The famous and now retired F-14 Tomcat fighter became known for its unprecedented Mach 2.3 speed, air-to-air superiority, and the backbone of the United States Navy’s Carrier Air Wing for decades all the way up through Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Yet, the revered aircraft had a lesser-known, inauspicious beginning with its first Northrop Grumman buyer, which was ultimately resolved with great results.
F-14 Tomcat Fighter: Building for a Buyer
The story involves many nuances and introduces several key adaptations Grumman made to salvage or resurrect construction and forward progress for the aircraft. This platform eventually became among the most successful ever to exist.
This background is explained in detail in an interesting essay by theaviationgeekclub.com, which recounts a series of surprising twists and turns experienced in the early days of the F-14’s existence.
A successful former US pilot named Bob Belter later became a Northrop Grumman employee responsible for purchasing the first 70 F-14s.
Born in the 1970s, the F-14 Tomcat was envisioned as an F-111 replacement, and Belter somehow made this happen despite seemingly overwhelming odds.
Belter had been an A-3 Skywarrior pilot, Aerospace Engineering Duty Officer, and F-8 Crusader pilot; he was also one of the Navy pilots who flew the proposed Navy version of the F-111B and contributed to its ultimate demise.
This decline helped clear a path for the successful emergence of the Tomcat. However, Belter encountered substantial financial “woes” while working to acquire F-14s. Belter served as the leader of the Naval Plant Representative Office for Grumman’s Aerospace Bethpage facility from 1971 to 1974.
F-14 Tomcat. Image taken at National Air and Space Museum on October 1, 2022. Image by 19FortyFive.
“While he (Belter) didn’t fly the Tomcat, he “bought” the first 70 F-14s for the Navy, along with Grumman’s other products at the time: A-6E, EA-6B, and E-2C,” theaviationgeekclub.com writes. However, Belter encountered a serious financial challenge while acquiring the Tomcats because “higher-than-expected inflation raised Grumman’s costs.”
This economic burden proved quite difficult, as Grumman had already lowered its price to win the contract.
Grumman Financial Solution
To solve the problem, Belter wound up “signing out” checks for “thirty-eight million dollars … and eighty-five cents.”
“Bob says that part of the cure for these financial woes was to advance Grumman progress payments at a favorable rate – sort of a loan – which went into a special account at First National City Bank of New York (now Citibank). For Grumman to draw the funds, checks had to be signed by a senior Grumman corporate officer and Mr. Belter. One of the checks is shown here, with Bob’s signature as the “countersigning agent.” Grumman eventually took a loss that it could bear, arranged several loans, and renegotiated the contract, and Bob still gets a chuckle out signing a check for “thirty-eight effing million dollars … and eighty-five cents!” theaviationgeekclub.com states.
F-14 Problems
Belter’s challenges did not end there, as he also oversaw efforts to address F-14 TF30 engine nozzle problems and cracks in a titanium containment ring, which was made too thin to save weight.
“US Air Force program managers had carved the titanium containment ring forging around the fan section down to a thin waffle pattern to save weight. When the afterburner light problem caused a fan blade to fail, the reduced strength ring allowed it to destroy critical and flammable components in the vicinity – which led to the loss of aircraft,” theaviationgeekclub.com explains.
Fortunately, Belter was able to help find a solution with Navy developers, who implemented a program to contain fragments and protect components in the event of future incidents.
With Navy monitoring, these efforts eventually proved successful, and the F-14 emerged from its troubled beginning to serve a long, successful, and distinguished career.
The F-14’s engine problems wound up leading to a significant and highly impactful upgrade, given that its original TF30 was retired due to performance challenges and replaced with General Electric F110-GE-400 engines, which “solved” the TF30’s performance problems.
This adjustment helped support the aircraft’s propulsion and thrust-to-weight ratio in a manner that helped propel the platform’s successful combat performance in Vietnam, Libya, the Gulf War, and 2003 Operation Iraqi Freedom. The aircraft was retired in 2006
F-14 Accomplishments
As a two-seat fighter jet, the F-14 became known for its air-to-air prowess, given that several sets of eyes could monitor relevant targets, enemy maneuvers, and overall combat-zone awareness.
While in flight, a pilot focuses on vectoring and locking in targets for the jet’s weapons; an aviator can simultaneously track additional targets, survey the surrounding area with additional line-of-sight observations, and offer time-sensitive constructive input and instruction to the pilot.
The presence of the aviator lowered the cognitive burden placed upon pilots and allowed for a more focused precision-attack air combat fighter.
About the Author: Kris Osborn
Kris Osborn is the Military Technology Editor of 19FortyFive and President of Warrior Maven – Center for Military Modernization. Osborn previously served at the Pentagon as a highly qualified expert in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army—Acquisition, Logistics & Technology. Osborn has also worked as an anchor and on-air military specialist at national TV networks. He has appeared as a guest military expert on Fox News, MSNBC, The Military Channel, and The History Channel. He also has a Masters Degree in Comparative Literature from Columbia University.
