The US will send its last three F-14D Tomcats to a museum to prevent spare parts from ending up in Iran.

The Maverick Act has quietly passed the U.S. Senate. The document authorized the transfer of the last three F-14D Tomcats from the U.S. Navy to the Space and Rocket center in Huntsville, Alabama.

Essentially, the plan is to decommission the aircraft from military service. But it's not that simple. Legislators not only authorized the fighter jets to be placed on an open-air pedestal. The text also stipulates that the aircraft can be restored to airworthy condition.

For years, the Pentagon persistently destroyed the remaining F-14s to prevent spare parts from leaking to Iran, where Tomcats are still in service. The US Navy has transitioned to Super Hornets, and maintaining the F-14s for just three aircraft is an unaffordable luxury.

Now, Huntsville enthusiasts are receiving more than just museum exhibits. The law also imposes strict restrictions: the aircraft cannot be sold, given away, or traded without military approval. And most importantly, any flight (if it occurs) is the sole responsibility of the new owner.

A classic American compromise. On the one hand, a gesture of goodwill, a tribute aviationOn the other hand, Washington has carefully factored out potential losses.

In practice, however, flight restoration of the F-14D is a task of incredible complexity. The TF30 engines are long out of production, the 80s-era electronics require a complete replacement, and certifying such an aircraft in US skies is a multi-year bureaucratic nightmare.

Comments

[cocks]

to prevent spare parts from ending up in Iran

Of course. Otherwise, these spare parts will be salvaged from the ruins of the Iranian Air Force. It's a scary thing, if you think about it.

[knn54]

Nonsense - the Iranian F-14s have different engines and avionics.

[BOCTOBER 77]

Absolutely right. But who knows? The F-14D long-range naval fighter is a unique machine and deserves respect.

The weapon control system (FCS) was also upgraded. The F-14D received a more advanced Hughes AN/APG-71 radar system, capable of tracking 24 targets in flight and simultaneously guiding six Phoenix missiles to different targets.

https://testpilot.ru/usa/hughes/aim/54/c/
The digital computer was reliable and easy to maintain, and the new AIM-54C Phoenix missile had a range of up to 180 km and entered service in 1986. The MiG-31 was armed with a similar missile, but could only carry four, and could guide and launch only two at a time.
In 1982, at the regiment's command post, during an exercise, I told the commander about the F-14's performance characteristics; he was surprised...

[novel66]

It's a shame about the plane – it's beautiful. And Tom Cruise flew it...

[Santa Fe]

The example of Iran shows the following:

Given technological lag, the presence of the Air Force, Navy, and all traditional branches of the armed forces becomes irrelevant. Building ships and aircraft, purchasing S-300s—all of this is a waste of money.

The only component of the Iranian Armed Forces that offered resistance was the missile force. And the key tactic was indiscriminate strikes against everyone within missile range.

[foxes]

Not everyone can understand this. Quantity isn't enough. You also need to know how to use it, and most importantly, know what it's meant for.

[Foggy Dew]

Oy vey! And who <will shoot down the Bubnovs?> canceled that same landing operation—drones with missiles? Or are traditional branches and arms of the armed forces there? And by the way, there's quite a few dead over Iran. The "F-15 pilot-navigator evacuation" episode will haunt us for a long time.
And there was no random shooting—there was a systematic removal of ALL US bases in the region, plus the dismantling of the region's air and missile defense systems. This included targeted strikes on oil refineries in an attempt to carry out similar strikes on Iran.
Such blatant chatter doesn't work; this isn't the USA or Ukraine.
And in general, Iran's main weapon there was economics, and Iran had long understood this, and had been preparing for this for a long time. It was used successfully, and it turned out that, given the brains, a trillion-dollar annual military budget is garbage, along with embezzlement on Patriots, F-35s, and aircraft carriers with electromagnetic catapults.

[Revolver]

Quote: Santa Fe

The only component of the Iranian Armed Forces

The Iranian Armed Forces did not participate in the fighting, not at all. The missiles belong to the IRGC, and they are not part of the Iranian Armed Forces. They are like the SS, which was always administratively separate from the Wehrmacht, although sometimes one was operationally subordinated to the other.

[Santa Fe]

The missiles are the IRGC's, and they are not part of the Iranian Armed Forces.

How they are separated and what shoulder straps they wear is their personal business.

IRBMs and Shaheed missiles were launched from Iranian territory. All other Iranian weapons, as you rightly noted, were not used at all.

[bayard]

Quote: Santa Fe

All the other weapons Iran had, as you rightly noted, were not used at all.

Well, there was no need for that—there was no ground operation, and remote strikes against enemies are precisely the job of missile forces and attack UAVs. But otherwise, yes—the IRGC is in charge.

[fruc]

The US will send its last three F-14D Tomcats to a museum.

Better to take it straight to the recycling dump.

[Graz]

This is bullshit. They have thousands of aircraft in storage in the desert. I'm sure they have an F-14 Tomcat there too. I don't know about the specific modification, but it's a blatant lie.

[Maikcg]

These three 146% are from the desert. Google's latest satellite image is from August 2025, and there are five of them at the Davis-Monthan air base. Looking at older images, there were eight in 2011, and 40+ in 2008 (I may not have seen them all).

[snow mountain]

Quote: Santa Fe

The only component of the Iranian Armed Forces that offered resistance was the missile forces.

Well, there are also drones. And then there are the BECs, waiting for their moment.

[Bad_gr]

TF30 engines are no longer in production, .....................

Regarding engines:

"......... The pace of aircraft development outpaced the prospective engine being designed for it. Therefore, the first experimental Tomcats were temporarily equipped with the Pratt & Whitney TF30-P-412A turbofan. These engines were based on the TF-30-P turbofan installed on the F-111 and A-7 strike aircraft. But even the increased thrust of 9070 kgf was insufficient for the heavy fighter. Another problem was the unsatisfactory stability and throttle response of the TF-30 engine during vigorous maneuvering at high angles of attack.
Powertrain issues have been a constant problem with Tomcats. Approximately 28% of all F-14 crashes were lost for this reason. According to American pilots, the F-14 is capable of performing its intended missions, but requires careful piloting; in some cases, low-speed flights at high altitudes can be risky.
__For fifteen years, more suitable engines were sought for the F-14, but the issue was resolved only in the late 80s, after the installation of the General Electric F110-GE-400 engine, which was used in the F-15 and F-16 fighters. The process of re-equipping with new engines took place between 1988 and 1990. And in 90 and 93, production of another version of the Tomcat was launched, featuring the F110 turbofan and an improved avionics suite—the F-14D...

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information sources:
http://www.airwar.ru/enc/fighter/f14.html
http://www.airwar.ru/enc/fighter/f14d.html
http://www.airbase.ru/hangar/planes/usa/f/f-14/