Today, 64 years ago, which coincided with May 27, 1958, became a golden moment in the world of aerospace, because the legendary fighter jet F-4 Phantom II had flown for the first time.
The aircraft from McDonnell Douglas was originally designed as an all-weather carrier-based interceptor for the US Navy and Marine Corps. Entered into operational service through the F-4B series in June 1961, in a short time this aircraft set various world records.
Historically, in 1952, McDonnell Aircraft began an internal study to determine which branch of service most needed new aircraft. Led by Design Manager Dave Lewis, the team discovered that the US Navy would soon need a new fighter to replace the Demon F3H. McDonnell began revising the aircraft in 1953, with the aim of improving performance and capability.
With the intention of creating the "Superdemon," which could reach Mach 1.97 and be powered by General Electric J79 engines, McDonnell also created a modular fuselage in the cockpit and different nose cones and payloads that could be attached to the fuselage, depending on the desired mission.
The US Navy was intrigued by this concept and requested a full-scale mock-up of the design. After assessing the design, it finally passed as the US Navy was satisfied with the supersonic fighter jets already in development such as the Grumman F-11 Tiger and Vought F-8 Crusader.
But recently there was a need to change the design to create a new all-weather bounty-bomber that could carry 11 external hardpoints, McDonnell received letters of intent for two prototypes, and the designated YAH-1 on October 18, 1954.
McDonnell then developed a prototype design with the label XF4H-1. Powered by two J79-GE-8 engines, the development of the new aircraft generation saw the need for a second crew member to act as radar operator. On 27 May 1958, the XF4H-1 made its maiden flight with pilot Robert C. Little.
Currently, Iran, which incidentally is a great enemy of the United States, has the status as the largest operator of the F-4 Phantom in the world. Why is it called the largest operator? Because the population of active F-4 Phantoms in the Iranian Air Force reaches 64 units, from the initial number when received there were 80 units.
The Iranian Air Force currently operates the F-4D/E Phantom (60 units) and RF-4E Phantom (4 units). If it is further deepened, from 60 units of F-4D/E, 10 units are F-4D variants and 50 units are F-4E variants. For the record, the F-4D variant is an alert from the 60s decade which first flew on December 9, 1965. This variant was specifically made for the needs of the air force.
While the F-4E is a younger variant that first flew on June 30, 1967. The F-4E is known as the best-selling variant, with the production of this variant reaching 1,389 units. Then the RF-4E is a reconnaissance variant specifically sold outside the US, this variant first flew on September 15, 1970.
Although classified as old, this legendary fighter jet is still actively used by several countries, for example, Greece, Japan, South Korea and Turkey still maintain several variants of the Phantom.
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