The MiG kill scored by Cash was the last of Rolling Thunder and the first by an East Coast (Atlantic Fleet) carrier.
Designed as a high-altitude interceptor, the F-4 (F4H) Phantom II soon proved itself to be an exceptional aircraft, setting more than a dozen world records for speed, altitude, and time to climb. Notably, it lacked an internal cannon, instead depending on radar-guided missiles for attack and on a Radar Intercept Officer (RIO) to manage its sophisticated sensors and weapons systems.
As Peter E. Davies explains in US Navy F-4 Phantom II Units of the Vietnam War 1964–68, the F-4B gave US Navy pilots a fighter with unmatched thrust, acceleration, and weapons capability for its time. As combat experience from F-4B squadrons was analyzed, McDonnell introduced several improvements, including more powerful J79-GE-10 engines fitted with smoke-reduction devices to lessen the F-4’s distinctive exhaust trails. These long plumes of smoke had earned the aircraft the Vietnamese nickname “fly swatter” (vi ruoi) because of their handle-like appearance. The effect was especially noticeable in Vietnam’s hot, humid skies and could only be minimized by using low levels of afterburner. McDonnell also added stabilators with slotted leading edges, which improved control effectiveness during launch and recovery by generating greater rotational forces.
These modifications produced the F-4J, which also introduced major avionics improvements centered on the Westinghouse AN/AWG-10 pulse-Doppler fire-control system. This suite featured the AN/APG-59 radar, greatly enhancing target engagement, especially at low altitude. The aircraft also incorporated an AJB-7 bombing system connected to an AN/ASQ-91 weapons release computer to improve accuracy.
In February 1967, VF-41 and VF-84 became the first squadrons to operate and later deploy the F-4J. Assigned to CVW-6, VF-33 ‘Tarsiers’ and VF-102 ‘Diamondbacks’ took the type into combat for the first time during America’s April–December 1968 TF 77 cruise, after receiving their initial aircraft—without AWG-10 systems—in October 1967. The two squadrons embarked aboard the carrier in January 1968 and then proceeded with it to the Atlantic Fleet Weapons Range, where training focused on ground-attack tactics using bombs, napalm, rockets, and flares. After a short Caribbean cruise, the units had received 13 newer F-4Js fully equipped with AWG-10 systems and ECM before departing for Southeast Asia on April 10 via Rio de Janeiro.
The F-4J and VF-33 scored their first MiG kill on July 10, which also marked the final MiG victory of Rolling Thunder. It was likewise the first MiG kill achieved by an East Coast (Atlantic Fleet) carrier. No further Phantom II air-to-air victories would follow for another 18 months. Lt. Roy Cash also set an important precedent within the F-4 community as the first RIO to retrain as a pilot. Within a few years, the standing of RIOs had risen enough that Fred Staudenmayer, a VF-33 back-seater, went on to become the squadron’s commanding officer.
On July 10, 1968, Cash and Lt. (jg) Ed Kain were flying Rootbeer 212 (BuNo 155553) on a MiGCAP mission off Vinh alongside USAF exchange pilot Maj. Charlie Wilson and his RIO, Lt. (jg) Bill Williams. As Roy ‘Outlaw’ Cash later recalled:
“Charlie and I launched mid-afternoon, and we soon determined that his radar was marginal to non-existent, so it was agreed that if we took a vector for bandits, I would assume the lead. About one hour into the flight, our controller [‘Raider’—onboard the destroyer USS Horne (DLG-30)] called us over the ‘Cipher’ frequency to alert us to impending MiG activity. The MiGs’ tactics at this point in the war were to dash in over the ‘no bomb’ line, shoot the A-7As [Cash and Wilson were CAPping a US Navy A-7A Corsair II strike near Vinh], and retreat north before fighters could be vectored for them.”
The ‘Rootbeer’ pair dropped their centerline fuel tanks, activated exhaust smoke suppression, and flew at 1,500 ft along a ridgeline until Kain detected enemy aircraft in pulse-Doppler radar mode at a range of more than 30 miles. He then locked onto two MiG-21s at 18 miles as they flew 3,500 ft above the F-4Js. After receiving permission to engage, Cash fired two AIM-7Es from five miles. Although the missiles tracked properly, the MiGs were flying in an orbit and turned across their path, causing the Sparrows to detonate about 100 yards from the target. The MiG pilots, seemingly deprived of their usual ground control support and warning network by effective US communications jamming, quickly identified the direction of the F-4Js’ attack and turned toward them, closing to gun range.
“I switched to heat and fired off an AIM-9G Sidewinder,” Roy Cash explained, “but the aspect was more than 90 degrees off at less than 1000 ft, so it missed. However, it scared him so badly he continued his descending right break, hit the deck, and headed north out of the fight.” The ‘Tarsiers’ crews were then alerted to two additional MiG-21s closing in on them, just as Cash moved in behind the lead MiG from the original pair they had been engaging. “I quickly attained the ‘six o’clock’ at about 1500 yards and fired an AIM-9G. I watched it guide and impact the tail area of the MiG, blowing the empennage completely off.” On return to America, Cash “performed the best rendition of a victory roll I could imagine,” and he also kept his promise to stop smoking from then on.
US Navy F-4 Phantom II Units of the Vietnam War, 1964-68, is published by Osprey Publishing and is available to order here.
Photo by U.S. Navy and U.S. Air Force
