F-14D vs F-18E/F

ferret69 SG

http://www.flightjournal.com/articles/f14f18/f14f18_1.asp

It's a damning indictment of the shortcomings of the F-18E/F as quoted below.

(Start Quote)

An F/A-18A was used to chase an F-14D test flight. The F-14D was carrying four 2,000-pound bombs, two 280-gallon drop tanks, two HARM missiles and two Sidewinder air-to-air missiles. The chase airplane was in a relatively clean configuration with only a centerline fuel tank. At the end of each test flight, the chase airplane was several miles behind the test airplane when the chase airplane reached bingo fuel and had to return to base.

An F/A-18E Super Hornet is tested using the same chase airplane, an earlier model Hornet, in the same configuration. The chase airplane does not need full thrust to stay with the test airplane.

An F/A-18E/F in maximum afterburner thrust cannot exceed Mach 1.0 in level flight below 10,000 feet even when it is in the clean configuration (no external stores). At 10,000 feet, the F-14D can exceed Mach 1.6.

A quote from a Hornet pilot is devastatingly frank: The aircraft is slower than most fighters fielded since the early 1960s.

The most devastating comment came from a Hornet pilot who flew numerous side-by-side comparison flights with F/A-18E/F Super Hornets and says: We outran them, we out-flew them and we ran them out of gas. I was embarrassed for them.

(End Quote)

cavsg SG

The F-14 line is closed. The US Navy has committed to the Rhino long ago. The cost of keeping an F-14 in the air is enormous not to mention the difficulties to maintain it. When the cold war ended, the a-6 was gone, the a-12 cancelled. the rhino cannot beat the payload and range of both a/c and proposed strike versions of tomcat, but the navy got no spare money to pursue a new combat jet when they have committed to the rhino which meet their operational requirements. politics came into play as the then defense secretary dick cheney favour the hornet.

its true that compared to the hornet, the super hornet got deficiencies in the flying part but the navy got a plane that has 40% more range, carry a much larger warload, return to the carrier with unexpended weapons. 42% fewer parts and substantial proportion of carbon-fiber assemblies.

mach 1.6 at 10,000 ft?
assume at sea level using International Standard Atmosphere
Pressure 101.3 kPa
Temperature 15C
2C per 1000ft at 10,000ft the temperature is -5C
Mach 1 will be 637.93 kts and mach 1.6 will be 1020.688 kts, the vne of F-14D is so high? maybe, could be possible. but the temperature is higher in reality. who have the v numbers for F-14D?