Personal Squadron! (16 Tomcats)

[JIMC5499]

With your maintenance background, you should know better. As previously posted, you're still going to have to do all the PM and specials, no matter how often they fly. Even a stripped down A/C would have all the Aircraft Division work and a good portion of AV/ARM - not exactly a part time commitment. Minimal high Gs, eh? Have you ever been to an airshow? I don't think this guy is intent on buying 16 jets so he can do straight & level fly-bys. I'd be curious to know how much FLE some of those Tomcats have left on their airframes (Schnug???).

Brett

With limited flight hours the quantity of phase inspections is going to be reduced. Yes I have been to airshows and know that the maneuvers flown there are still tame compaired to slamming that plane down on a flight deck. I am fairly certain that the daily inspections will be modified. I don't expect this operation to run on just volunteers they are going to have to have some full time maintenance people, just remember an aircraft mechanic with an A/P is alot more versitile than the maintenance people trained by the Navy. I found that out when I got my A/P. The only negative I can see about this is that they might get rented out by Hollywood to make some crappy movie like Top Gun or Stealth and actually do it because they need the money.

 

[Flash]

More than likely he would be starting up some sort of a adversary for hire company.

The jets in the boneyard are high flight time for the older ones. Many with over 4000 hrs on the main boxbeams.

I would suspect it would be a venture that would be contracting services back to the Navy. I.e., ASM profile runs, etc.

Daily inspections would be a neccessary evil. Too many things just "go wrong" for no reason on these older jets.

r/
G

It is a possibility that this might be the desire but there are already private adversary companies out their, and they generally fly much less complicated planes than the F-14, like the A-4 and Kfir, in pretty small numbers (I think one has about a dozen A-4's though).

I could see someone getting a hold of just a handful of airframes and keep one or two flying for airshows. More than that and it would likely be cost prohibitive. I seriously doubt that anyone would pony up the money to keep more than a handful flying. How many countries maintain full time flight demonstration teams? Very few, and most fly trainers instead of fighters. The Canadian Snowbirds cost the government $10 million (Canadian) a year and they fly Tutors (their version of the Tweet) http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2004/12/13/snowbirds041213.html . As a matter of fact, the only full time flight demonstration teams in the world that use front-line fighter jets are the US ones. So to have a private group or individual maintain that many F-14's is just not realistic.

 

[ip568]

No one's that rich. Sorry.

 

[nittany03]

With regard to the issues brought up, CAPT Snodgrass is actually quoted in the article as saying that he only thinks the project will only have a 25% chance of panning out.

 

[nugget81]

It is a possibility that this might be the desire but there are already private adversary companies out their, and they generally fly much less complicated planes than the F-14, like the A-4 and Kfir, in pretty small numbers (I think one has about a dozen A-4's though).

ATSI in Mesa, AZ flies several A-4N's and TA-4J's. They are a private company that trains mostly UAE pilots at a cool $1 million per head. I've heard that they are in the process of aquiring some F-16's as well. If they can do it, why can't Snodgrass?

http://www.atsifightertraining.com/

If there is a will, there is a way...

 

[jai5w4]

If there is a will, there is a way...

Word.

 

[mules83]

The only negative I can see about this is that they might get rented out by Hollywood to make some crappy movie like Top Gun or Stealth and actually do it because they need the money.

How could you say that about Top Gun? I am deeply offended.

 

[JIMC5499]

How could you say that about Top Gun? I am deeply offended.

So were the majority of the Tomcat drivers on the Forrestal when they saw the movie. It was more fun watching them than the movie. The aircraft footage was fantastic it was the story that sucked. Come on all 4 cats going down at the same time, give me a break. They could have done so much with it.

 

[F/A-18 DRIVER]

ATSI in Mesa, AZ flies several A-4N's and TA-4J's. They are a private company that trains mostly UAE pilots at a cool $1 million per head. I've heard that they are in the process of aquiring some F-16's as well. If they can do it, why can't Snodgrass?

http://www.atsifightertraining.com/

If there is a will, there is a way...

Maintaining an A-4 and maintaining an F-14 are two very different undertakings. The A-4 is simplicity at it's finest. The Tomcat, by contrast, is horribly complex and difficult to maintain.

As once heard on the 5MC "Push it over the side."

 

[toddb]

It is a possibility that this might be the desire but there are already private adversary companies out their, and they generally fly much less complicated planes than the F-14, like the A-4 and Kfir, in pretty small numbers (I think one has about a dozen A-4's though).

I could see someone getting a hold of just a handful of airframes and keep one or two flying for airshows. More than that and it would likely be cost prohibitive. I seriously doubt that anyone would pony up the money to keep more than a handful flying. How many countries maintain full time flight demonstration teams? Very few, and most fly trainers instead of fighters. The Canadian Snowbirds cost the government $10 million (Canadian) a year and they fly Tutors (their version of the Tweet) http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2004/12/13/snowbirds041213.html . As a matter of fact, the only full time flight demonstration teams in the world that use front-line fighter jets are the US ones. So to have a private group or individual maintain that many F-14's is just not realistic.

Makes sense, thats why the Blues didn't use the 14

The CT-114 Tutor is a Single Engine as appose to the T-37 a Twin
even cheaper to maintain/operate

This guy better have alot of Sponsers with deep pockets

Good Luck to him

Todd