Designed to carry the formidable long range AIM-54 Phoenix missile, the Grumman F-14 Tomcat was first flown on December 21st, 1970. Made famous by the Hollywood film Top Gun, the F-14 replaced the F-4 Phantom II as the US Navy's primary maritime air superiority fighter. Its design includes a variable geometry wing that can sweep back for high speed supersonic intercepts and forward for improved positioning in air to air dogfights. Nicknamed "Bombcat," the F-14 spent much of its late career in an air-to-ground role, carrying the Low Altitude Navigation and Targeting Infrared for Night (LANTIRN) system.

Info: F-14D Tomcat - USN VF-31 Tomcatters, AJ101, USS Theodore Roosevelt, Last F-14 Cruise 2006