This brought back some sweet memories! I was the crew chief of this jet at Davis Monthan AFB in the 60's. We had about 100 F-4's and were the 4453 Combat Crew Training Wing I went after being a Phantom Phixer to the A-7 then F-16. I always loved the F-4 after all was said. I also crewed 67-463 which Steve Ritchie got his Ace in in Nam. ( I worked on it at DMAFB when it was new) I miss the sound of the F-4. Back then we could get a taxi and high speed taxi "license" What a rush! That was short lived. Thanks.
Terry here on my wife’s I pad. My first jet I crewed was a Phantom.. F-4C & D models at George AFB California in 1969 in the 434th TFS. The only fighter squadron at George at that time. When the F-4E models became more prevalent, I got 68-400 F-4E with only 4.6 hours on it. She used to talk to me when she cooled down or when the sun rose in the High Desert in the morning. You hear about Pilots becoming one as the fly, it works for us Crew Chiefs when they come home to us….
One humble nice guy great interview.. great upload thanks so much for enthusiasts around the World who sadly never get the chance to see these fantastic war birds in the flesh . cheers
The venerable F-4 Phantom was and still is the epitomy of what a Vietnam-era aircraft strived to be. Through its over 30 year career from flying bombing raids over Hanoi to its service as a wild weasel in the first Gulf war the Phantom proved itself time and time again. This beautiful old warbird stole the hearts of the pilots who flew her and the maintenance crews that maintained her. Hearing the mighty roar of those big J79 engines says the Phantom has returned if only for a short time!
What?......an f15 pilot talking about the f4's sheer power. I believe the f15 has lots more power than an f4. The f4 must be truly special to impress an f15 guy. Neat interview, the f4 is my all time favorite fighter jet as a child of the 70s seeing them fly in the 70s and 80s from a near by guard base.
The two J79 Turbine Engines in the F4 Phantom burned 3-4 gallons per second combined when in full afterburner. That means 160 gallons for a 40 second afterburner x $5 per gallon = $800 in fuel costs just for the take off. Have your gas credit card ready.
Salute from an F4-D Crew Chief- Viet Nam Era. looks like your still burning JP4, probably should upgrade to JP8. if you ever need panels 101 or 102 pulled, I'm you man. watch out for the speed brake and aux air door bites! Phantom Bites!
Seeing the F-4 Phantom in formation [or should that be Phormation?] with the A-4 Skyhawks really highlights just how "smokey" the engines were even after the upgrade to tone down the smoke factor.
Sometimes they make a plane that's so awesome it'll be cool forever. What a history for a fighter jet. Japan flew Phantoms until 2021. Several countries still fly it today. Turkey upgraded some E model airframes to 2020 standards so there's still awesome Phantoms flying around out there in the world air forces. Not even 65 years since its first flight could stop it completely! ETA It broke another record at the end of its road, and that's for # of years of service compared to any other Western fighter. If it's not all-time 2nd place in the world right behind the MiG-21, I must be missing something.
i know exactly what he means, about concetraiting and not thinking its cool until its over, i am a student pilot and my flights are over in it seems like minutes because i am so focused on flying, i never think its cool until i am on the ground and at home, in fact i always bring my camera with me but i have not snapped 1 photo yet or taken any movies, because i forget i have the cam due to concentration. i want my F-4 Type ratting so bad
I was a crew chief on the Phantom tail # 66-6333 @ George AF.B FROM 83-86, horrible to work on , rcvd many “Phsntom bites , hanging the external fuel tanks was a pain, you had to be spot onto it didn’t leak, and changing the battery, ya, real fun geez, crew chiefs would pay people other wing nuts to do it, hahaha, . Would I do it all over again, you damn right I would, many memories..
Back when Histoy Channel showed aircraft videos they had one where they played actual tapes of a conversation between the skyraider strike leader and the phantom strike leader phantom lead we are in the area skyraider lead we figured it was you we saw the smoke nuff said stay the course Bruce
What's up with your #1 engine? Looks like the burner isn't getting enough fuel, not nearly as smokey as #2, which is normal for an F4, I think. Fuel control unit maybe?
In the mid 80's the AF started a program until retirement that had some engine afterburners modified with a smokeless kit. It appears this aircraft has one modified and one unmodified afterburner installed. The smokeless model had a unique smell on the ground during start up & taxi.
@@sbreheny You are correct, I do not know why I wrote afterburner. Before the smokeless mod, we would use one engine in min burner and the other at idle to prevent the smoke trail when coming to the merge fighting air to air.
The only flyable F4 in civilian hands. But it's defanged, the radar is inop and weapons systems. I worked on F4's for 20 years, Weapons Control Systems, WCS. Worked C,D,E.
I also worked F-4C, F-4D, F-4E, F-4F and F-4Gs at George AFB. Started out on E models and then the squadron brought in Cs and Ds. Found out the hard way the Klystron strut on Cs and Ds were not insulated like the Es.
@@alanhess9306 I was at George 68-69 field shop. Then Danang we got C's about 4 months before I left and I was assigned to put the Field Shop system together.
