesary as the speed will drastically bleed, leaving it as an easy target for enemy aircraft and anti-air. The range of the missiles can be drastically increased if the Tomcat is positioned above its target. The missiles will not only increase speed but distance as well, this should be taken into consideration as it can take unaware targets as they never expect to be hit from the top. Thankfully, both the Sparrow and the AIM-54A are able to do all-aspect attacks on enemies, making it an all-rounder weapon for all sorts of medium-long range scenarios. The F-14A is specially practical when playing enduring confrontation battles as it is able to engage multiple targets at a time with the AIM-54A at extreme ranges. Useful for taking down enemy attackers, scouts and players. It should be noted that the F-14A burns up fuel very fast when on afterburner. This should be taken into consideration as one can burn up all the fuel without realizing until it is too late.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Excellent turn rate despite being a large and heavy plane
- 60 countermeasures provides excellent ability to ward off missiles
- Lethal M61 Vulcan due to its fast fire rate and projectile velocity
- Can carry up to 8 missiles maximum, with options of AIM-7s, AIM-9s, and AIM-54 for versatile use
- The AIM-54 has insane range (100 km max) and its rocket booster lasts for a very long time, and it's also an Active Radar Homing missile
- Very effective dogfighter at any speeds with its variable wing sweep thus being one of the best energy retaining jet fighters
- Variable swept wings can help plane accelerate fast when it's swept back and also good when slow with the wings are expanded
- The top speed of this plane is very high (can cap out at 1500 km/h IAS at sea level)
- Effective bomb loadouts also makes this plane good at ground pounding
- Multi-mode radar makes it effective at any situation (The TWS mode makes the AIM-54 rather potent)
- The brand new AIM-9H has much better flare resistance than previous AIM-9s (such as the G variant or J)
Cons:
- Big plane, leading to the F-14A being a very easy target to hit
- The fuel burning is otherworldly fast, requires carrying a lot that can hamper the plane's maneuverability
- Massive wing and fuselage fuel tanks makes it so if the plane gets hit anywhere, it would most definitely go down in a fireball
- Cannot pull sustained Gs when above 1000 km/h IAS (11-13 Gs) or the wings will rip
- The engine heat signature is very large, making plane more vulnerable to IR missiles, especially when the pilot is distracted
- The AIM-54's rocket motor lasts for a very long time making it very easy to see and dodge
History
Early Development
In 1967, the U.S. Navy wanted a long-range fleet defence fighter to boost their naval plane capabilities with the "VFX" program. The USN first started with a redesigned F-111 Aardvark named the F-111B (basically an F-111 designed around the TF30 engine and AIM-54 Phoenix missiles), they soon found out that the F-111 was too big for practical reasons so the F-111B plan never came to fruition. Fast forward to 1969, the USN gave the contract to Grumman to build the new fleet defence fighter named the F-14 Tomcat, its first variants were built around the TF30 engines found on the F-111B and to use the AN/AWG-9 radar set and the airframe was specifically built to carry the AIM-54 Phoenix missile.
Devblog
In 1968, five aircraft building companies entered the Pentagon's competition for a new carrier-based interceptor fighter. The commission's preference was given to Grumman's design, a twin-engine jet fighter with a variable-swept wing. Work on the F-14A fighter began in February 1969, and in December of the next year, the new aircraft took her maiden flight. The main weapon of the F-14A was the AIM-54 Phoenix long-range missiles controlled by the newest to date weapon control system. Instead of building prototypes, Grumman immediately switched to the production of an experimental series, and already on December 31, 1972, the first batch of jet fighters were put into service with the VF-124 Fleet Replacement Squadron . Pilot training took place on the deck of the USS Enterprise aircraft carrier, and during the withdrawal of US troops from Vietnam, combat sorties were also made from the deck. In total 557 F-14A fighters were delivered to the US Navy until 1987, and another 80 aircraft were built for Iran. Tomcats were used in all military conflicts where US aircraft took part until the very decommissioning. Iranian F-14s took an active part in the Iran-Iraq war, scoring dozens of air kills.
Media
- Images
- Videos
See also
Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:
- reference to the series of the aircraft;
- links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.
External links
- [Devblog] F-14A Tomcat: Into the Danger Zone!
- Official data sheet - more details about the performance
| Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corporation | |
|---|---|
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