I am so very proud to have known George Hall throughout my life and career as a photographer. I am also proud to have more than half a dozen images in the book well displayed. George was a great influence on my persistence in keeping with doing photography and he was always very kind in giving me insight. Nicky and George were also very gracious hosts when ever I would come to see them. This book is the wonderful culmination of all of out hard work and love of the high flying adventure that is modern military aviation. In my opinion, the Grumman F-14 Tomcat will always be the sexiest aircraft ever to fly.

Great pictures of the mighty F-14 and lots of cool commentary by former Tomcat drivers from the US and one from Iran. The authors could add more from the Iranian side too as there is more from Iran than the US Navy experience with this great aircraft. All in all, a great collection.

Excellent book showing off the Tomcat in its greatest perspective : outstanding choice of pictures and very interesting comments by F-14 users (flyers, maitainers, ... sometimes World famous Tomcatters)

Ive always believed cops and fighter pilots shared something in common. You dont know how it feels unless you've felt that trickle of sweat running down your back during a high speed pursuit or chasing boogies over foreign skies, the chase is the name of the game.From running up stairs in the projects to flying at night with ghosts you never know whats going to happen. This book is beautiful to flip through or read the raw, undiluted tales from the pilots themselves. One pilot said " he waited till his knees stopped shaking before he got of the plane after a hop". Ive waited too. Its nice to hear that.

A great source of information and memories on the F-14. Great pictures, human interest from pilots and air crew, a book to treasure.

I used to work at Grumman in 1969, so I have a deep feeling for the aircraft. The book is a compilation of comments from a variety of sources. Some comments are really funny and I enjoyed reading every one of them. Since I a small part of its history, I'm glad to have this book in my library forever.

For those interested in the history of one of America's classic, high
performance, fighter jets and the 14 squadrons of men and women primarily
based out of Oceana Naval Air Station in Virginia Beach that flew them,
this is a great illustrated volume. As the parent of a "cat driver" from
the USS Enterprise who flew the first missions in Afganistan, the work was
well done showing many of the maneuvers this wonderful aircraft was capable
of doing. The Tomcat is gone from service but she will not be forgotten by
the men and women who flew her during her long distinguished career.

Dave Parsons has been one of the most prolific and talented photographers of the F-14 Tomcat for many years. There is no shortage of his excellent work throughout this book.

However, those looking for some substance to go with the pictures will be disappointed. At the retirement of the venerable Tomcat, there are so many stories and tales of heroism, adventure and just plain fun that are somehow absent in this volume.

The pictures are tremendous, but some text to support and enhance the images would improve this book a great deal. A book that has the retirement of the Tomcat in its title should have some coverage of the retirement inside.

Dave Parsons has been one of the most prolific and talented photographers of the F-14 Tomcat for many years. There is no shortage of his excellent work throughout this book.

However, those looking for some substance to go with the pictures will be disappointed. At the retirement of the venerable Tomcat, there are so many stories and tales of heroism, adventure and just plain fun that are somehow absent in this volume.

The pictures are tremendous, but some text to support and enhance the images would improve this book a great deal. A book that has the retirement of the Tomcat in its title should have some coverage of the retirement inside.

I got this book because I was a RIO in the Tomcat in the 70's.

I was a little disappointed that there were not more pictures from the early days or a little more history.

I enjoyed the quotes from several people that I knew in those days Al Krause, Jess Parnell, Monroe Smith and especially from my old stick, Jay Yakeley.

I have purchased many books of the F-14 Tomcat over the years and this one ranks among the top. The book contains many superb photos throughout, plus interesting stories shared from a variety of sources that were were a part of the Tomcat community. Their personal accounts help remind me what an exciting era it was knowing that somewhere in the world there were Tomcats at the tip of the spear protecting are interest abroad. The book provides a good illustrative history of the Tomcat's 35 years of service for both the modeler and F-14 enthusiast.

Baby, you will be missed!

Well done book...great pix and interesting stories. Hate to see the Tom go. Cheers,

An impressive selection for military specialty collections and aviation holdings is Grumman F-14 Tomcat: Bye-Bye, Baby!,compiled by Dave Parsons, George Hall and Bob Lawson. The dramatic oversized presentation charts a craft which had a terrible time being 'born', evolving during the era of McNamara's 'whiz kids' in the Pentagon who wanted a new fighter for both Air Force and Navy personnel the TFX. The underpowered failure eventually was halted by Tom Connolly and the Tomcat was born. Color images pack a gorgeous history of the craft's stormy history.

Not too much to say, other then this is one of the most impressive collections of 200 pages ever.

I have had a long obsession with the TOMCAT and this book does it justice.

I have bought many TOMCAT related books in the past and all of them had the exact same first chapters the already well known beginings of this great fighter.

This book is a nice change, it is something different, instead of the same old story reprinted and repackaged it looks at the TOMCAT from a different angle.

It has pictures from some of the worlds finest and luckiest photographers and the text is made up almost entirerly from first hand experiances from the people who flew, fixed and loved the TOMCAT.

I really love this book and have no regrets in getting it.

Excellent pictures and commentary about the F-14 Tomcat from the pilots who flew them and the people who built, tested, and serviced them. Well done! I loved it!

Great product that was delivered in quick time even to overseas. Greatly impressed with service. Thanks

I've seen some spectacular pictures of F-14s over the years, but never so many in a single book. Simply fantastic. A book this beautiful would be reasonable at 2 or 3 times the price. In addition to the incredible pictures, are the anecdotes in the pilots' own words. They're all fascinating. A few are unnervingly frightening -- read page 104! I'm not going to tell you. You'll have to buy your own copy.

For anyone involved with or a fan of the F-14 Tomcat, this book is a must have!!!...It is a tribute to all that were involved with the F-14.To read the quotes of the brave men who flew them and made the plane come to life is fascinating!..and the photography...simply fantastic!!! This book honors in words and photos the entire Tomcat family and shows how proud we all are of the greatest air superiority fighter ever to fly... Reading this book is emotional as it is a farewell to the flying Tomcats but the plane will live on in our hearts and gratitude to all that took part in the F-14 world.

If you (like me) lovee Tomcats, you simply must own this book.
The pictures are glorious, the comments by the crews are priceless,
the production is flawless.

A must have for all 'Cat lovers.
Favourite quote: "ooooh basic"
Read it and weep and laugh, I did.

I have virtually every Tomcat book that was ever released and this one is at the top of the list. Excellent photography, and the many short stories from air and ground crew are obviously from men (and women) that "walked the walk". There has already been many tech and "history of" books written, so it is very refreshing to read a book of memories from the people that made it the "Best of the Best". Some damn humorous stories included.

After spending the first half of my life following my father around the country as he worked on the AWG-9/Phoenix WS, and having viewed more than my share of fly-bys, flight demos and everyday flight ops...I can only say that this book is an outstanding tribute to the last of the Grumman Cats.

The photography and personal anecdotes included will make it a great addition to any collection. Mine is on the shelf right next to Heater's book and many others.

F-14 Tomcat "Anytime Baby"

Wonderful tribute to the late George Hall. Stunning photography by George and the world's best Tomcat photographers. I love the dedication to Stout.

This book is replete with terrific photographic images of the F-14 with memorable recountings of personal experiences from those who were closely affiliated with the program. It's an interesting way to document the F-14's incredible history of service in the US Navy, and the personal touch adds a powerful dimension that would be lost in a purely historical recollection of the exploits this fabulous aircraft. There is no aircraft in the world in the past, present or on the drawing boards that matches the flexibility and performance of the F-14 Tomcat.

This is a tremedous piece of work on what was probably the Navy's most iconic aircraft of the post-Vietnam period. Parsons and Hall found an incredible array of pictures from a variety of names that anyone who follows carrier aircraft will recognize- Lawson, Twomey, Heatley, Potts and Carlson, just to name a few. They matched the photography with comments and insights from the aviators that flew the type through the Tomcat's long and distinguished history. What you read includes the high points as well as the warts and a lot of "insider info" you won't find anywhere else. This isn't a nuts-and-bolts, detail freak kind of book- but will certainly, in the long run, remain one of the best efforts on the type produced.

Rick

I just finished reading this book for the second time, and all I have to say is WOW!!! Excellent work done by all. A fitting tribute to a great aircraft and all the people involved with it over its service career. 35 years and still strong, this book will ensure that the Tomcat is always remembered.

There have been many books written about the last of the Grumman Cats. But this coffee table style book is the best of the best. The collection of photographs is superb! If there is anyone out there who has never witnessed an F-14 spool up or seen one fly at an airshow, this book is for you.
But it's not just the photographs, it's the text that accompanies the pictures. There are remembrances from the aircrews that flew this venerable jet. This work is a true testament to the workmanship of those at Grumman and the many men and women who maintained the aircraft, and those who flew and fought in what is considered the best naval fighter aircraft of all time.
Kudos to the authors of this work. If you listen ever so closely, you will hear the unique sounds of freedom that only the F-14 could deliver.

Just finished reading the Grumman F-14 Tomcat : "Bye - Bye, Baby" book.
A great job done by all who cooperated. Its a real Tomcat Bible telling the story in an unique way.

It tells me as well that I still have to learn a lot considering aviation photography. :-)

The in cockpit photo's really give the right experience of Tomcat history.

Its sad George Hall never had the change to see his part of it in print but he sure inspired me to take the challenge of aviation photography ever more serious after looking at his and also the work of all other photographers involved.

I wish George's wife and closest friends all strength to overcome his passing away and keeping his legacy alive.

Respectfully,

André Jans

George Hall has been a dean in the aviation photography and book publishing business for quite some time and a prince in person. His vision for this book was to gather the best images he could and present them as if displayed in an art gallery. His other inspiration was to include quotes from throughout the legacy of the service of the Tomcat as if those individuals were standing beside you commenting on the images and remembering their most vivid memories. Therefore, the book is not intended to be a traditional reference book at all. There are plenty of those (if Mr Ng is looking for that type book). This is intended to be a very intimate and striking experience visually and emotionally through reading of the text.

It is a terrible shame that George succumbed to heart disease during an emergency operation in April just as he was sending the book to press. All of us who participated in this project, those who know him in the slightest way and I imagine anyone who has seen his work certainly mourns his untimely passing.I know I do.

Here's to George and his finest effort to date. Dave Parsons aka "Hey Joe"

I maintained the Tomcat while I was in VF-1 "WOLFPACK". I loved the old bird back then, and everyday since. The fact that the Tomcat has to retire is sad and very unfortunate. However, if this book serves any purpose, it makes saying "goodbye" a bit easier. While there is a little too little describing the pics, the pics are awesome enough to not really need it. It is very nice to see such perfection in aviation photography and to read the kind and descriptive words of all those former Tomcat drivers and Rio's. This book does the life of the F-14 a great service. If you are out to find descriptive notes and thorough info on the 'Cat, you won't find it in this book (there are hundreds of other books/resources for that). This book is simply a very thorough photo-history of the greatest fighter ever tot ake to the sky. "BYE-BYE BABY" just doesn't sum it up, somehow.

ANYTIME BABY!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I was waiting for this book for some time since I cannot find the book by Jon Lake; His book has tons of information as his usual way of writing any subject.This book eventhough is described as pictures collection still has too little information about the picture shown ,which I consider a disappointment.This book can only be considered as a photo album of F-14 Tomcat.

This is one of the finest aviation books I've ever seen. If your looking for technical analysis or or line drawings this book is not for you. This book is told by the men who flew and maintained the F-14. The photography is superb, The lay-out is great. This is a fitiing tribute to the greatest fighter jet ever made.