Editing Grumman F-14 Tomcat (section)

===Ground attack upgrades===
[[File:F14Missile.jpg|thumb|An F-14D launching an [[AIM-7 Sparrow]]; a [[GBU-10 Paveway II]] is also carried.]]

In the 1990s, with the pending retirement of the [[Grumman A-6 Intruder]] and the cancellation of the [[McDonnell Douglas A-12 Avenger II]] Advanced Tactical Aircraft (ATA), the F-14 [[Ground attack aircraft|air-to-ground]] program was resurrected. Trials with live bombs had been carried out in the 1980s; the F-14 was cleared to use basic [[Unguided bomb|iron bombs]] in 1992. During Operation Desert Storm of the [[Gulf War]], most air-to-ground missions were left to [[LTV A-7 Corsair II]], A-6 Intruder and F/A-18 Hornet squadrons, while the F-14s focused on air defense operations. Following Desert Storm, F-14As and F-14Bs underwent upgrades to avionics and cockpit displays to enable the use of precision munitions, enhance defensive systems, and apply structural improvements. The new avionics were comparable with the F-14D; these upgraded aircraft were designated F-14A (Upgrade) and F-14B (Upgrade) respectively.<ref name="Warplanes">Donald, David. "Northrop Grumman F-14 Tomcat, U.S. Navy today". ''Warplanes of the Fleet''. London: AIRtime Publishing Inc, 2004. {{ISBN|1-880588-81-1}}.</ref>

By 1994, Grumman and the Navy were proposing ambitious plans for Tomcat upgrades beyond the D model to plug the gap between the retirement of the A-6 and the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet entering service (such as the Super Tomcat 21, the cheaper QuickStrike version, and the more advanced Attack Super Tomcat 21).<ref name="Donald"/> However, the upgrades would have taken too long to implement to meet the gap, and were priced in the billions. The [[United States Congress|U.S. Congress]] considered this too expensive for an interim solution.<ref name="Warplanes"/> A quick, inexpensive upgrade using the [[LANTIRN|Low Altitude Navigation and Targeting Infrared for Night]] (LANTIRN) targeting pod was devised. The LANTIRN pod provided the F-14 with a forward-looking infrared (FLIR) camera for night operations and a laser target designator to direct laser-guided bombs (LGB).<ref name="iapr3p535">Lake 2002, pp. 53–55</ref> Although LANTIRN is traditionally a two-pod system, an AN/AAQ-13 navigation pod with terrain-following radar and a wide-angle FLIR, along with an AN/AAQ-14 targeting pod with a steerable FLIR and a laser target designator, the decision was made to only use the targeting pod. The Tomcat's LANTIRN pod was altered and improved over the baseline configuration, such as a [[GPS/INS|Global Positioning System/Inertial Navigation System]] (GPS/INS) capability to allow an F-14 to accurately locate itself. The pod was carried on the right wing glove pylon.<ref name="iapr3p535"/>

[[File:US Navy 051010-N-5088T-001 A specially painted F-14D Tomcat, assigned to the Blacklions of Fighter Squadron Two One Three (VF-213), conducts a mission over the Persian Gulf.jpg|thumb|An F-14D(R) from [[VF-213]] flying over [[Ba'athist Iraq|Iraq]] on the last Tomcat deployment with a LANTIRN pod on the starboard wing glove station and a [[GBU-12 Paveway II|laser-guided bomb]] underneath the fuselage.|alt=Pale gray jet aircraft flying over water towards right, perpendicular to the camera. Horizon located two-thirds down the photo. Sky made up of two shades, dark blue covers the top, blending with a lighter shade until it is almost white above horizon]]
The LANTIRN pod did not require changes to the F-14's own system software, but the pod was designed to operate on a MIL-STD-1553B bus not present on the F-14A or B.  Consequently, [[Martin Marietta]] specially developed an interface card for LANTIRN. The Radar Intercept Officer (RIO) would receive pod imagery on a 10-inch Programmable Tactical Information Display (PTID) or another Multi-Function Display in the F-14{{citation needed|date=February 2023}} rear cockpit and guided LGBs using a new hand controller installed on the right side console. Initially, the hand controller replaced the RIO's TARPS control panel, meaning a Tomcat configured for LANTIRN could not carry TARPS and the reverse, but eventually a workaround was later developed to allow a Tomcat to carry LANTIRN or TARPS as needed.<ref name="iapr3p535"/>

An upgraded LANTIRN named "LANTIRN 40K" for operations up to {{convert|40000|ft|m|abbr=on}} was introduced in 2001, followed by Tomcat Tactical Targeting (T3) and Fast Tactical Imagery (FTI), to provide precise target coordinate determination and ability to transmit images in-flight.<ref name="USN_FF" /> Tomcats also added the ability to carry the [[GBU-38]] Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) in 2003, giving it the option of a variety of LGB and [[GPS]]-guided weapons.<ref name="F-14Ds_JDAM"/> Some F-14Ds were upgraded in 2005 with a [[ROVER|ROVER III]] Full Motion Video (FMV) downlink, a system that transmits real-time images from the aircraft's sensors to the laptop of a [[forward air control]]ler (FAC) on the ground.<ref name="F-14_ROVER"/>