August 14, 2005

SIMI VALLEY - An F-14 Tomcat fighter jet will be hoisted into a permanent
display area next week close to the nearly completed Air Force One Pavilion
at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum.

The 30,000-pound Northrop Grumman aircraft will be carried by a crane
outside the pavilion in a ceremony celebrating Reagan's "peace through
strength" strategy and marking a milestone in the making of the Air Force
One Pavilion.

"This is the last of the really large artifacts coming to the library to
complete the Air Force One Pavilion," said Melissa Giller, director of
communications for the Reagan Library. "Although the F-14 will sit on the
Peace Plaza and not inside the pavilion, it helps complete the story of
President Reagan's initiative of peace through strength."

There will be standing room only for the Aug. 22 ceremony as the aircraft is
craned over a 35-foot-high outdoor colonnade viewable from the Peace Plaza.

Following the aircraft's placement, Rear Adm. David Venlet will discuss the
role of the F-14 in current warfare. Venlet received the Distinguished
Flying Cross for his role in the shooting down of two Libyan Su-22 aircraft
in 1981, marking the first combat kills for the F-14.

"This incident played a critical role early on in the Reagan administration
as it sent a clear message to those governments who chose to provoke the
United States," said R. Duke Blackwood, executive director of the Ronald
Reagan Library and Foundation.

- From wire reports

"The Tomcat went on to serve an important role in President Reagan's
rebuilding of our defenses and will forever remind us of the importance of a
strong military

I think a B1B would be better, but they dont pay me to make those decisions.

Kharn

I'll go with the B-1B Bone.  

The B-1B was brought back by Reagan, but the F-14 really personified Reagan's commitment to confronting assholes.  He used the fleet and the F-14 to antagonize the Libyan's at their "Line of Death" and America regained a little pride with every MiG splashed.

Cool. Better to be a static display, then to rot away in a graveyard.

My next trip to the coast I have to go by and visit.

I have the simple solution to this little dilemma......


Both!!

Quoted: I think a B1B would be better, but they dont pay me to make those decisions. Kharn

+1]



Or an Aardvark - like he used to bomb Libya

Did F-14s do the missing man flyover at his funeral, or were they F-18s?  I can't remember, but it would be cool to have one of those displayed.

Throw an extra guard in also , we don't need any more hippies pissing over there.

Reagan Library is a great place, and they even host a Revolutionary War Reenactment each July

I doubt that I will ever bother to visit California again. Too bad they couldn't put his library in Tampico, Ill..

Quoted: Throw an extra guard in also , we don't need any more hippies pissing over there.

Put the extra guard in the Tomcat with the M61A2 Vulcan ready to go.

Quoted: The B-1B was brought back by Reagan, but the F-14 really personified Reagan's commitment to confronting assholes.  He used the fleet and the F-14 to antagonize the Libyan's at their "Line of Death" and America regained a little pride with every MiG splashed.

How about a Libyan MiG added to the display with a "battle damage" paint job similar to Star Wars displays?

Reagan did love the F-14, so I think it's fitting. I have a video here somewhere of Reagan sitting on the deck of a carrier watching an F-14 do fly-by's.

HIP! HIP! HORRAAAAYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!

I heard they are going to have a replica of the desk in the oval office and a set of knee pads being delivered to the Clinton Library.  

Quoted: I heard they are going to have a replica of the desk in the oval office and a set of knee pads being delivered to the Clinton Library.

I wonder what Squadron Colors it will have?