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Grumman F-14 Tomcat: Anytime Baby…! |
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Reviewed By John Noack |
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Published by Zenith
Press, an imprint of MBI Publishing "So there I was, sitting in the front seat of my F-14A, both P&W engines in full AB, awaiting the cat shot…". Well, that's what I imagined as a 22 year old Grumman engineer, sitting in F-14 #3, which unfortunately for my little fantasy was parked in Plant 6 at Calverton, LI. I had been working on the F-14 for about two months, designing the composite overwing fairing, and we were getting ready to do some flight tests to determine stress levels in the OWF (the triangular-shaped piece of structure with two carry-through beams that sits on top of the inboard portion of the swing wing). I begged a chance from the Plane Captain to climb into the cockpit. I remember thinking "how does he even see the deck on approach with all this stuff in the way?". A few minutes of listening for the tone off the MiG I imagined at 11 o'clock low and it was back to checking out strain gages and torque values. But it was a glorious few minutes of hangar flying. This book - authored, if that's the right word, by Dave "Hey Joe" Parsons, the late George Hall, and Bob Lawson - well known names in the Tailhook community - is nothing less than a love story told in pictures and a few, well chosen words. Large, glamorous images of the Turkey taken by many of today's foremost aviation photographers are accompanied by short quotes from those who flew, wrenched, and in a few cases, punched out of this beloved big dawg of a fighter. The text is added in such a way that each recollection appears poetic, although describing how two NFO's jumped from the cockpit of a Tomcat under tow, as the combination of a tight carrier turn and a rogue wave launched Tomcat and tractor over the side, probably doesn't qualify as poetic. The images are simply stunning. Ranging from silhouette-lit sunset profiles to close-ups taken during the filming of Top Gun, you'll see Grumman's last Cat from every conceivable vantage point (including a few that will leave you wondering how that picture was possibly taken). Is this the ultimate modelers' resource on the F-14? Probably not, although I was salivating at a few of the CAG and commemorative paint schemes. Some of the incredibly weather-beaten paint jobs would make for a great contest entry - an image from this book would have to accompany the model, or the judging team would gig the modeler! And some of the close-ups will certainly expose a wealth of detail to be added. But plain and simple, this is an homage to the last days of this one-of-a-kind airplane. The authors and contributors aren't shy about expressing their feelings about the untimely demise of the "D" model with its GE engines, and tales of waxing Hornets, Eagles and Vipers abound. For this reviewer, who just returned from EAA Oshkosh 2006 with his new "Grumman Ironworks" t-shirt in hand - it's a long-overdue treat. Highly recommended, particularly if "call the ball" fits anywhere in your vernacular. John Noack |
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