The United States Senate has done something that would make Pete “Maverick” Mitchell proud — it unanimously voted to save the last three F-14 Tomcats from rusting into oblivion. On April 28, 2026, the “Maverick Act” sailed through the upper chamber without a single dissenting vote, authorizing the Navy to yank three surviving F-14D Super Tomcats out of the boneyard at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Arizona and hand them to a museum where they might actually see daylight again. It is the feel-good aviation story of the year, and it smells like jet fuel and popcorn.

From Boneyard to Airshow Ramp

Let us set the scene. Somewhere in the scorching Arizona desert, three F-14D Tomcats — bureau numbers 164341, 164602, and 159437 — sit in the Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group (AMARG) facility at Davis-Monthan AFB, better known to aviation enthusiasts as “the Boneyard.” They have been baking in the sun since the Navy retired the Tomcat fleet in 2006, their swing wings locked, their cockpits sealed, their twin F110 engines silent. They are, by most accounts, the last relatively intact Tomcats left in US government hands.

The Maverick Act would transfer all three — at zero cost to the taxpayer — to the US Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama, where they could be restored and, critically, flown at airshows and commemorative events. That last part is the kicker. This is not just about putting another grey jet on a stick outside a museum. The legislation explicitly authorizes operational flights for heritage purposes, meaning that if the restoration teams can get the jets airworthy, Americans could once again hear the glorious sound of variable-geometry wings slicing through a Saturday afternoon sky.

Bipartisan Wings

The bill was introduced by Senator Tim Sheehy of Montana, a former Navy SEAL and Bronze Star recipient who clearly understands the cultural gravity of military aviation heritage. His co-sponsor? Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona — a former Navy combat pilot, Space Shuttle commander, and the kind of person who probably has a Tomcat poster in his Senate office. If there were ever two senators built to champion a bill called the “Maverick Act,” it is the special-ops veteran and the astronaut.

The unanimous vote is itself remarkable. In a chamber that struggles to agree on lunch orders, every single senator — all 100 of them — said yes to saving three fighter jets. Aviation heritage, it turns out, is the last truly bipartisan cause in Washington.

Guardrails Built In

Lest anyone worry about Tomcat parts ending up in unfriendly hands, the Maverick Act includes explicit prohibitions. The aircraft cannot be restored for combat use. They cannot be transferred to any foreign government or entity. The transfer itself costs the US government nothing — the Space & Rocket Center will bear the expense of transportation and restoration. It is about as clean a legislative package as you will find in defence procurement circles, which is probably why it passed without opposition.

The bill now heads to the House of Representatives, where it has already been introduced by Congressman Abe Hamadeh. Given the Senate’s unanimous backing and the bill’s inherent photogenicity — there is no better campaign photo than standing next to an F-14 — observers expect swift passage.

If everything goes according to plan, the three Tomcats could be on their way to Huntsville before the end of the year. Restoration timelines are harder to predict — returning a twenty-year desert veteran to flight status is no small feat — but the aviation heritage community is already buzzing with anticipation. Warbird operators, engine specialists, and former F-14 maintainers have reportedly offered their services to the Space & Rocket Center.

For a jet that was supposed to be forgotten, the Tomcat just made one heck of a comeback. Maverick would approve.

Sources: US Senate records; Sen. Sheehy office press release; US Space & Rocket Center; AMARG public records; aviation heritage community reporting.