(^72) UNITED STATES
McDonnell F-4B Phantom
Max speed: 1,485mph (2,390km/h)
Powerplant: 2 x General Electric
J79-GE-8 turbojets
Wingspan: 38ft 5in (11.71 m)
Length: 58ft 3in (17.77m)
Height: 16ft 5in (5m)
Max.T/O weight: 54,600lb (24,766kg)
Ceiling: 62,000ft (18,900m)
Range: 2,300 miles (3,701km)
Armament: No xed armament;
4 x AIM-7 Sparrow radar-
guided air-to-air missiles
carried semi-recessed
under fuselage; four
under-wing pylons
plus one centreline
station capable of
carrying a wide variety
of air-to-air and/or
air-to-ground weaponry
(including nuclear) or
external fuel tanks
A
triumph of brute force over
aerodynamics, the legendary
McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II
eclipsed its contemporaries in terms of
performance. Beginning in 1959, it set 15
world records, including an absolute speed
record and an absolute altitude record. Not
to mention it being one of the most versatile
ghters ever built.
Preliminary work on what was to become
the Phantom II began in 1953 as a single-seat,McDonnell F-4 Phantom
long-range, attack aircraft. Designed for the
US Navy, the result was the McDonnell F4H-1,
the rst Mach 2 carrier-based aircraft capable
of carrying missiles (Sparrows). Designed as a
one- or two-seat aircraft, its primary mission
was as an all-weather eet air defence aircraft,
although it retained its original initial attack
capability. The F4H-1 made its maiden ight
on 27 May 1958 and the US Navy selected the
two-seat version for production. Proving highly
adaptable, it was quickly adopted by the USMarine Corps and the US Air Force, and by the
mid-1960s had become a major part of their air
wings. Both US military ight demonstration
teams, the Navy’s ‘Blue Angels’ and the US Air
Force ‘Thunderbirds’, ew the Phantom from
1969 to 1973.
Despite imposing dimensions and
a maximum take-o weight of over 60,000lb
(27,000kg), the F-4 had a top speed of
Mach 2.23 and an initial climb rate of over
41,000ft/min (210m/s). The F-4’s nine external