This is a deposit belonging to the USAF Museum.
The F-4 Phantom II is an American two-seat, twin-engine supersonic multirole combat aircraft. The design was developed in the 1950s on order from the US Navy as a fleet defence fighter. The prototype made its maiden flight in 1958, and in 1961 Phantoms in the F-4A and F-4B versions entered service with the first US Navy squadrons, followed by US Marine Corps in 1962. The US Air Force (USAF) also became interested in the new aircraft, and the fighter-bomber version F-4C was developed for them, with the first examples reaching units in 1963.
During the Vietnam War, Phantoms were used for fighter, ground attack and reconnaissance missions (for the latter purpose, reconnaissance versions RF-4 were developed, equipped with cameras mounted in the forward fuselage). Subsequent versions of the aircraft included the F-4D and F-4E (armed with a cannon) for the USAF, and the F-4J for the US Navy. The final versions for the US Navy were the F-4N (developed by modernising the F-4B) and the F-4S (developed by modernising the F-4J). Export versions were also produced: the F-4F (a simplified F-4E for West Germany) and the RF-4E (an unarmed reconnaissance variant).
Based on the F-4E, the F-4G Wild Weasel version was developed, specifically designed to detect and destroy surface-to-air missile sites. Aircraft of this type took part in Operation Desert Storm in Iraq in 1991.
In USAF service, F-4E aircraft were replaced in the 1980s by the F-15 and F-16. The F-4G version remained in service until 1996. US Navy Phantoms were replaced by the F-14 Tomcat by 1983, and those belonging to the US Marine Corps were replaced by the F/A-18 Hornet by 1986.
Phantom production continued until 1979. A total of 5,195 examples of all versions were built. Besides the United States, Phantoms were also purchased by the United Kingdom, Spain, Israel, West Germany, Iran, Egypt, Turkey, Greece, Australia, Japan and South Korea. Israeli Air Force Phantoms took part in the Arab-Israeli conflicts, and those belonging to the Iranian Air Force were used in the Iran-Iraq War in the 1980s. They remain in service in Greece, Turkey and Iran. It is estimated that F-4s in American service shot down 277 MiG aircraft, with an additional 116 MiGs falling to Israeli aircraft.
The exhibited example, F-4E-34-MC, serial number 67-0260, served with US Air Force units in the United States and Europe.
| Wingspan | 11.7 m |
| Length | 19.2 m |
| Maximum takeoff weight | 28,030 kg |
| Maximum speed | 2,370 km/h |
| Maximum ceiling | 18,000 m |
| Maximum range | 2,699 km |
| Armament | M61 Vulcan 20 mm cannon, up to 8,480 kg of ordnance on 9 hardpoints under the wings and fuselage (bombs, air-to-air and air-to-ground missiles, rocket launchers) or additional fuel tanks |
| Powerplant | two General Electric J79-GE-17A single-spool turbojet engines with 79.38 kN thrust with afterburner |
