VF-55 "Silver Bullets," originally established as the "Double Nickels" as an F4U Corsair squadron in 1940, changing from them directly to the F-8 Crusader, then from the Crusader to the Tomcat in 1973. In 1977 the F-14A+ upgrade was rolled out, and 10 years later the F-14B Upgrade program began. This Tomcat, BuNo. 164999, is an F-14B Upgrade that was stripped of its tactical paint scheme in 1990 for a bare-metal scheme reminiscent of the squadron's original Corsairs in honor of their 50th anniversary
