Today’s featured aviation tattoo is one of the most iconic and well-known jet fighters in the world — the Grumman F-14 Tomcat. Thanks mostly to its role in the wildly popular movie “Top Gun” from 1986 starring Tom Cruise, the F-14 was one of the few military aircraft that just about anyone on the street could identify. For a generation of pilots and military aviators, the F-14 Tomcat and flying just like the character “Maverick” in the movie was the ultimate goal — and it even came true for some tenacious pilots that had what it took and actually flew in the real-life TOPGUN or formally known as the United States Navy Strike Fighter Tactics Instructor program.
But as of 2006, the goal of flying an F-14 off of a pitching aircraft carrier deck became an impossibility as the mighty Tomcat was retired from the United States Navy and all use within the American Armed Forces. After 32 years as a front-line carrier-based interceptor and multi-role fighter for the U.S. Navy, the F-14 flew it’s last actual flight in U.S. service on October 4, 2006, when an F-14D of VF-31 was ferried from Oceana to Republic Airport on Long Island, NY for museum display. All remaining aircraft are either on static display in museums or stored at AMARC in Tucson, AZ — awaiting their eventual scrapping. The scrapping requirement is being enforced to prevent any F-14 parts from slipping into the hands of the Iranian Air Force who had some of the earlier models still in operation from an original order placed in 1976 before the overthrow of the Shah in 1979, thus halting all export of Western military hardware to the nation.
So, for those pilots, crews and enthusiasts of the Grumman F-14 Tomcat, the only way to be reminded of the Top Gun star is to see them preserved in museums, immortalized in history books, or — in this case — as a permanent tribute tattooed within easy sight. The highly-detailed tattoo we are featuring today is the work of legendary artist Shotsie Gorman, who now applies his trade from the West Coast near Sonoma, CA. You can see more of his work and find out how to book an appointment with him at Shotsie’s Soul Signing website at this link.
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Bran Says:
Finally. I check this site everyday. Glad to see you guys are still around. It’s quite the niche for a site, but some of us really enjoy it! Keep it up!
Posted on October 12th, 2010 at 6:07 pm
Matt Beaty Says:
Hey this is my tattoo. Shots did it when I was visiting San Francisco. I got it because I always wanted to fly them. I joined the Navy two weeks after the last ones were decommissioned. So wasn’t even able to work on them. So next to closest thing I am working on f-18s. That should be my next tat
Posted on March 3rd, 2011 at 7:52 am
Editor - Tattoos In Flight Says:
Very cool! Great choice in artist and subject matter! It’s a shame that you never got to work on the F-14, but from what we hear, the F-18 is a lot easier to turn wrenches on anyhow! Thanks for your comment and your service – and if you get a tattoo of the F-18, be sure to send a picture along to us! Thanks!
Posted on March 5th, 2011 at 5:33 pm