Airworthy F-14 Possible?

[groggie]

Just read an article on Yahoo! about something called the "Maverick Act" to gift three F-14Ds to the U.S. Space & Rocket Center Museum with some language that may allow for restoration of one to airworthy for demonstration flights for airshows. It was written by Thomas at the Warzone. Interesting if real!

https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/god ... 06274.html

[junkman9096]

Maybe Iran has some spare parts they no longer have a use for.

[JohnB]

Neat goal.
With a WWII warbird if you have a sound airframe and a rebuildable engine, yes it can fly.
But modern warbirds have a lot of subsystems: electrical, hydraulic, motors, actuators, and that's without the combat avionics which of course wouldn't be needed here.

But, if there is good news, the Tomcat is old enough that excluding avionics, it might be analog enough that it is still supportable.
Especially, IF the Navy still has parts in its system.

(We see stories that modern F1 cars, and probably some exotics, are so computer dependant that they will be unsupportable when the computer systems are no longer available.
It happened to an accessory unit for my wife's sewing machine which was designed for Windows 2 or something).

So, I'll leave it to a F-14 pilot or maintainer to assess the viability.
Is there a computer system the plane must have to fly?
Perhaps an engine controller or artificial stability system?
If so, are there parts and software to restore it?

Frequent WIX visitor Al Casby, a pilot who has spent much of his life collecting parts to fly a F7U-3, might have some insight here. That aircraft is probably closer, technology wise, to a WWII warbird than a Tomcat, and it has been a challenge for him.

Think of it this way, in 50 years will there be the parts of its computer controlled stability system to slow a B-2 to fly?