Tomcat camo question

[Neal Nurmi]

I have never followed contemporary military aircraft especially closely, so I always have dumb questions that I should know the answers to.

Anyway, this shot was done in 2000. I have a shot from the same period of an F-18 in a similar pattern. In a time of flat grey paint schemes why was the Navy painting birds up like this?





I still miss the Tomcat. I'll never forget a show at Salinas California very early in the F-14 era when a pilot brought one in a bit after sunset and asked the tower if he could "burn off some excess fuel". He put on an absolutely amazing (and deafening) display of full burner playing around -- an amazing sight in the gathering darkness...

[eallen]

Topgun...Or later incarnation at Fallon...NSAWC...aggressor scheme...a al Iranian Air Force...?

[Neal Nurmi]

I kind of thought that something like that might be the case (the shot was done at the Reno Air Races), but could not quite imagine even our government committing something as absurdly expensive to operate as an F-14 to that kind of duty...

[jtramo]

Well using the Tomcat is the BEST was to simulate combat with a Tomcat. Or so Ive heard.

[Speedy]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aggressor ... cat-IR.jpg

[Snake45]

...could not quite imagine even our government committing something as absurdly expensive to operate as an F-14 to that kind of duty...

There is NOTHING "too expensive" for our "government" if somebody important enough wants it. After all it's not their money they're spending. It all just goes on a credit card that will never be paid anyway....

[Fouga23]

They had loads of them painted in weird markings. Some were actual Iranian Tomcats that were never delivered.
http://www.anft.net/f-14/f14-squadron-nfws.htm
This one is my favorite:

[CH2Tdriver]

There were 80 Tomcats in the IIAF order. All got delivered except for one:

http://www.military-quotes.com/media/fi ... omcat.html

[Neal Nurmi]

How many were still operational or nearly so in 1980?

[Tulio]

I have never followed contemporary military aircraft especially closely, so I always have dumb questions that I should know the answers to.

You should know by now, that the dumbest question is the one that is never asked. How else are we going to learn, if not by asking? No one is born knowing it all, and little by little, we build up our knowledge. ASK! ASK! We all learn a little with every question, and every answer!

Saludos,


Tulio

[hercules130]

A few pictures of BuNo 160913 about 10 years ago.

Enjoy,

Gary