VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Editor's Note: The above video originally aired June 30, 2020.
A recently installed Oceanfront monument honoring the F-14 Tomcat fighter jet was officially presented to the City of Virginia Beach.
A dedication ceremony was held Thursday at the Naval Aviation Monument Park. The 10-foot-tall black granite statue highlights the history of the Tomcat, which was retired in 2006.
At Thursday's ceremony, Virginia Beach Mayor Bobby Dyer accepted the monument on behalf of the city.
The F-14 became a symbol of America’s air superiority. An early success of the aircraft was in 1981 when two F-14 pilots protecting U.S. ships shot down Libyan planes in the Mediterranean Sea.
Actor Tom Cruise later played the role of an F-14 pilot in the movie “Top Gun.”
The monument is a four-sided granite obelisk with panels showing different images of the plane in action, along with descriptions of its service and those who maintained the jets.
One panel honors 68 people who died flying the planes.
There are two other identical F-14 Tomcat monuments in the U.S., one in Pensacola and the other in San Diego.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.