Today we take a close look at the GE J-79-15 engine, from front to back with Crew Chief Al. We also changed the tire on the left main landing gear. It was very humid that day, with condensation and dew on every surface.
Oh, man! I feel like I've been looking up the skirt of an old girlfriend! I flew the F-4B and it's been a long time since I looked in all of those oily places. What a magnificent old bird! Built like a brick outhouse and with two of those beautiful J 79s, it always got me home. One thing not mentioned in this great walk around was the unusual linkages of the stator vanes. On this engine, the throttle lag was eliminated by the use of mechanical linkage connecting all of the stator vanes so that they responded to throttle position. That meant that on TO when you pushed the throttles forward, the engine power was right behind your hand. The stators all streamlined at the command for TO power, thus no rpm lag. It was the only jet I flew with this great feature. It was also rock solid and if you walked on the wings, the plane didn't even move. It was a beast!
Thank you for your service! That's interesting, I did not know that about the stator vanes, learned something new today! I agree about walking on the wings, she's a solid aircraft!
Well that brings back a lot of memories, I worked in the engine shop on J-79-15's and a little on -17's we did complete overhauls on them. We had RF4C's and we were supposed to transition to F4G's but it never happened. That engine will make you a safety wire king! I miss the F4 it was a great airplane.
That's really cool, and thank you for your service! My safety wire skills have improved, but I think I'm only getting started. Looking forward to when we start her up again!
Changed many hydraulic pumps on the J-79. Hardest part was checking for hyd leaks during engine run up. It becomes a little uncomfortable especially during afterburner run.
I can’t imagine a leak at 3,000 psi. I’ll get to experience the engine run up at some point. We’ll tow her out to the tie down pad and check the engines good before she’ll take to the skies again.
@Danny Snyder I got to watch a few times the Squadron mechanics run the engines at high power settings, for post maintenance checking I was told. One guy would scuttle around under the Phantom while running at high power checking and prodding with a screwdriver. The noise was terrific. Ex IAF Structural tecnician / Mechanical fitter F-4, F-16, MD-500
What you said was the AB fuel pump is actually the Nozzle area control. Thanks for the walk thru my past, I worked on F4 b,c,d,e's and J's. I have 14 years experience on the F4's. I even was one of the very few who installed an engine analyzer on the F4;s as a test project while I was at George AFB
So cool to be the guy taking care of a Phantom II. Much respect. We tested a J79-15 removed from an F-4 a while back in our test cell. This vid is just the engine, without any voiceover. I hope you like it. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-4E_pxu2cn3c.htmlsi=xp1NpK7zvAnskPTA
Thank you! I’ve learned a lot on the J79’s thanks to you and your channel! Quite an honor and privilege that I’m part of the team taking care of this iconic fighter! Thank you for sharing that video, that engine sounded great. I’m not 100% certain, and I’ll be sure and ask, I think our engines in this jet are the -17 version.
I was a j-79 mechanic on RF-4C 83 to 86 Bergstrom AFB Austin TX the base is Austin’s Airport now if you watch the music video of The Clash Rock The Casbah you will see our planes 😊
Thank you so much for sharing this on RU-vid, really fascinating for me to see up close all the mechanicals of the beautiful beast that F4 is. I just found your channel today I've been missing out! The last time i seen her fly was when she chased the mig 15 at WOH 2017, I'd love to see her in the air soon. Need a floor sweeper? Im good with a wrench too! 😊
so the brakes are pretty much like a clutch where you have layers of friction and steels? pretty cool but now i wonder where the brakes and stuff came from since i used to be a security officer for a honeywell (formerly bendix brakes) plant
Yes, a stack with alternating layers of stators and rotors. That's really cool, and probably not a stretch that these brakes may have come from that plant!
