F-14 Tomcat BuNo 162592 (painted as BuNo 160403)

Two of the most famous F-14 headline making events occurred during the Reagan Presidency. On 8/18/81, early in President Reagan’s 1st term, two F-14s from the VF-41 Black Aces flying off the USS Nimitz (CVN-68) shot down two Libyan Su-22 "Fitters" over the Gulf of Sidra. The second event had a similar outcome. In the final days of the Reagan administration, two F-14s from the VF-32 Swordsmen shot down two Libyan MiG-23 “Floggers" on 1/4/89. To honor these events in the Reagan Presidency, the Reagan Presidential Library obtained an F-14 for display on the library grounds. Unfortunately, the actual aircraft involved in the shoot downs were not available so the F-14 obtained by the Library was painted to represent BuNo 160403 flown by the late CDR Hank Kleeman and LT David Venlet in the 1981 event.

The actual Tomcat displayed at the Library is BuNo 162592. This aircraft was delivered to the Navy 1/22/86 and served with VF-1, VF-21, VF-154, and finally the Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center (formally TopGun).