27 F-4Bs were “bought” from the Navy order for $147.8 million on the understanding that the Navy would have them back once the USAF’s Phantom variant, the F-4C (originally F-110A Spectre under the pre-McNamara designations) began to roll off the line
The McDonnell F-4 Phantom II, a two-seater, twinjet, all-weather fighter with speeds exceeding Mach 2, stands as one of history’s most adaptable fighter aircraft. It served frontline duty in more Western air forces than any other jet. Just 31 months after its maiden flight, the F-4 became the U.S. Navy’s fastest, highest-flying, and longest-range fighter. Its first flight occurred on May 27, 1958, before entering service in 1961.
As explained by Peter E. Davies in his book Gray Ghosts, U.S. Navy and Marine Corps F-4 Phantoms, a small number of early F-4Bs that joined the Navy fleet also helped introduce the Phantom to the USAF. Tactical Air Command (TAC) borrowed two F4H-1s (BuNos 149405 and 149406) in 1962 for a seventeen-week evaluation after acknowledging the aircraft’s superiority over any Air Force fighter. These aircraft toured USAF bases, including Bentwaters in the UK (BuNo 149406) during 1962, showcasing the new fighter to personnel. The F-4B had already made an impressive debut at the previous year’s Paris Salon. Both aircraft were formally transferred to the Air Force and received new serials (149406 became JF-4B 62-12169).
The Navy order provided an additional 27 F-4Bs to the Air Force for $147.8 million, with an agreement that the Navy would reclaim them once the USAF’s Phantom variant, the F-4C (originally F-110A Spectre under pre-McNamara designations), began production. Design changes for the production F-4C were relatively minor. The wing root of the F-4B was structurally thickened to accommodate wider (11.5 inches) wheels with anti-skid brakes on the main gear, replacing the 7.7 “skinny” F-4B tires. Anti-skid brakes didn’t appear on Navy Phantoms until F-4J BuNo 157242 and later models. The AJB-7 bombing system enhanced ground attack capability, and cartridge-starting J79-15 engines were utilized. A control column was added to the back cockpit, as both crewmen were considered pilots. The in-flight refueling system converted to the standard Air Force flying boom system.
Colonel Pete “Speedy” Everest, a record-breaking test pilot, commanded the “borrowed” F4H-1s that equipped the 4453rd Combat Crew Training Wing at MacDill AFB, Florida, from February 4, 1962. This unit trained crews for the 12th TFW until “real” F-4Cs began arriving in November. RIOs, initially called Pilot Systems Operators (PSOs) in the Air Force and later Weapons Systems Operators (WSOs), found the removable control column in the rear cockpit an uncertain advantage. Unlike the F-4C’s stick, it required unplugging and stowing before the radar controls could be slid out for use. “Front seaters” were interestingly required to spend time in the back to study the radar interception task. This twin-stick approach allowed backseaters to control the aircraft, though without access to landing gear or brake controls. The F-4C also featured rudimentary throttle controls, but the backseater still couldn’t land the aircraft independently.
The Air Force encountered early adaptation problems with the F-4B’s Martin-Baker H5 ejection seats, which were more complex than their previous experience. Two fatalities and a serious injury to MacDill personnel resulted from failing to recognize that the “banana-link” mechanism on top of the seat could initiate ejection if moved or compressed with the seat armed. In one case, an inadequately secured F-4B seat slid up the rail during a negative g maneuver, fired the canopy jettison device, left the cockpit, and then slid back along the fuselage. The pilot’s parachute was fortunately deployed as well, allowing him to survive.
MacDill F-4 crews, like their Navy and Marines counterparts, remained on alert during the Cuban crisis, though their combat effectiveness would have been limited by their incomplete weapons training. Phantom crews from all three services would soon find abundant action much further away in Southeast Asia.
The following video gives you a glimpse into the TAC Evaluation of the F-110A.
Photo by U.S. Air Force
