Interview with Jon "Hooter" Schreiber on the F-14 Tomcat 

I miss the Tomcat. I was an OS in 88-90 on CVN69. We lost our A-7’s to 18’s and started using 18’s for CAP to see what they could do. The 18’s just didn’t have anywhere near the capabilities of the 14. I went on to fly professionally at the airlines and got to fly with ex Navy, Marine Corp, Air Force, Coast Guard etc and even some German Luftwaffe Pilots. Lots of great stories out there from an amazing time in world history. Thanks for taking the time to interview these folks. I don’t know if there are any WAC’s from WW2 still alive. I flew with one years go when I was getting my private pilots license. I cant remember her name, I was young and didn’t really understand the significance of her life and so I didn’t take advantage of the opportunity to ask her questions beyond my little focused world. If there are any still alive, try to see if you can get an interview.

F-14 pilots are a national treasure. We need to hear all their stories so we can preserve it's/their history.

This guy is the real deal. Incredible interview. Just when you think you know everything about the F-4 and F-14 this incredible aviator comes and enlightens us. Brilliant, thank you.

Thank you all for your kind words so far and I'm glad to hear you're all enjoying the interview!

"Hooter" mentioned the value and joy of having a back seater , that being the main reason for choosing F-14 vs F-18 ! Really nice.

Excellent interview, thank you to both of you for this. I miss the F-14, it was a sad day when that fine airplane was retired.

What an excellent interview! Jon has such a positive attitude and downright infectious sense of humor, it's an absolute pleasure to listen to his stories...!

great work! You find really interesting people to interview and you let them tell their stories. Thank you!

I love these interviews. Very laid back,candid and no BS. Thank you.

These interviews are exactly what I’m looking for! So cool to learn from these men.

Thanks for your hard work Mike.

Wow ....what an interview such a nice bloke thank you!

After many years in the aviation industry it's funny to enjoy a good nice and proper aviation channel. This interviews never cease to surprise though. Like this one. The Natops and PCL with blue cover pretty much tarnished of the use after the years. VERY nice effort..congrats

Yep - another cracking interview, Mike. Keep 'em coming.

What a great interview - from an old RIO

Great guest thankyou Jon!! Nice describption of the TF-30 turning into a whistle after a bad stall! Interesting that Jon sounds very much a phantom fan!

excellent interview as usual. Nice job.

Incredible interview, thanks!

Best aviation interviews I have watched,give us more

This was so cool mate! Hooter is one awesome guy, and I genuinely enjoyed his spirit. Keep these interviews coming. Cheers! :)

I enjoyed that interview greatly- thanks.

Great interview. Like all of the hot sticks, a really nice, humble guy.

Brilliant watch really enjoyed it Mike.

I enjoyed this interview. loved the "were the engines running?, check, were the hydraulics running? " comment.

Hi Jon. Several years ago there was an F 14 on display at Pioneers Museum located in El Centro, California. It has since been relocated. I recently retired and moved across the street from NAF El Centro and have asked local staff if they have any idea what happened to it. Most never even heard of it. I hope it didn't end up in the desert out in Tucson. Thanks, and thanks for your service.

Great interview. Love the channel, keep it up!

Superb work guys,thank you,i enjoyed that :-)

Fantastic guy there's some guys out there you just know you would get on with

This was a really nice interview. I had a bit of a flashback about my instructors.

Wow, great sponsor, been looking for models like this...

Hooter is an aviation jewel of a guy. A genuinely great guy to listen to.

I don’t make myself sit down and watch your videos very often but when I do I’m always Intrigued fully interested start to finish

Great channel!

Great interview, really enjoyed it. Did not understand the complication of the F-4 fuel system. The AF F-4 fuel system was pretty simple.

Fantastic interview with an engaging and knowledgeable chap. I'd love to have got him hs 190 experience then put him in a room with Winkle Brown to see where the shared experience went. When the Wall came down, UK military TV, Scene Here screened a programme about the Luftwaffe learning and flying the MiG. I was stunned by the whole concept and one of them made a comment which stuck with me - Before we met the MiG we wanted the Typhoon. Now we know the MiG we know we NEED the Typhoon!"

Looking forward!

If you know anything about me, you know I love this jet. I love, love, love the F-14 Tomcat. I remember being a kid and my dad saying, "Taylor, I want you to watch this movie called Top Gun. It has the coolest airplanes in the world." I was hooked. And then I have memories of my dad taking me to a few air shows. The highlights, of course, were the F-14 demonstrations. The Blue Angel's were amazing, the finesse and precision always spectacular. However, the Tomcat was the jet that everyone stood up for and crowded the gates delineating the observation areas. My dad would have both of us pack bits of cotton or drinking straw wrappers in our ears to protect our hearing. Even through the makeshift earmuffs, I could hear the Tomcat scream by. Once, I got brave and removed one of the ear plugs out as the Tomcat made one of its passes. The roar of the Tomcats engines as it rocketed by seemed to rattle the molars out of my skull. The force of the sonic wave could be felt in my spine and lungs, freezing my breath in my chest. My excited little hands would white knuckle the top of the gate or clasp my father's steadier hand, for fear that the force would send me off into the heavens as well. When I got a little older and would ride my bike around the neighborhood, I would fancy that I was in a cockpit of a super-sonic, swept-wing fighter jet, shooting down imaginary MiGs. My driveway was the deck of an aircraft carrier. Clearly, my dreams were high up in the clouds. Sadly, the Tomcat platform would reach a tragic end. The jets that didn't get donated to various museums would be taken to the shredders to prevent black marketers from selling parts to the only country that still flies the jet - Iran. However, a group of dedicated people from companies like Heatblur and Eagle Dynamics brought the Tomcat back to life in a virtual world via the Digital Combat Simulator. Now, I get to simulate an "as-true-to-life-as-publicly-available-information-can-be-simulated" (a small amount of the Tomcat info is still classified) F-14 with virtual reality goggles and a flight stick and throttle in my hands. I remember the first time launching from a carrier, fully immersed in an F-14 cockpit. As I saluted the crew on the ground and my plane hurtled off the deck, I felt a familiar feeling in my hands. Sneaking a glance in the space between my nose and the goggles, I saw white knuckles clutching the stick and throttle set up. This time, however, it was me controlling the Tomcat, and I really felt as I pulled back on the flight stick, that I was soaring to the heavens. In that moment, my sky-high dreams from childhood had come true.

Wild to hear him talk about Beeville. Ive been out there a few times and took photos of what remains from its Navy days. US Mile used to hold its annual standing mile events there before moving to Victoria. I wish I could have done some exploring of the old towers or the hangers but its off limits, full of insects, and I didn't want to get caught and tossed out.

Best yet!!! Two thumbs way up :-)

Thank you, Sir

LOVE THIS CHANNEL GREAT WORK!

Love it !keep em coming !

TOMCATS forever Baby!

Really enjoyed this post so surprised he went for the phantom....wish he would have flown the lightning from the 60s because of the pure power

Great interview. You can learn so much just listening to ex pilots. You learn the real pros and cons, etc

Excellent interview. Would love to hear more about the differences between the F14A and the F14D.

Amazing video, sir.

I believe I served with you Sir, in VF-2. I was an AT from 86-90 and 93-96. Bullets Rule Jon!!! "If you're not having fun, you're not doing it right!"

TF's were subject to snuffing out with radical throttle angle changes. Once the 110's were retro'd fitted all the engine problem's disappeared. You could "Yank and crank" with no real concern with the blowers behind you. "Danger" Ranger...did a WesPac with them in 89...

awesome as usual

Hooter, what a guy. So cool but still so genuine 😉

Stories like these is why flight vets need to tell their story. People love this stuff. Its great!

I was a plane captain in VF-154, '79~80. Went through FRAMP at VF 121. Feels like ancient history

I would like to have long conversation with these guys, too. Thank you for your service for people like me...

Jon smiles whenever he talks about the F4 .. not so much when he talks about the F14 .. you can tell where his heart lies :D

Thank you for setting up this interview! Would it be possible to interview a F-14B or F-14D pilot?

23:40 The A and B had the HUD displayed on the center panel of the front canopy section. The A Upgrade, B upgrade, D(R) (Ds converted from As), and Ds had the Sparrowhawk HUD which used a combining glass configuration. Part of the reason why the original HUD wasnt always perfectly on was because of the panel of the canopy it was displayed on flexing at different airspeeds. That panel flexing was also the reason for the tomcats max speed being Mach 2.34. It couldve gone faster but that panel was flexing so much that they decided not to go any faster than the design specification of mach 2.34.

Awesome interview!III

Jon's just so laid back, I think he's a bit too humble. He makes it sound as though it's trying to select the right Tube. Jon, they are probably waiting for you to fix that hydraulic line, best get busy, and thank you. Mike, well done on hunting down Jon. It's essential that these stories get out there. Even if you don't fly, these pilots can teach you so much.

Great interview! I'm fascinated by naval operations. Could you make an episode about carrier landings?

He lives in my hometown!

The pitch yaw indicator on the F-14a was genius .

what a cool dude this guy is !

The tomcat with the double black tails is one of the baddest looking aircraft ever.

Awesome interview. Hope you can interview Dale 'Snort' Snodgrass one day and 'Hoser' Satrapa with his experiences against the F-15 in the AIMEVAL/ACEVAL. Both were two of the the best F-14 pilots.

For being obsolete by the end of the 1970s, the F14 could of been upgraded beyond the F14A+ model or B model. With upgraded avionics, weapons computers and even stealth tech added on. It was still a viable platform at the time of decommission.

Curious, Jon... in 1977 when you joined the Navy, where did you do boot camp ? Great Lakes, Orlando, or San Diego ? I joined in Jan.22,1977 Orlando TU- 145.

Voltem à fabricar este caça F14,pois éis muito lindo,não existe outro igual !!!.👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾👏👏👏

New subscriber, very much enjoy your content.

Another great, entertaining interview. nice job AI team.

Also interviews on the Viper and Raptor, please !

Very cool interview. Surprised Jon's issues with TF-030 made him like the F-4 over the F-14 when F-14 even with the older TF-030 engines (due to the brilliance of airframe and variable geometry wings), was a significantly superior performing fighter over the Phantom. Vertical, turn rate , sustained G, instantaneous turn etc.

In the 1990s I visited the uss ranger while as a sea cadet.

Damn I was with VFA-195 alongside Vf-154 during operation Iraqi freedom because we were stationed in Japan together. We deployed off the Kitty Hawk. 154 is now flying super Hornets.

Amazing

Richmond Indiana? Im a military aviator from a town just a few miles away!

I'm in Richmond Indiana!

Thanks for the responds! Wow you came in the Navy at the year I got out! For the 1st time. Do you think any of these pilots you knew were Vietnam Veterans?

thanks enjoyed

good stuff ! LoL O to be old at 26 again wish i was 26 again

what are the major design differences between the F 14 and F 15 as they look very similar

Yeah, you weren't supposed to be drinking soda during GQ either! Must have been nice. I was in fire fighting gear near number 4 engine room on my ship when we went to battle stations!

Just discovered your channel. Very cool and am rather jealous. Where in the UK are you from? I'm from Newcastle and you don't sound like you're from too afar.

Could they not have fixed the TF30 issue temporarily by keeping the nozzle open further? It would have reduced the power but lowered the back pressure. It sounds like it was not the intake but the engine control, something easily fixed.

Great :)

"I feel the need!..."

Jon, Read 1984, Brave New World.

At 25:15, Jon refers to 'some great avionics guy', and here he is: www.wired.com/story/secret-history-of-the-first-microprocessor-f-14/ Don't ya just love making connections? Plus - Intel, eat your hearts out!

USA F4's do not have a in flight re-fuelling probe. It has a receiver.

THERES ANOTHER RADIO INTERVEIW, with a f-4 pilot who was in comunicateion with a Trucker on CB crossing the desert. The trucker thought somebody else was a messin with him so there was a very fast rondivue point at 1.2 mach dam nere knock the truck over.

Is this the same "Hooter" guy from the book, titled "Grumman F-14 Tomcat, Bye-Bye, Baby?" The book said he flew firebomber Turbo-Tracker and shot one of his thumbs off with a 20 mm.

Great stories...I trained n SanDiego yes a Marine..ooorahh

Lol, not many Vietnamese that are 6 ft 3 and 200+ pounds. He is absolutely right.

Turn to take the tennis court away - wow

advertisement intro needs subtitles the accent is so thick!

in the movie Top Gun there was one guy who was Mavericks RIO, did you know of many black pilots or RIO'S in the F-4 or F-14?????

For some reason I don't feel like listening to a guy that was blessed with an IQ 40 points ( or more) than me going on about his amazing career right now. I thought I was at first. Maybe latter.

Grew up admiring tomcats so I was looking forward to hearing what former pilots had to say about it. Sadly, I'm disappointed because none of them seem that enthusiastic when talking about it, nor do they seem to miss flying them very much. For example, this guy rather talk about old F-4's and his fondness for them rather than his experiences with the F-14. He also speaks of it with a little twinkle in his eye. Those that flew tomcats after its engine upgrade seem to repeat these same sediments. F-8s, F-4s, and F11s I have absolutely no interests in. Many of those jets they admire were basically target practice for russian made migs, although, technically we had better kill ratios, but still. If I have to choose an older plane I'd go with the A-5 vigilante since it was the one jet that caused panic throughout soviet russia, which led to them using it as the inspiration/basis for their mig-25 (little tidbit most dont know).

Great video, Can not imagine those who dislike. Must be non-Military and be one of those pos Russian with a IPad

fab