The F-14 Tomcat displayed on Lexington's flight deck arrived Corpus Christi in 1995, was demilitarized at NAS-CC, then traveled across Corpus Christi Bay to Lexington by barge. A large crane then lifted the big fighter plane from the barge and gently lowered it into place on the ship's flight deck.
One of the nation's premier fighter aircraft for more than two decades, and still flown by the military today, the two-man F-14 has a maximum air speed of 1,544 mph, a cruising speed of 576 mph and flies at altitudes of more than 56,000 feet. Its sophisticated radar/missile combination enables it to simultaneously track 24 separate targets and attack up to six with Phoenix missiles at up to 100 miles away.
The Tomcat has variable-geometry wings that sweep back automatically during flight maneuvers. They extend for long range flight and landings and sweep back for high speed flight and carrier stowage.
The F-14 Tomcat is recognized by many as the aircraft that played a major supporting role in the movie Top Gun starring Tom Cruise.
As a part of the Museum's aircraft collection, the F-14 has appeared in the pilot for the JAG television series and in a fashion layout featured in Harper's Bazaar magazine. It continues to serve daily as the backdrop for countless photographs taken by visitors to the USS Lexington Museum.
SPECIFICATIONS
- Wingspan - 64' 1-1/2" (unswept), 38' 2-1/2" (swept)
- Length - 62' 8"
- Height - 16'
- Empty Weight - 40,104 lbs
- Maximum Weight - 74,349 lbs
- Armament - One M61-A1 20mm cannon (internal), six AIM-54 Phoenix or six AIM-7 Sparrow missiles and two AIM-9 sidewinder missiles
- Power Plant - Two Pratt & Whitney 20,900# TF-30-P-414A Turbofan Engines
- Max Speed - 1,544 mph
- Range - 2,000 miles (with tanks)
- Crew - Two
This A-4 is on loan from the National Museum of Naval Aviation at Pensacola, Florida.
Click on a plane to view it's description.
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