Retiring the F-14 Tomcat

All good things come to an end, and so it was with the Tomcat’s US Navy service. The end came in 2006, when the final Navy F-14 squadron -- VF-31 Tomcatters – shut down their F-14Ds for the last time. There’s a lot more to the story than the Tomcat Sunset ceremony at NAS Oceana and a final flight, such as the final deployment and behind-the-scenes activities that will surprise you.

Our guest is uniquely qualified for this topic, as he was the last commanding officer of VF-31: James “Puck” Howe. (Yes, the squadron continued, but it became VFA-31.) His accounts of the squadron’s performance and the aircraft’s final months will make you proud to be a Tomcat fan!

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