FPGA Expert Recreates F-14 Tomcat's Secret MP944 Microprocessor in 3D-Printed Model

FPGA and embedded systems expert Adam Taylor has successfully recreated the U.S. Navy F-14 Tomcat's Central Air Data Computer (CADC) using an FPGA, and demonstrated it in a 3D-printed scale model of the aircraft. The CADC, powered by the MP944 chip—which some argue was the world's first microprocessor, predating Intel's 4004 by over a year—controlled the fighter's iconic swing-wing system and computed critical flight parameters. Taylor's open-source project includes complete VHDL implementations for all six original CADC chips, running on a Spartan-7 FPGA. The MP944, classified until 1998, was a 20-bit, pipelined, parallel multi-microprocessor running at 375 kHz. The project revives debate over which chip deserves the 'first microprocessor' title, with MP944 proponents noting its 8x performance advantage over the Intel 4004, though the latter was designed for simpler calculator tasks.