VFA-14 Tophatters ‘Kong Killers’ poster and shirt art

VFA-14, the Navy’s oldest active squadron was chosen by Peter Jackson’s King Kong production staff to be the ‘squadron that kills Kong’.  The Navy Pilots wanted to celebrate this in the form of a poster and t-shirt.

The poster required a good deal of research to make sure the plane was spot-on.

The shirt had some interesting requirements.  It had to be black, because that’s the color the pilots are able to wear under their flight suits most of the time, and it could not have a big area of ‘ink’ on the back or it would cause too much sweating when in the aircraft for long periods of time.

Special thanks to ‘Steamer’ and ‘Lothar’ for acting as liaisons on this project.  This project was a lot of fun because I am a huge fan of the King Kong movies…  Squadron members interested in purchasing can check with Steamer, general public will soon be able to go to Squadron Store and check the VFA-14 shop to find both designs!

Thank you to all the VFA-14 members and their loved ones for the dedication and sacrifices!