alternatehistory.com

This one is one that I posted a while back but only got one response to. I liked the idea, though, so I'm trying it again.

Basically, WI the Air Force chooses to sign on with the VFX program rather than starting their own search for an F-4 replacement? OTL, they almost did, but they decided that the VFX program wasn't quite what they were looking for. And as shown pretty clearly by the IRIAF the F-14 was quite a capable aircraft in the air-superiority role. Finally, the F-4 showed that the Air Force could, sometimes, take a naval aircraft and enthusiastically adopt it.

This would obviously have some pretty large repercussions down the line; OTL, the Tomcats were supposed to be reengined with what were (essentially) F-100s like those used by the Eagle to replace the awful TF-30s, but that was scuppered and eventually some of the -As were reengined with F-110s starting in '87, over a decade after they had entered service. With the Air Force getting them too, I suspect that they'll be getting their better engines quite rapidly.

Second, the F-14 was introduced into service 2 years before the Eagle, which might have some effects on the Air Force; perhaps an earlier retirement of pre-F4 types from active service?

Third, it will obviously be far more difficult for *Cheney (the first post-Cold War DefSec, really) to argue for canceling or not doing Tomcat upgrade programs, because the installed base would be (at least) twice as large (going off of current F-15 strengths in the US), not to mention that presumably Japan, Israel, et. al. would have received F-14s instead of F-15s.

Fourth, it might make Grumman a more powerful aerospace contractor than OTL; perhaps Grumman Northrop rather than the other way around?

Fifth, would this have an effect on later procurements? With two fighters in a row being joint Navy-Air Force projects, perhaps this momentum would have kept going and instead of the F-16 and F/A-18 split they would have a single type design (presumably more similar to the F/A-18 in a lot of ways) Similarly, perhaps the *F-22 is designed from the start to replace the F-14 in both services, rather than just the Air Force.

Finally, would the Tomcat have become a bombcat earlier than OTL? Considering when the idea for the F-15E popped up (1979) I find it hard to believe that the Tomcat, which is in certain ways more ready for the strike fighter role than the Eagle (consider that lovely large radar on the nose, or those pylons designed to carry 1/2 ton missiles...) would be ignored for that role much longer.
Top