F-14 Tomcat

This is a beta module. This module is still being developed and may still be missing some features and equipment options. It is playable and most of the content is there, but some final touches and fixes for minor bugs are still in the works. It is probably safe to buy unless you crave absolute fidelity and/or very few bugs.

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Finally, you can do some of that pilot shit. Actually, you can't, because your speed brakes won't deploy at high speed, and pulling hard on the stick will 1) break your INS, rendering most of your weapons and navigation systems useless, and 2) your wings will fall off. This is not a Sukhoi — you have no AoA inhibitor and no fly-by-wire, and just have to feel what the aircraft can do. Treat the 'cat (im)properly and can flat spin like a champ, though, so there is always that.

The DCS prop plane modules are all marked “fly a legend!” but if there was ever a candidate for that label among jet aircraft, it is the F-14 Tomcat. Heatblur's recreation is well on its way to become a legend of its own based on what it has achieved.

Features

The very heart of the F-14B is that it is a two-man aircraft, and this complication alone is shown in the two top features of the module (although the rest is nothing to sneeze at either):

• True, fully functional, fully synced multicrew where a pilot and a RIO player can (and indeed must) coordinate their actions to make the aircraft do anything.
• The JESTER and ICEMAN AI virtual RIO and pilot, for when your friends have no taste and have not bought the Tomcat.
• A small but highly functional complement of air-to-air weapons, including the mythical AIM-54 Phoenix.
• Updated missile physics that make the above work almost as expected.
• A decent selection of air-to-ground weapons, including LGBs and the LANTIRN pod needed to guide them.
• The ADM-141 TALD decoy missile to trick air defences into shooting at something else.
• A curious collection of tools to make carrier landings really easy:
  • DLC — not the type you buy but rather a set of spoilers that let you shift your flight path up and down without altering your AoA.
  • A landing autopilot.
  • A landing auto throttle to run in conjunction with the autopilot.
  • A kneeboard score sheet where the LSO tells you exactly how horrible your landing was.
• All kinds of temperamental radars and datalinks and optical scopes and other fiddly bits for the RIO to be endlessly frustrated by.

Missing features

While the F-14 module certainly feels very complete, it is still marked “Early Access” in the DCS store for the simple reason that it is still missing a couple of things:

• The A variant, for those who really want to rough it out with weaker engines.
• The TARPS reconnaissance pod for photography enthusiasts.
• A completed manual that actually matches the aircraft model in the module and that provides full descriptions of equipment and procedures.

Comes with the built-in Operation: Cage the Bear campaign.

Flying the F-14

Flying the Tomcat can at times be a rather schizophrenic experience. On the one hand, it has ridiculous amounts of power and stonking huge control surfaces (including those variable wings) that makes it very stable and easy to control. On the other hand, while still essentially stable at low speeds, it needs a gentle hand to stay coordinated. On the third hand, as mentioned, it does not have any protections in place to keep the pilot from being stupid: pulling lots of AoA leads to a whole lot of shaking and loss of speed; pulling lots of G:s results in damaged on-board systems; and asymmetric forces can and will cause engine stalls and flat spins and all the horrible ends this entails.

Fancy extras

JESTER, ICEMAN and Multicrew

JESTER control menu

ICEMAN control menu

The kneeboard

The F-14 trap score sheet (ugh!)

Links and files

• Chuck's F-14B Tomcat guide at Mudspike.
• DCS: F-14 Tomcat in the DCS shop.

More information

• Grumman F-14 Tomcat on wikpedia.
• F-14 Tomcat on globalsecurity.org