Yes what Zheng He Says - absolutely kills the F14 as a possible replacement for the Phantom
Also with the Development of the AIM 120 AMRAAM during the 90s - with the C version pushing the range up continuously during the latter point of the Decade making along with what were often restrictive RoE in place, the AIM 54 Phoenix (a heavy missile system) to all intents and purposes redundant.
It was significantly shorter than the Hornet / Tomcat and Intruder making the carrier hanger and deck placement game of tetris easier for the crew - not sure how high it would be folded but from the below picture it does seem that they folded almost flat?