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The completed Grumman F-14B Tomcat Fighter Jet. Pictured from left to right:
Zach Emlet, Ryan Leib, Tony Rife, Alex Meckley, Jeff Yohn, Kendall Fritz, and Jason Martin.

t Caskey Group, we’re well known for our vehicle wrapping
service. We regularly turn ordinary cars, vans, trucks, and
Atrailers into “wow” brand statements for our clients. But
there’s one vehicle we never expected to tackle: a fighter jet.

That all changed this summer, when we were asked to restore a
Grumman F-14B Tomcat, in partnership with VFW Post 8896 in East
Berlin, Pennsylvania. The project’s goal was to rejuvenate the exterior of
the F-14B Tomcat, restoring it to an accurate representation of the jet
during its glory days.

Although the team had never done anything like this, Caskey Group
President Tony Rife was confident. “I told the team, ‘If we can restore a
jet, what can’t we do?’”

The Caskey team began by cleaning the jet, smoothing out imperfections,
and making repairs to the jet’s exterior. At the same time, our graphics
pros were photographing, measuring, and mapping out each and
every graphic on the F-14B, in order to replicate them exactly. Next, we
painted the jet by hand. It took 15 gallons of paint – and lots of hours –
but the finished product was worth all of the work.

Back at the shop, the Caskey team set about replicating the jet’s insignia,
squadron markings, and graphics using a combination of stencil and
vinyl. We used U.S. Navy records to verify the accuracy of each color
and design. All together, the restoration took three months to complete.

Today, the F-14B Tomcat sits proudly on display at the East Berlin VFW,
where people can touch a piece of military history. Caskey Group is
proud to have accepted the challenge, restoring this jet to top form.
“When you have opportunities like this, you can say no, or you can jump
in and do something special,” Rife said.

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