F-14 Tomcat: America’s most advanced fighter.

Top Gun made it legendary.

Then the Navy scrapped every single one.

Not because they were obsolete.

Because Iran still had them.

In 1976, the Shah of Iran ordered 80 F-14s. America’s closest Middle East ally at the time.

Then the 1979 revolution happened.

Suddenly America’s most sophisticated fighter jet was in enemy hands.

For 40 years, the US tried to choke Iran’s Tomcat fleet.

No parts. No support. No ammunition.

The Navy didn’t just retire the F-14. They shredded them in the Arizona desert. Cut them apart with industrial saws to prevent a single bolt from being smuggled to Tehran.

Iran kept them flying anyway.

They reverse-engineered the avionics. Built improvised replacement parts. Cannibalized aircraft to keep others operational.

Today, Iran is the only country on Earth still flying F-14s.

They use them against ISIS. Against surveillance drones. In combat missions over the Persian Gulf.

The jet America abandoned became Iran’s most capable air defense asset.

And here’s the question nobody asks:

The US spent billions making sure Iran couldn’t maintain these aircraft.

But Iran kept them operational for four decades without a single American part.

The Navy shredded their own history to deny Iran spare parts.

Iran turned that denial into institutional knowledge.