F-4 Phantom II 50th Anniversary | Photos

U.S. Air Phorce Phantoms

By Chuck Oldham (Editor) - August 11, 2011

An air-to-air view of three 497th Tactical Fighter Squadron F-4E Phantom II aircraft banking left during Exercise Team Spirit '86. U.S. Department of Defense photo by Master Sgt. Mike Harrington

F-4Ds from the 435th Tactical Fighter Squadron, 8th Tactical Fighter Wing over Vietnam, off the wing of a Boeing KC-135A Stratotanker as the squadron tanks. Both Phantoms are armed with three SUU-30/B cluster bombs (right wing), three LAU-3 rocket launchers (left wing) and six Mk. 82 500-pound bombs (centerline). National Museum of the U.S. Air Force photo

An F-4D of the 435th Tactical Fighter Squadron, 8th Tactical Fighter Wing, armed with two 2,000-pound GBU-10 Paveway I laser guided bombs (LGBs) over North Vietnam in September 1972. In April 1972 the USAF used LGBs to destroy the Dragon's Jaw Bridge and the more famous Paul Doumer Bridge just outside of Hanoi. During the last year of the war, LGBs destroyed more than 100 bridges across North Vietnam. U.S. Air Force photo

An RF-4C Phantom II shown in flight, 1968. The aircraft was assigned to the 192nd Tactical Reconnaissance Group, Nevada Air National Guard. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Mark L. Comerford

A U.S. Air Force McDonnell Douglas EF-4C Phantom II of the 67th Tactical Fighter Squadron, 18th TFW over North Vietnam in December 1972. It is armed with AGM-45 Shrike and AIM-7 Sparrow missiles and carries an AN/ALQ-72 ECM pod. The EF-4C "Wild Weasel IV" was a parallel development with the F-105G "Wild Weasel III" program. Some 36 F-4Cs were modified and fitted with AN/APR-25 Radar Homing and Warning Systems (RHAWS), AN/APR-26 SAM launch warning systems, and ER-142 electronic countermeasures receivers. U.S. Air Force photo

An F-4C Phantom II, top, and F-104 Starfighter aircraft on a tactical training mission in 1979. The aircraft were, respectively, from the 310th and 69th Tactical Fighter Training Squadrons, 58th Tactical Training Wing, 12th Air Force. The F-104G had been originally licence-built by Fokker in the Netherlands for the German Luftwaffe, but operated at Luke AFB in USAF colors to train German F-104 pilots. U.S. Department of Defense photo by Ken Hackman

Four F-4E Phantom II bank left during Exercise Crested Cap, circa 1980. Crested Cap could be thought of as the Air Force's "Reforger," where squadrons formerly deployed to Germany, but which were withdrawn beginning 1968, returned to Germany once a year to exercise. The aircraft were assigned to the 4th Tactical Fighter Wing. U.S. Department of Defense photo by Tech Sgt. Bob Wickley

A 26th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing RF-4C Phantom II aircraft from Zweibrucken Air Base, Germany, en route to a training mission over southwestern Germany in 1987. The recon Phantoms were, along with the Wild Weasels, the longest to serve. U.S. Department of Defense photo by Master Sgt. Patrick Nugent

A U.S. Air Force McDonnell F-4D-30-MC Phantom II (s/n 66-7579) from the 141st Tactical Fighter Squadron, 108th Tactical Fighter Wing, New Jersey Air National Guard, in flight over Germany in September 1982 during exercise Reforger '82. U.S. Department of Defense photo by Tech Sgt. Ken Hammond, USAF

A pair of U.S. Air Force F-4D Phantom II aircraft assigned to the "Happy Hooligans" of the 119th Fighter Wing, North Dakota Air National Guard, fly in formation during a training mission in 1985. The Phantoms are wearing the Aerospace Defense Command (ADCOM) camouflage. U.S. Air Force photo by Larry Harrington

An interesting photo of a formation of 924th Tactical Fighter Group F-4D Phantom II aircraft during Exercise Team Spirit '85, with two aircraft still in South East Asia (SEA) camouflage and two in the European One scheme. U.S. Department of Defense photo

An F-4E Phantom II and an F-4G Advanced Wild Weasel Phantom II aircraft from the 561st Tactical Fighter Squadron wearing the wraparound "European One" camouflage scheme in 1984. Both aircraft are equipped with AN/ALQ-119 electronic countermeasures pods and AGM-45 Shrike missiles. The F-4G is also carrying the big AGM-78 Standard anti-radiation missile, an adaptation of the Navy's Standard SAM, on the left inside wing pylon. The Standard remained in the inventory until replaced by the AGM-88 HARM in the late 1980s. U.S. Department of Defense photo by Master Sgt. D. Sutherland

A Soviet Tu-95 Bear bomber aircraft intercepted over the Arctic Ocean by 119th Tactical Fighter Wing "Happy Hooligans" Phantoms, during a flight to Keflavik, Iceland in 1983. Eight Bears were intercepted by Hooligan pilots during their deployment to Iceland. U.S. Air Force photo

Three F-4E Phantom II aircraft of the 51st Tactical Fighter Wing, Osan Air Base, Republic of Korea. The long nose with underhung Vulcan rotary cannon of the F-4E made shark mouths a popular addition to the paint scheme. These Phantoms were equipped with ALQ-119 electronic countermeasures pods and air combat maneuvering instrumentation (ACMI) pods. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech Sgt. Bill Thompson

An F-4E takes part in an air defense training mission with a 2nd Bombardment Wing B-52G Stratofortress aircraft during the 15th Air Force's first "Shootout" conventional bombing competition in May 1989. U.S. Department of Defense photo by Tech. Sgt. Michael J. Haggerty

A 526th Tactical Fighter Squadron F-4E Phantom II aircraft pokes its nose up through the clouds shortly after taking off from Ramstein Air Base in 1986, on one of its last missions. The F-4E aircraft of the 526th TFS were being replaced by new F-16C Fighting Falcon aircraft. U.S. Department of Defense photo by Staff Sgt. David Nolan

An F-4E Phantom II, top, and an F-4G Wild Weasel, bottom. Note the open refueling port on the top of the F-4E. Both aircraft were equipped with AN/ALQ-119 electronic countermeasures pods. They were assigned to the 3rd Tactical Fighter Wing, Clark Air Base, Philippines. U.S. Air Force photo by Technical Sgt. David N. Craft

One of the Phantom II's nicknames was "Double Ugly," and certainly the Phantom looks shocking today in contrast with contemporary designs. It's easy to forget that its performance and capabilities in its heyday were eye-watering, and even in the '80s, as the F-16 and F-15 were coming into service, it remained a formidable aircraft. Here the crew of a 497th Tactical Fighter Squadron F-4E go inverted during Exercise Team Spirit '86. U.S. Department of Defense photo by Master Sgt. Mike Harrington

An air to air overhead view of three U.S. Air Force F-4G Wild Weasels from the 561st Fighter Wing, Nellis AFB, Nev., in formation over the Mediterranean Sea and Saudi Arabia. The retirement of the dedicated Wild Weasel F-4G meant there would no longer be dedicated Wild Weasels in the Air Force. U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Brett K. Snow

In the latter stages of their service lives, the remaining Phantoms wore the two-tone "Hill Grey" camouflage scheme, as shown here in 1989 by these two Tactical Air Command F-4E Phantoms from the 4th Tactical Fighter Wing, Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, S.C. U.S. Department of Defense photo by Master Sgt. Jose Lopez

At a time when jet aircraft were said to lack character in comparison to their piston-engined forbears, the F-4 Phantom II had character in spades. With its polyhedral wings, massive intakes for the great J79 jet engines, huge radar, seemingly vestigial cockpit, and anhedral tail, the Phantom was an unforgettably brutal design. It also boasted incomparable performance, with a radar and missile combo that outperformed virtually all other systems of its era. It broke 15 performance records when it was first entering the inventory in 1959, including the world absolute speed and absolute altitude records for aircraft of its class.

The most numerous American jet fighter aircraft of all time, with more than 5,000 built, the Phantom II served with the U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, and U.S. Air Force, as well as 11 other nations. While the last U.S. Phantom was retired from service in 1996, it is still flown as a remotely-controlled target for the Air Force, and continues to fly in the armed forces of seven countries.

While the Phantom II first flew in 1958 and was first delivered to the Navy in December 1960, VF-74 “Bedevilers” at NAS Oceana became the first deployable Phantom squadron the following year, receiving their F4H-1s (later redesignated F-4Bs on order of then-Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara) on July 8, 1961. The first Air Force Phantom II, the F-4C, flew in May 1963.

For more Phantom photos, see Phantom Phiftieth Anniversary | Photos