text: mcdonnell douglas f - 4 phantom ii the mcdonnell douglas f - 4 phantom ii is a tandem two - seat , twin - engine , all - weather , long - range supersonic jet interceptor aircraft / fighter - bomber originally developed for the united states navy by mcdonnell aircraft . it first entered service in 1960 with the u.s. navy . proving highly adaptable , it was also adopted by the u.s. marine corps and the u.s. air force , and by the mid - 1960s had become a major part of their respective air wings . the phantom is a large fighter with a top speed of over mach 2 . 2 . it can carry more than 18 , 000 pounds ( 8 , 400 kg ) of weapons on nine external hardpoints , including air - to - air missiles , air - to - ground missiles , and various bombs . the f - 4 , like other interceptors of its time , was designed without an internal cannon . later models incorporated an m61 vulcan rotary cannon . beginning in 1959 , it set 15 world records for in - flight performance , including an absolute speed record , and an absolute altitude record . during the vietnam war , the f - 4 was used extensively ; it served as the principal air superiority fighter for both the navy and air force , and became important in the ground - attack and aerial reconnaissance roles late in the war . the phantom has the distinction of being the last u.s. fighter flown to attain ace status in the 20th century . during the vietnam war , the u.s. air force had one pilot and two weapon systems officers ( ) , and the us navy had one pilot and one radar intercept officer ( rio ) become aces by achieving five aerial kills against enemy fighter aircraft . the f - 4 continued to form a major part of u.s. military air power throughout the 1970s and 1980s , being gradually replaced by more modern aircraft such as the f - 15 eagle and f - 16 in the u.s. air force , the grumman f - 14 tomcat in the u.s. navy , and the f / a - 18 hornet in the u.s. navy and u.s. marine corps . the f - 4 phantom ii remained in use by the u.s. in the reconnaissance and wild weasel ( suppression of enemy air defenses ) roles in the 1991 gulf war , finally leaving service in 1996 . it was also the only aircraft used by both u.s. flight demonstration teams : the usaf thunderbirds ( f - 4e ) and the us navy blue angels ( f - 4j ) . the f - 4 was also operated by the armed forces of 11 other nations . israeli phantoms saw extensive combat in several arab – israeli conflicts , while iran used its large fleet of phantoms in the iran – iraq war . phantoms remain in front line service with seven countries , and in use as a target drone in the u.s. air force . phantom production ran from 1958 to 1981 , with a total of 5 , 195 built , making it the most numerous american supersonic military aircraft . development origins in 1952 , mcdonnell 's chief of aerodynamics , dave lewis , was appointed by ceo jim mcdonnell to be the company 's preliminary design manager . with no new aircraft competitions on the horizon , internal studies concluded the navy had the greatest need for a new and different aircraft type : an attack fighter . in 1953 , mcdonnell aircraft began work on revising its f3h demon naval fighter , seeking expanded capabilities and better performance . the company developed several projects including a variant powered by a wright engine , and variants powered by two wright j65 engines , or two general electric j79 engines . the j79 - powered version promised a top speed of mach 1 . 97 . on 19 september 1953 , mcdonnell approached the united states navy with a proposal for the " super demon " . uniquely , the aircraft was to be modular — it could be fitted with one- or two - seat noses for different missions , with different nose cones to accommodate radar , photo cameras , four 20 mm ( .79 in ) cannon , or 56 unguided rockets in addition to the nine hardpoints under the wings and the fuselage . the navy was sufficiently interested to order a full - scale mock - up of the f3h - g / h , but felt that the upcoming grumman - 9 and vought - 1 already satisfied the need for a supersonic fighter . the mcdonnell design was therefore reworked into an all - weather fighter - bomber with 11 external hardpoints for weapons and on 18 october 1954 , the company received a letter of intent for two yah - 1 prototypes . on 26 may 1955 , four navy officers arrived at the mcdonnell offices and , within an hour , presented the company with an entirely new set of requirements . because the navy already had the douglas a - 4 skyhawk for ground attack and f - 8 crusader for dogfighting , the project now had to fulfill the need for an all - weather fleet defense interceptor . a second crewman was added to operate the powerful radar . xf4h - 1 prototype the xf4h - 1 was designed to carry four semi - recessed aam - n - 6 sparrow iii radar - guided missiles , and to be powered by two j79 - ge - 8 engines . as in the mcdonnell f - 101 voodoo , the engines sat low in the fuselage to maximize internal fuel capacity and ingested air through fixed geometry intakes . the thin - section wing had a leading edge sweep of 45 ° and was equipped with blown flaps for better low - speed handling . wind tunnel testing had revealed lateral instability requiring the addition of 5 ° dihedral to the wings . to avoid redesigning the titanium central section of the aircraft , mcdonnell engineers angled up only the outer portions of the wings by 12 ° , which averaged to the required 5 ° over the entire wingspan . the wings also received the distinctive " dogtooth " for improved control at high angles of attack . the all - moving tailplane was given 23 ° of anhedral to improve control at high angles of attack while still keeping the tailplane clear of the engine exhaust . in addition , air intakes were equipped with variable geometry ramps to regulate airflow to the engines at supersonic speeds . all - weather intercept capability was achieved thanks to the an / apq - 50 radar . to accommodate carrier operations , the landing gear was designed to withstand landings with a sink rate of 23 ft / s ( 7 m / s ) , while the nose strut could extend by some 20 in ( 51 cm ) to increase angle of attack at takeoff . on 25 july 1955 , the navy ordered two xf4h - 1 test aircraft and five - 1 pre - production examples . the phantom made its maiden flight on 27 may 1958 with robert c. little at the controls . a hydraulic problem precluded retraction of the landing gear but subsequent flights went more smoothly . early testing resulted in redesign of the air intakes , including the distinctive addition of 12 , 500 holes to " bleed off " the slow - moving boundary layer air from the surface of each intake ramp . series production aircraft also featured splitter plates to divert the boundary layer away from the engine intakes . the aircraft soon squared off against the - 3 crusader iii . due to operator workload , the navy wanted a two - seat aircraft and on 17 december 1958 the f4h was declared a winner . delays with the j79 - ge - 8 engines meant that the first production aircraft were fitted with j79 - ge - 2 and − 2a engines , each having 16 , 100 lbf ( 71 . 8 kn ) of afterburning thrust . in 1959 , the phantom began carrier suitability trials with the first complete launch - recovery cycle performed on 15 february 1960 from independence . there were proposals to name the f4h " satan " and " mithras " . in the end , the aircraft was given the less controversial name " phantom ii " , the first " phantom " being another mcdonnell jet fighter , the fh - 1 phantom . the phantom ii was briefly given the designation f - 110a and the name " spectre " by the usaf , but neither name was officially used . production early in production , the radar was upgraded to the westinghouse an / apq - 72 , and an - apg - 50 with a larger radar antenna , necessitating the bulbous nose , and the canopy was reworked to improve visibility and make the rear cockpit less claustrophobic . during its career the phantom underwent many changes in the form of numerous variants developed . the usaf received phantoms as the result of defense secretary robert mcnamara 's push to create a unified fighter for all branches of the military . after an f - 4b won the " operation " fly - off against the convair f - 106 delta dart , the usaf borrowed two naval f - 4bs , temporarily designating them f - 110a " spectre " in january 1962 , and developed requirements for their own version . unlike the navy 's focus on interception , the usaf emphasized a fighter - bomber role . with mcnamara 's unification of designations on 18 september 1962 , the phantom became the f - 4 with the naval version designated f - 4b and usaf f - 4c . the first air force phantom flew on 27 may 1963 , exceeding mach 2 on its maiden flight . the usn operated the f4h - 1 ( re - designated f - 4a in 1962 ) with j79 - ge - 2 and engines of 16 , 100 lbf ( 71 . 62 kn ) thrust and later builds receiving -8 engines . a total of 45 f - 4as were built and none saw combat and most ended up as test or training aircraft . the usn and usmc received the first definitive phantom , the f - 4b which was equipped with the westinghouse apq - 72 radar ( pulse only ) , a texas instruments aaa - 4 infra - red search and track pod under the nose , an an / ajb - 3 bombing system and powered by j79 - ge - 8 , and engines of 10 , 900 lbf ( 48 . 5 kn ) dry and 16 , 950 lbf ( 75 . 4 kn ) afterburner ( reheat ) with the first flight on 25 march 1961 . 649 f - 4bs were built with deliveries beginning in 1961 and vf - 121 pacemakers receiving the first examples at nas miramar . the f - 4j had improved air - to - air and ground - attack capability ; deliveries begun in 1966 and ended in 1972 with 522 built . it was equipped with j79 - ge - 10 engines with 17 , 844 lbf ( 79 . 374 kn ) thrust , the westinghouse an / awg - 10 fire control system ( making the f - 4j the first fighter in the world with operational look - down / shoot - down capability ) , a new integrated missile control system and the an / ajb - 7 bombing system for expanded ground attack capability . the f - 4n ( updated f - 4bs ) with smokeless engines and f - 4j aerodynamic improvements started in 1972 under a u.s. navy - initiated refurbishment program called " project bee line " with 228 converted by 1978 . the f - 4s model resulted from the refurbishment of 265 f - 4js with j79 - ge - 17 smokeless engines of 17 , 900 lbf ( 79 . 379 kn ) , awg - 10b radar with digitized circuitry for improved performance and reliability , honeywell an / avg - 8 visual target acquisition set or ( world 's first operational helmet sighting system ) , classified avionics improvements , airframe reinforcement and leading edge slats for enhanced maneuvering . the usmc also operated the rf - 4b with reconnaissance cameras with 46 built . phantom ii production ended in the united states in 1979 after 5 , 195 had been built ( 5 , 057 by mcdonnell douglas and 138 in japan by mitsubishi ) . of these , 2 , 874 went to the usaf , 1 , 264 to the navy and marine corps , and the rest to foreign customers . the last u.s.-built f - 4 went to south korea , while the last f - 4 built was an f - 4ej built by mitsubishi heavy industries in japan and delivered on 20 may 1981 . as of 2008 , 631 phantoms were in service worldwide , while the phantom also remains in use as a target drone operated by the u.s. military . world records to show off their new fighter , the navy led a series of record - breaking flights early in phantom development : all in all , the phantom set 16 world records . except for , all records were achieved in unmodified production aircraft . five of the speed records remained unbeaten until the f - 15 eagle appeared in 1975 . operation top flight : on 6 december 1959 , the second xf4h - 1 performed a zoom climb to a world record 98 , 557 ft ( 30 , 040 m ) . commander lawrence e. flint , jr . , usn accelerated his aircraft to mach 2 . 5 ( 1 , 650 mph ; 2 , 660 km / h ) at 47 , 000 ft ( 14 , 330 m ) and climbed to 90 , 000 ft ( 27 , 430 m ) at a 45 ° angle . he then shut down the engines and glided to the peak altitude . as the aircraft fell through 70 , 000 ft ( 21 , 300 m ) , flint restarted the engines and resumed normal flight . on 5 september 1960 , an f4h - 1 averaged 1 , 216 . 78 mph ( 1 , 958 . 16 km / h ) over a 500 km ( 311 mi ) closed - circuit course . on 25 september 1960 , an f4h - 1f averaged 1 , 390 . 24 mph ( 2 , 237 . 37 km / h ) over a 100 km ( 62 . 1 mi ) closed - circuit course . file number . operation : to celebrate the 50th anniversary of naval aviation ( l is the roman numeral for 50 and ana stood for anniversary of naval aviation ) on 24 may 1961 , phantoms flew across the continental united states in under three hours and included several tanker refuelings . the fastest of the aircraft averaged 869 . 74 mph ( 1 , 400 . 28 km / h ) and completed the trip in 2 hours 47 minutes , earning the pilot ( and future nasa astronaut ) , lieutenant richard gordon , usn and rio , lieutenant bobbie young , usn , the 1961 bendix trophy . operation : on 28 august 1961 , a f4h - 1f phantom ii averaged 1 , 452 . 777 kilometers per hour ( 902 . 714 miles per hour ) over a 3 mi ( 4 . 82 km ) course flying below 125 feet ( 38 . 1 m ) at all times . commander j.l. , usn was killed during the first attempt at this record on 18 may 1961 when his aircraft disintegrated in the air after pitch damper failure . operation : on 22 december 1961 , a modified phantom with water injection set an absolute world record speed of 1 , 606 . 342 mph ( 2 , 585 . 086 km / h ) . on 5 december 1961 , another phantom set a sustained altitude record of 66 , 443 . 8 feet ( 20 , 252 m ) . operation high jump : a series of time - to - altitude records was set in early 1962 : 34 . 523 seconds to 3 , 000 meters ( 9 , 840 ft ) , 48 . 787 seconds to 6 , 000 meters ( 19 , 700 ft ) , 61 . 629 seconds to 9 , 000 meters ( 29 , 500 ft ) , 77 . 156 seconds to 12 , 000 meters ( 39 , 400 ft ) , 114 . 548 seconds to 15 , 000 meters ( 49 , 200 ft ) , 178 . 5 seconds to 20 , 000 meters ( 65 , 600 ft ) , 230 . 44 seconds to 25 , 000 metres ( 82 , 000 ft ) , and 371 . 43 seconds to 30 , 000 metres ( 98 , 400 ft ) . design overview the f - 4 phantom is a tandem - seat fighter - bomber designed as a carrier - based interceptor to fill the u.s. navy 's fleet defense fighter role . innovations in the f - 4 included an advanced pulse - doppler radar and extensive use of titanium in its airframe . despite imposing dimensions and a maximum takeoff weight of over 60 , 000 lb ( 27 , 000 kg ) , the f - 4 has a top speed of mach 2 . 23 and an initial climb rate of over 41 , 000 ft / min ( 210 m / s ) . the f - 4 's nine external hardpoints have a capability of up to 18 , 650 pounds ( 8 , 480 kg ) of weapons , including air - to - air and air - to - surface missiles , and unguided , guided , and thermonuclear weapons . like other interceptors of its day , the f - 4 was designed without an internal cannon . the baseline performance of a mach 2 - class fighter with long range and a bomber - sized payload would be the template for the next generation of large and light / middle - weight fighters optimized for daylight air combat . flight characteristics in air combat , the phantom 's greatest advantage was its thrust , which permitted a skilled pilot to engage and disengage from the fight at will . the massive aircraft , designed to fire radar - guided missiles from beyond visual range , lacked the agility of its soviet opponents and was subject to adverse yaw during hard maneuvering . although thus subject to irrecoverable spins during aileron rolls , pilots reported the aircraft to be very communicative and easy to fly on the edge of its performance envelope . in 1972 , the f - 4e model was upgraded with leading edge slats on the wing , greatly improving high angle of attack maneuverability at the expense of top speed . the j79 engines produced noticeable amounts of black smoke ( at mid - throttle / cruise settings ) , a severe disadvantage in that the enemy could spot the aircraft . this was solved on the f - 4s fitted with the − 10a engine variant which used a smokeless combustor . the f - 4 's biggest weakness , as it was initially designed , was its lack of an internal cannon . for a brief period , doctrine held that turning combat would be impossible at supersonic speeds and little effort was made to teach pilots air combat maneuvering . in reality , engagements quickly became subsonic , as pilots would slow down in an effort to get behind their adversaries . furthermore , the relatively new heat - seeking and radar - guided missiles at the time were frequently reported as unreliable and pilots had to use multiple shots ( also known as ripple - firing ) , just to hit one enemy fighter . to compound the problem , rules of engagement in vietnam precluded long - range missile attacks in most instances , as visual identification was normally required . many pilots found themselves on the tail of an enemy aircraft but too close to fire short - range falcons or sidewinders . although by 1965 usaf f - 4cs began carrying suu - 16 external containing a 20 mm ( .79 in ) m61a1 vulcan gatling cannon , usaf cockpits were not equipped with lead - computing gunsights until the introduction of the suu - 23 , virtually assuring a miss in a maneuvering fight . some marine corps aircraft carried two pods for strafing . in addition to the loss of performance due to drag , combat showed the externally mounted cannon to be inaccurate unless frequently , yet far more cost - effective than missiles . the lack of a cannon was finally addressed by adding an internally mounted 20 mm ( .79 in ) m61a1 vulcan on the f - 4e . costs note : original amounts were in 1965 united states dollars . the figures in these tables have been adjusted for inflation . operational history united states navy on 30 december 1960 , the vf - 121 " pacemakers " at nas miramar became the first phantom operator with its f4h - ( f - 4as ) . the vf - 74 " be - " at nas oceana became the first deployable phantom squadron when it received its f4h - 1s ( f - 4bs ) on 8 july 1961 . the squadron completed carrier qualifications in october 1961 and phantom 's first full carrier deployment between august 1962 and march 1963 aboard forrestal . the second deployable u.s. atlantic fleet squadron to receive f - 4bs was the vf - 102 " diamondbacks " , who promptly took their new aircraft on the shakedown cruise of enterprise . the first deployable u.s. pacific fleet squadron to receive the f - 4b was the vf - 114 " " , which participated in the september 1962 cruise aboard uss kitty hawk . by the time of the tonkin gulf incident , 13 of 31 deployable navy squadrons were armed with the type . f - 4bs from constellation made the first phantom combat sortie of the vietnam war on 5 august 1964 , flying bomber escort in operation pierce arrow . the first phantom air - to - air victory of the war took place on 9 april 1965 when an f - 4b from vf - 96 " fighting falcons " piloted by lieutenant ( junior grade ) terence m. murphy and his rio , ensign ronald fegan , shot down a chinese mig - 17 " fresco " . the phantom was then shot down , probably by an aim - 7 sparrow from one of its wingmen . there continues to be controversy over whether the phantom was shot down by mig guns or , as enemy reports later indicated , an aim - 7 sparrow iii from one of murphy 's and fegan 's wingmen . on 17 june 1965 , an f - 4b from vf - 21 " freelancers " piloted by commander louis page and lieutenant john c. smith shot down the first north vietnamese mig of the war . on 10 may 1972 , lieutenant randy " duke " cunningham and lieutenant ( junior grade ) william p. driscoll flying an f - 4j , call sign " showtime 100 " , shot down three mig - 17s to become the first american flying aces of the war . their fifth victory was believed at the time to be over a mysterious north vietnamese ace , colonel nguyen toon , now considered mythical . on the return flight , the phantom was damaged by an enemy surface - to - air missile . to avoid being captured , cunningham and driscoll flew their burning aircraft using only the rudder and afterburner ( the damage to the aircraft rendered conventional control nearly impossible ) , until they could eject over water . during the war , u.s. navy f - 4 phantom squadrons participated in 84 combat tours with f - 4bs , f - 4js , and f - . the navy claimed 40 air - to - air victories at a cost of 73 phantoms lost in combat ( seven to enemy aircraft , 13 to sams , and 53 to aaa ) . an additional 54 phantoms were lost in mishaps . in 1984 , the f - had been retired , and by 1987 the last f - were retired in the us navy deployable squadrons . on 25 march 1986 , an f - 4s belonging to the vf - 151 " vigilantes , " became the last active duty u.s. navy phantom to launch from an aircraft carrier , in this case , midway . on 18 october 1986 , an f - 4s from the vf - 202 " " , a naval reserve fighter squadron , made the last - ever phantom carrier landing while operating aboard america . in 1987 , the last of the naval reserve - operated f - 4s aircraft were replaced by f - . the last phantoms in service with the navy were qf - 4 target drones operated by the naval air warfare center at nas point mugu , california . these airframes were subsequently retired in 2004 . united states marine corps the marine corps received its first f - 4bs in june 1962 , with the " black knights " of vmfa - 314 at marine corps air station el toro , california becoming the first operational squadron . marine phantoms from vmfa - 531 ' gray ghosts ' were assigned to da nang airbase on south vietnam 's northeast coast on 10 may 1965 and were initially assigned to provide air defense for the usmc . they soon began close air support missions ( cas ) and vmfa - 314 ' black knights ' , vmfa - 323 ' death rattlers ' , and vmfa - 542 ' bengals ' soon arrived at the primitive airfield . marine f - 4 pilots claimed three enemy migs ( two while on exchange duty with the usaf ) at the cost of 75 aircraft lost in combat , mostly to ground fire , and four in accidents . vmcj - 1 golden hawks ( now vmaq - 1 and vmaq - 4 which has the old rm ) flew the first rf - 4b photo recon mission on 3 november 1966 from da nang and remained there until 1970 with no rf - 4b losses and one damaged by aaa . vmcj - 2 and vmcj - 3 ( now vmaq - 3 ) provided aircraft for vmcj - 1 in da nang and - 3 was formed in 1975 at mcas el toro , ca consolidating all usmc rf - 4 - bs in one unit that became known as " the eyes of the corps . " - 3 disestablished in august 1990 after the advanced tactical airborne reconnaissance system was introduced for the f / a - 18 hornet . the f - 4 continued to equip fighter - attack squadrons in both marine corps active and reserve units throughout the 1960s , 1970s and 1980s and into the early 1990s . in the early 1980s , these squadrons began to transition to the f / a - 18 hornet , starting with the same squadron that introduced the f - 4 to the marine corps , vmfa - 314 at mcas el toro , california . on 18 january 1992 , the last marine corps phantom , an f - 4s in the marine corps reserve , was retired by the " cowboys " of vmfa - 112 , after which the squadron was re - equipped with f / a - 18 hornets . united states air force in usaf service , the f - 4 was initially designated the f - 110 spectre prior to the introduction of the 1962 united states tri - service aircraft designation system . the usaf quickly embraced the design and became the largest phantom user . the first usaf phantoms in vietnam were f - 4cs from the 555th tactical fighter squadron " triple nickel " , which arrived in december 1964 . unlike the u.s. navy and u.s. marine corps , which flew the phantom with a naval aviator ( pilot ) in the front seat and a naval flight officer as a radar intercept officer ( rio ) in the back seat , the usaf initially flew its phantoms with a rated air force pilot in front and back seats . while the rear pilot ( , or " guy in back " ) could fly and ostensibly land the aircraft , he had fewer flight instruments and a very restricted forward view . the air force later assigned a rated air force navigator qualified as a weapon / targeting systems officer ( later designated as weapon systems officer or wso ) in the rear seat instead of another pilot . however , all usaf phantoms retained dual flight controls throughout their service life . on 10 july 1965 , f - 4cs of the 45th tactical fighter squadron , 15th tfw , on temporary assignment in ubon , thailand , scored the usaf 's first victories against north vietnamese mig - 17s using aim - 9 sidewinder air - to - air missiles . on 26 april 1966 , an f - 4c from the 480th tactical fighter squadron scored the first aerial victory by a u.s. aircrew over a north vietnamese mig - 21 " " . on 24 july 1965 , another phantom from the 45th tactical fighter squadron became the first american aircraft to be downed by an enemy sam , and on 5 october 1966 an 8th tactical fighter wing f - 4c became the first u.s. jet lost to an air - to - air missile , fired by a mig - 21 . early aircraft suffered from leaks in wing fuel tanks that required re - sealing after each flight and 85 aircraft were found to have cracks in outer wing ribs and stringers . there were also problems with aileron control cylinders , electrical connectors , and engine compartment fires . reconnaissance rf - 4cs made their debut in vietnam on 30 october 1965 , flying the hazardous post - strike reconnaissance missions . the usaf thunderbirds used the f - 4e from the 1969 season until 1974 . although the f - 4c was essentially identical to the navy / marine corps f - 4b in flight performance and carried the aim - 9 sidewinder missiles , usaf - tailored f - 4ds initially arrived in june 1967 equipped with aim - 4 falcons . however , the falcon , like its predecessors , was designed to shoot down heavy bombers flying straight and level . its reliability proved no better than others and its complex firing sequence and limited seeker - head cooling time made it virtually useless in combat against agile fighters . the f - 4ds reverted to using sidewinders under the " rivet haste " program in early 1968 , and by 1972 the aim - - 2 " dogfight sparrow " had become the preferred missile for usaf pilots . like other vietnam war phantoms , the f - 4ds were urgently fitted with radar homing and warning ( ) antennas to detect the soviet - built s - 75 dvina sams . from the initial deployment of the f - 4c to southeast asia , usaf phantoms performed both air superiority and ground attack roles , supporting not only ground troops in south vietnam but also conducting bombing sorties in laos and north vietnam . as the f - 105 force underwent severe attrition between 1965 and 1968 , the bombing role of the f - 4 proportionately increased until after november 1970 ( when the last f - 105d was withdrawn from combat ) it became the primary usaf tactical ordnance delivery system . in october 1972 the first squadron of ef - 4c wild weasel aircraft deployed to thailand on temporary duty . the " e " prefix was later dropped and the aircraft was simply known as the f - 4c wild weasel . sixteen squadrons of phantoms were permanently deployed between 1965 and 1973 , and 17 others deployed on temporary combat assignments . peak numbers of combat f - 4s occurred in 1972 , when 353 were based in thailand . a total of 445 air force phantom fighter - bombers were lost , 370 in combat and 193 of those over north vietnam ( 33 to migs , 30 to sams , and 307 to aaa ) . the rf - 4c was operated by four squadrons , and of the 83 losses , 72 were in combat including 38 over north vietnam ( seven to sams and 65 to aaa ) . by war 's end , the u.s. air force had lost a total of 528 f - 4 and rf - 4c phantoms . when combined with u.s. navy and marine corps losses of 233 phantoms , 761 f - 4 / rf - 4 phantoms were lost in the vietnam war . on 28 august 1972 , captain steve ritchie became the first usaf ace of the war . on 9 september 1972 , wso capt charles b. became the highest - scoring american ace of the war with six and wso capt jeffrey feinstein became the last usaf ace of the war on 13 october 1972 . upon return to the united states , and feinstein were assigned to undergraduate pilot training ( feinstein was given a vision waiver ) and as usaf pilots in the f - 4 . usaf f - 4c / d / e crews scored 107 ½ mig kills in southeast asia ( 50 by sparrow , 31 by sidewinder , five by falcon , 15 . 5 by gun , and six by other means ) . on 31 january 1972 , the 170th tactical fighter squadron / tactical fighter group of the illinois air national guard became the first air national guard unit to transition to phantoms from republic f - 84f which were found to have corrosion problems . phantoms would eventually equip numerous tactical fighter and tactical reconnaissance units in the usaf active , national guard , and reserve . on 2 june 1972 , a phantom flying at supersonic speed shot down a mig - 19 over thud ridge in vietnam for the first supersonic gun kill . at a recorded speed of mach 1 . 2 , major phil handley 's shoot down was the first and only recorded gun kill while flying at supersonic speeds . on 15 august 1990 , 24 f - 4g wild weasel vs and six rf - 4cs were deployed to shaikh isa ab , bahrain , for operation desert storm . the f - 4g was the only aircraft in the usaf inventory equipped for the suppression of enemy air defenses ( sead ) role , and was needed to protect coalition aircraft from iraq 's extensive air defense system . the rf - 4c was the only aircraft equipped with the ultra - long - range ks - 127 ( long - range oblique photography ) camera , and was used for a variety of reconnaissance missions . in spite of flying almost daily missions , only one rf - 4c was lost in a fatal accident before the start of hostilities . one f - 4g was lost when enemy fire damaged the fuel tanks and the aircraft ran out of fuel near a friendly airbase . the last usaf phantoms , f - 4g wild weasel vs from fighter squadron , were retired on 26 march 1996 . the last operational flight of the f - 4g wild weasel was from the 190th fighter squadron , idaho air national guard , in april 1996 . the last operational usaf / ang f - 4 to land was flown by maj mike webb and maj gary leeder of the idaho ang . like the navy , the air force has operated qf - 4 target drones , serving with the 82d aerial targets squadron at tyndall air force base , florida , and holloman air force base , new mexico . it was expected that the f - 4 would remain in the target role with the 82d until at least 2015 , when they would be replaced by early versions of the f - 16 fighting falcon converted to a qf - 16 configuration . several qf - 4s also retain capability as manned aircraft and are maintained in historical color schemes , being displayed as part of air combat command 's heritage flight at air shows , base open houses , and other events while serving as non - expendable target aircraft during the week . on 19 november 2013 , bae systems delivered the last qf - 4 aerial target to the air force . the example had been in storage for over 20 years before being converted . over 16 years , bae had converted 314 f - 4 and rf - 4 phantom iis into qf - 4s and qrf - 4s , with each aircraft taking six months to adapt . as of december 2013 , qf - 4 and qrf - 4 aircraft had flown over 16 , 000 manned and 600 unmanned training sorties , with 250 unmanned aircraft being shot down in firing exercises . the remaining qf - 4s and qrf - 4s held their training role until the first of 126 qf - 16s were delivered by boeing . the final flight of an air force qf - 4 from tyndall afb took place on 27 may 2015 to holloman afb . after tyndall afb ceased operations , the 53d weapons evaluation group at holloman became the fleet of 22 qf - 4s ' last remaining operator . the base will continue using them to fly manned test and unmanned live fire test support and foreign military sales testing until january 2017 , when the remaining airframes will be demilitarized . non - u.s. air forces the phantom has served with the air forces of many countries , including australia , egypt , germany , united kingdom , greece , iran , israel , japan , spain , south korea and turkey . australia the royal australian air force ( raaf ) leased 24 usaf f - 4es from 1970 to 1973 while waiting for their order for the general dynamics f - 111c to be delivered . they were so well - liked that the raaf considered retaining the aircraft after the f - 111cs were delivered . they were operated from raaf amberley by no. 1 squadron and no. 6 squadron . egypt in 1979 , the egyptian air force purchased 35 former usaf f - 4es along with a number of sparrow , sidewinder , and maverick missiles from the u.s. for $ 594 million as part of the " peace pharaoh " program . an additional seven surplus usaf aircraft were purchased in 1988 . three attrition replacements had been received by the end of the 1990s . germany the german air force ( luftwaffe ) initially ordered the reconnaissance rf - 4e in 1969 , receiving a total of 88 aircraft from january 1971 . in 1982 , the initially unarmed rf - 4es were given a secondary ground attack capability ; these aircraft were later retired in 1994 . in 1973 , under the " peace rhine " program , the luftwaffe purchased the lightened and simplified f - 4f which was upgraded in the mid - 1980s . 24 german f - 4f phantom iis were operated by the 49th tactical fighter wing of the usaf at holloman afb to train luftwaffe crews until december 2004 . in 1975 , germany also received 10 f - 4es for training in the u.s. in the late 1990s , these were withdrawn from service after being replaced by f - 4fs . germany also initiated the improved combat efficiency ( ice ) program in 1983 . the 110 ice - upgraded f - 4fs entered service in 1992 , and were expected to remain in service until 2012 . all the remaining luftwaffe phantoms were based at with jagdgeschwader 71 ( fighter wing 71 ) in northern germany and at manching . the german air force retired its last f - 4fs on 29 june 2013 . german f - 4fs flew 279 , 000 hours from entering service on 31 august 1973 until retirement . greece in 1971 , the hellenic air force ordered brand new f - 4e phantoms , with deliveries starting in 1974 . in the early 1990s , the hellenic af acquired surplus rf - 4es and f - 4es from the luftwaffe and u.s. ang . following the success of the german ice program , on 11 august 1997 , a contract was signed between dasa of germany and hellenic aerospace industry for the upgrade of 39 aircraft to the very similar " peace icarus 2000 " standard . the hellenic af operates 34 upgraded f - 4e - ( 338 and 339 squadrons ) and 12 rf - 4e aircraft ( 348 squadron ) as of september 2013 . iran in the 1960s and 1970s when the u.s. and iran were on friendly terms , the u.s. sold 225 f - 4d , f - 4e , and rf - 4e phantoms to iran . the imperial iranian air force saw at least one engagement , resulting in a loss , after an rf - 4c was rammed by a soviet mig - 21 during project dark gene , an elint operation during the cold war . the islamic republic of iran air force phantoms saw heavy action in the iran – iraq war in the 1980s and are kept operational by overhaul and servicing from iran 's aerospace industry . notable operations of iranian f - 4s during the war included operation scorch sword , an attack by two f - 4s against the iraqi osirak nuclear reactor site near baghdad on 30 september 1980 , and the attack on h3 , a 4 april 1981 strike by eight iranian f - 4s against the h - 3 complex of air bases in the far west of iraq , which resulted in many iraqi aircraft being destroyed or damaged for no iranian losses . iranian f - 4s were in use as of late 2014 ; the aircraft reportedly conducted air strikes on isis targets in the eastern iraqi province of . israel the israeli air force was the largest foreign operator of the phantom , flying both newly built and ex - usaf aircraft , as well as several one - off special reconnaissance variants . the first f - 4es , nicknamed " kurnass " ( sledgehammer ) , and rf - 4es , nicknamed " " ( raven ) , were delivered in 1969 under the " peace echo i " program . additional phantoms arrived during the 1970s under " peace echo ii " through " peace echo v " and " nickel grass " programs . israeli phantoms saw extensive combat during arab – israeli conflicts , first seeing action during the war of attrition . in the 1980s , israel began the " kurnass 2000 " modernization program which significantly updated avionics . the last israeli f - 4s were retired in 2004 . japan from 1968 , the japan air self - defense force purchased a total of 140 f - 4ej phantoms without aerial refueling , bullpup asm system , nuclear control system and ground attack capabilities . mitsubishi built 138 under license in japan and 14 unarmed reconnaissance rf - 4es were imported . of these , 96 f - have since been modified to the f - 4ej kai ( , modified ) standard . 15 f - were converted to reconnaissance aircraft designated rf - 4ej , with similar upgrades as the f - 4ej kai . japan had a fleet of 90 f - 4s in service in 2007 . it has been studying several replacement fighters . south korea the republic of korea air force purchased its first batch of secondhand usaf f - 4d phantoms in 1968 under the " peace spectator " program . the f - 4ds continued to be delivered until 1988 . the " peace pheasant ii " program also provided new - built and former usaf f - 4es . spain the spanish air force acquired its first batch of ex - usaf f - 4c phantoms in 1971 under the " peace alfa " program . designated , the aircraft were retired in 1989 . at the same time , the air arm received a number of ex - usaf rf - 4cs , designated in 1995 – 1996 , these aircraft received extensive avionics upgrades . spain retired its rf - 4s in 2002 . turkey the turkish air force ( taf ) received 40 f - 4es in 1974 , with a further 32 f - 4es and 8 rf - 4es in 1977 – 78 under the " peace diamond iii " program , followed by 40 ex - usaf aircraft in " peace diamond iv " in 1987 , and a further 40 ex - u.s. air national guard aircraft in 1991 . a further 32 rf - 4es were transferred to turkey after being retired by the luftwaffe between 1992 and 1994 . in 1995 , israel aerospace industries ( iai ) implemented an upgrade similar to kurnass 2000 on 54 turkish f - 4es which were dubbed the f - 4e 2020 terminator . turkish f - 4s , and more modern f - 16s have been used to strike kurdish pkk bases in ongoing military operations in northern iraq . on 22 june 2012 , a turkish rf - 4e was shot down by syrian air defenses while flying a reconnaissance flight near the turkish - syrian border . turkey has stated the reconnaissance aircraft was in international airspace when it was shot down , while syrian authorities stated it was inside syrian airspace . turkish f - 4s remained in use as of 2015 . on 24 february 2015 , two rf - 4es crashed in the malatya region in the southeast of turkey , under yet unknown circumstances , killing both crew of two each . on 5 march 2015 , an f - 4e - 2020 crashed in central anatolia killing both crew . after the recent accidents , the taf withdrew rf - 4es from active service . turkey was reported to have used f - 4 jets to attack pkk separatists and the isis capital on 19 september 2015 . the turkish air force has reportedly used the f - 4e 2020s against the more recent third phase of the pkk conflict on heavy bombardment missions into iraq on 15 november 2015 , 12 january 2016 , and 12 march 2016 . united kingdom the united kingdom bought versions based on the u.s. navy 's f - 4j for use with the royal air force and the royal navy 's fleet air arm . the main differences were the use of the british rolls - royce spey engines and of british - made avionics . the rn and raf versions were given the designation f - 4k and f - 4m respectively , and entered service with the british military aircraft designations phantom fg.1 ( fighter / ground attack ) and phantom fgr.2 ( fighter / ground attack / reconnaissance ) . initially , the fgr.2 was used in the ground attack and reconnaissance role , primarily with raf germany , while 43 squadron was formed in the air defence role using the fg.1s that had been intended for the fleet air arm for use aboard hms eagle . the superiority of the phantom over the english electric lightning in terms of both range and weapon load , combined with the successful introduction of the sepecat jaguar , meant that , during the mid - 1970s , most of the ground attack phantoms in germany were redeployed to the uk to replace air defence lightning squadrons . a second raf squadron , 111 squadron , was formed on the fg.1 in 1979 after the disbandment of 892 nas . in 1982 , during the falklands war , three phantom of no. 29 squadron were on active quick reaction alert duty on ascension island to protect the base from air attack . after the falklands war , 15 upgraded ex - usn f - 4js , known as the f - 4j ( uk ) entered raf service to compensate for one interceptor squadron redeployed to the falklands . around 15 raf squadrons received various marks of phantom , many of them based in germany . the first to be equipped was no. 6 squadron at raf leuchars in july 1969 . one noteworthy deployment was to no. 43 squadron where phantom remained the squadron equipment for 20 years , arriving in september 1969 and departing in july 1989 . during this period the squadron was based at leuchars . the interceptor phantoms were replaced by the panavia tornado f3 from the late 1980s onwards , and the last british phantoms were retired in october 1992 when no. 74 squadron was disbanded . specifications civilian use sandia national laboratories used an f - 4 mounted on a " rocket sled " in a crash test to see the results of an aircraft hitting a reinforced concrete structure , such as a nuclear power plant . one aircraft , an f - 4d ( civilian registration ) , is operated by the massachusetts - based non - profit organization collings foundation as a " living history " exhibit . funds to maintain and operate the aircraft , which is based in houston , texas , are raised through donations / sponsorships from public and commercial parties . nasa used the f - 4 to photograph and film titan ii missiles after launch from cape canaveral during the 1960s . retired us air force colonel jack petry described how he put his f - 4 into a mach 1 . 2 dive to the launch countdown , then " ' walked the ( rocket 's ) contrail ' up to the intercept , tweaking closing speed and updating mission control while camera pods mounted under each wing shot film at 900 frames per second . " petry 's phantom stayed with the titan for 90 seconds , then broke away as the missile continued into space . nasa 's dryden flight research center acquired an f - 4a on 3 december 1965 . it made 55 flights in support of short programs , chase on x - 15 missions and lifting body flights . the f - 4 also supported a biomedical monitoring program involving 1 , 000 flights by nasa flight research center aerospace research pilots and students of the usaf aerospace research pilot school flying high - performance aircraft . the pilots were instrumented to record accurate and reliable data of electrocardiogram , respiration rate and normal acceleration . in 1967 , the phantom supported a brief military - inspired program to determine whether an airplane 's sonic boom could be directed and whether it could be used as a weapon of sorts , or at least an annoyance . nasa also flew an f - 4c in a spanwise blowing study from 1983 to 1985 , after which it was returned . variants f - 4a , b , j , n and s variants for the u.s. navy and the u.s. marine corps . f - 4b was upgraded to f - 4n , and f - 4j was upgraded to f - 4s . f - 110 spectre , f - 4c , d and e variants for the u.s. air force . f - 4e introduced an internal m61 vulcan cannon . the f - 4d and e were the most built , widely exported , and also extensively used under the semi automatic ground environment ( sage ) u.s. air defense system . f - 4g wild weasel v a dedicated sead variant for the u.s. air force with updated radar and avionics , converted from f - 4e . the designation f - 4g was applied earlier to an entirely different u.s. navy phantom . f - 4k and m variants for the royal navy and royal air force , respectively , re - engined with rolls - royce spey turbofans . f - 4ej simplified f - 4e exported to and license - built in japan . f - 4f simplified f - 4e exported to germany . qrf - 4c , qf - 4b , e , g , n and s retired aircraft converted into remote - controlled target drones used for weapons and defensive systems research by usaf and usn / usmc . rf - 4b , c , and e tactical reconnaissance variants . operators australia royal australian air force ( retired ) egypt egyptian air force ( retired ) germany german air force ( retired ) greece hellenic air force iran imperial iranian air force ( former ) islamic republic of iran air force israel israeli air force ( retired ) japan japan air self - defense force spain spanish air force ( retired ) south korea republic of korea air force turkey turkish air force united kingdom royal air force ( retired ) fleet air arm ( retired ) united states united states air force ( retired ) united states navy ( retired ) united states marine corps ( retired ) culture nicknames the phantom gathered a number of nicknames during its career . some of these names included " snoopy " , " rhino " , " double ugly " , " old smokey " , the " flying anvil " , " flying " , " flying brick " , " lead sled " , the " big iron sled " and the " st. louis slugger " . in recognition of its record of downing large numbers of soviet - built migs , it was called the " world 's leading distributor of mig parts " . as a reflection of excellent performance in spite of its bulk , the f - 4 was dubbed " the triumph of thrust over aerodynamics . " german luftwaffe crews called their f - 4s the ( " iron pig " ) , ( " flying brick " ) and ( " air defense diesel " ) . imitating the spelling of the aircraft 's name , mcdonnell issued a series of patches . pilots became " phantom " , became " phantom " , fans of the f - 4 " phantom " , and call it the " phantom " . ground crewmen who worked on the aircraft are known as " phantom " . the spook the aircraft 's emblem is a whimsical cartoon ghost called " the spook " , which was created by mcdonnell douglas technical artist , anthony " tony " wong , for shoulder patches . the name " spook " was coined by the crews of either the 12th tactical fighter wing or the 4453rd combat crew training wing at macdill afb . the figure is ubiquitous , appearing on many items associated with the f - 4 . the spook has followed the phantom around the world adopting local fashions ; for example , the british adaptation of the u.s. " phantom man " is a spook that sometimes wears a bowler hat and smokes a pipe . aircraft on display worldwide there are several f - 4 phantom iis on display . for example , a phantom ii f - 4c - 15 - mc , 63 - , which is on loan from the usaf museum , is on display at the midland air museum , coventry , england ; a phantom ii f4h - 1 , buno , u.s. navy , is located at french valley airport , murrieta , california , usa ; and there is a dwindling number of reserve f - 4s stored at davis - monthan air force base , arizona , usa . the museum of flight at boeing field in seattle has an f - 4c phantom ii on display . this f - 4c was built in 1965 and served in vietnam , shooting down three mig - 21s . the united states air force academy has an f - 4 on display in the south - east corner of the with six mig kills during the vietnam war to its credit . luke afb also has a phantom on display , having facilitated the f - 4 training mission there for several years before the initial adaptation of the f - 15 training mission , said training mission later assumed by holloman afb , then tyndall afb and finally kingsley field angb . the collings foundation operates one aircraft , an f - 4d , as a " living history " exhibit . notable accidents on 6 june 1971 , hughes airwest flight 706 , a mcdonnell douglas dc - 9 - 31 collided in mid - air with a united states marine corps f - 4b phantom above the san gabriel mountains , while en route from los angeles international airport to salt lake city . all 49 on board the dc - 9 and one of the crew on the f - 4 were killed . on 9 august 1974 , a royal air force phantom was involved in a fatal collision with a civilian pa - 25 - 235 pawnee crop - over norfolk , england . on 21 march 1987 , captain dean paul martin ( son of entertainer dean martin ) , a pilot in the 163d tactical fighter group of the california air national guard , crashed his f - 4c into san gorgonio mountain , california shortly after departure from march afb . both martin and his weapons system officer ( wso ) captain ramon ortiz were killed . specifications ( f - 4e ) data from the great book of fighters quest for performance , encyclopedia of usaf aircraft , and mcdonnell f - 4 phantom : spirit in the skies general characteristics crew : 2 length : 63 ft 0 in ( 19 . 2 m ) wingspan : 38 ft 4 . 5 in ( 11 . 7 m ) height : 16 ft 6 in ( 5 . 0 m ) wing area : 530 . 0 ft ² ( 49 . 2 m ² ) airfoil : naca 0006 . 4 – 64 root , naca 0003 - 64 tip empty weight : 30 , 328 lb ( 13 , 757 kg ) loaded weight : 41 , 500 lb ( 18 , 825 kg ) max. takeoff weight : 61 , 795 lb ( 28 , 030 kg ) powerplant : 2 × general electric j79 - ge - 17a axial compressor turbojets , 11 , 905 lbf dry thrust ( 52 . 9 kn ) , 17 , 845 lbf in afterburner ( 79 . 4 kn ) each zero - lift drag coefficient : 0 . drag area : 11 . 87 ft ² ( 1 . 10 m ² ) aspect ratio : 2 . 77 fuel capacity : 1 , 994 u.s. gal ( 7 , 549 l ) internal , 3 , 335 u.s. gal ( 12 , 627 l ) with three external tanks ( 370 u.s. gal ( 1 , 420 l ) tanks on the outer wing hardpoints and either a 600 or 610 u.s. gal ( 2 , 310 or 2 , 345 l ) tank for the centerline station ) . maximum landing weight : 36 , 831 lb ( 16 , 706 kg ) performance maximum speed : mach 2 . 23 ( 1 , 472 mph , 2 , 370 km / h ) at 40 , 000 ft ( 12 , 190 m ) cruise speed : 506 kn ( 585 mph , 940 km / h ) combat radius : 367 nmi ( 422 mi , 680 km ) ferry range : 1 , 403 nmi ( 1 , 615 mi , 2 , 600 km ) with 3 external fuel tanks service ceiling : 60 , 000 ft ( 18 , 300 m ) rate of climb : 41 , 300 ft / min ( 210 m / s ) wing loading : 78 lb / ft ² ( 383 kg / m ² ) lift - to - drag : 8 . 58 thrust / weight : 0 . 86 at loaded weight , 0 . 58 at mtow takeoff roll : 4 , 490 ft ( 1 , 370 m ) at 53 , 814 lb ( 24 , 410 kg ) landing roll : 3 , 680 ft ( 1 , 120 m ) at 36 , 831 lb ( 16 , 706 kg ) armament e - model has a 20 mm m61 vulcan cannon mounted internally under the nose . up to 18 , 650 lb ( 8 , 480 kg ) of weapons on nine external hardpoints , including general purpose bombs , cluster bombs , and laser - guided bombs , rocket pods , air - to - ground missiles , anti - ship missiles , gun pods , and nuclear weapons . reconnaissance , targeting , electronic countermeasures and baggage pods , and external fuel tanks may also be carried . 4 × aim - 7 sparrow in fuselage recesses plus 4 × aim - 9 sidewinders on wing pylons ; upgraded hellenic f - 4e and german f - 4f ice carry aim - 120 amraam , japanese f - 4ej kai carry aam - 3 , uk phantoms carried skyflash missiles 1 × 20 mm ( 0 . 787 in ) m61a1 vulcan 6 - barrel gatling cannon , 640 rounds 4 × aim - 9 sidewinder , python - 3 ( f - 4 kurnass 2000 ) 4 × aim - 7 sparrow , aam - 3 ( f - 4ej kai ) 4 × aim - 120 amraam for f - 4f ice , f - 4e ( hellenic air force ) 6 × agm - 65 maverick 4 × agm - 62 walleye 4 × agm - 45 shrike , agm - 88 harm , agm - 78 standard arm 4 × gbu - 15 18 × , gbu - 12 5 × , gbu - 10 , gbu - 14 18 × cbu - 87 , cbu - 89 , cbu - 58 nuclear weapons , including the , b61 , and