Did the wings fold on the F-4E, as they did on Naval F-4s ?Yes. The C and D model wingfolds were identical to USN craft. The hydraulic actuators were removed on the F-4E/G - but they could be manually folded. One AF crew of the 57th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, Keflavik, Iceland even proved that you can LAND that way ! ( Two NAVY crews bailed out when this sort of thing was encountered - though they would have had a tougher time landing on a ship. )
During the war, EVERY jet returning from a combat mission did a barrier engagement, if it was raining. They used about 800 feet of runway to land. Fascinating to watch, actually. The jet would stop in about three times it's length - then back up as the tape rewound...
The maximum missile load ( all types ) would be 12 - though he probably couldn't land that way.
( weight-and-balance criteria.) Four AIM-7F radar-guided in the fuselage, six AGM-65B TV-guided Mavericks on the inboards, two AGM-45 SHRIKE or AGM-88 HARMs on the outboards, and a 650-gal. centerline tank.
Eight: Four AIM-7E/F and four AIM-9M. Early F-4Cs could carry two additional AIM-7Ds, one on each outboard station, in place of wing tanks.
( They had a TG-76 single-station tuning drive inside the special pylon. All series had a small RF window about half-way out on the leading edge of the wing to support outboard AIM-7s, even though the capability had been removed.) Prior to 1974 or so, the larger AIM-4D Falcon missiles were used in place of AIM-9s, ( except for PACAF aircraft ).
F-4C and D aircraft used the J-79-15 engine, which had rather short afterburner nozzles. The more-powerful -17 engine in the E/G had long "turkey feather" AB nozzles, which extended an arm's length out the back of the jet. The simplest way was the radome: Cs and Ds were large-diameter, stubby things with no pitot tube at the tip. The "donkey d*ck" beneath the radome extended almost to the tip. F-4Es first had a short black fairing beneath the 'dome, no more than 8-10 inches long.Later, a gun blast diffuser was added, and it extended another 18 inches or so.
( Extension was about 1/3 of radome length.) F-4Gs extended this fairing even more, and gave it a larger diameter to accomodate ECM gear. It took up 3/4ths of the radome length.
Climb up in the cockpit. The most noticeable difference was the sight glass in front of the pilot's face. The C's sight was merely depressible, and was a small square of glass. In the D and subsequent jets, the reticle position on a wide, oblong glass was computed at lockon, depressible at other times. Of course, if you were close enough to get in the cockpit, you were close enough to read the data plates in the nose wheelwell.
I've seen as many as THIRTY 500 lb. bombs stuffed onto five MERs in a static display - but that is unrealistic. Eighteen 500 lb. MK-82s were possible with a short flying time; fourteen 750-pounders, two AIM-7E-2s, and a centerline tank was a common external load in VN. Sometimes, two 2,000 lb. MK-84s were hung on the outboards, while twelve 500 lb. MK-82s were on the inboards.
Yes, nukes - on five stations, if need be. In addition to B57 and B61 tactical weapons, the MK1 Mod 0 Walleye ( which was the first TV-guided glide bomb ) and the special warhead AGM-12 missile were also certified on the F-4.
I'll never tell, even though it isn't classified anymore. It could "see" farther than an F-16, and lockon at a greater range than an F/A-18 or F-16. The early F-4Es ( analog computer ) could lockon and maintain track of maneuvering targets considerably better than later digital computer-equipped models.
It was generally stated as "mach 2 +" - but there was quite a lot of difference, one jet to another. The earlier jets were faster, before the leading-edge slats were added. I've seen logs as high as mach 2.4. Most later jets would have a hard time reaching that figure.
Six. They were:Leadnose. These were the first 66-XXX tails, delivered in 1968, before the AN/APQ-120 radars were ready. Useful only for basic F-4 flying training and some gunnery, they eventually were transferred to the THUNDERBIRDS demonstration team.
Plain Vanilla. These 66,67, 68 and some 69 models drew the bulk of the Vietnam War assignments until the TISEOs came along. Those that had been in PACAF had armor plates attached to many underside panels and access doors.
TISEO jets. After 1972, all new jets ( 71 - 76 series ) had a TV tracker installed in the leading edge of the left wing. TISEOs also had leading-edge slats ( small, movable winglets ) and wing fences built in. This slowed down the top speed considerably, but supposedly improved low-speed handling.
Pave Spike. While any F-4 could launch TV and laser-guided weapons, the first ones required another plane to illuminate the target. Pave Spike pods were only slightly larger than an AIM-7 missile, and could be loaded on a forward AIM-7 station. It provided a good TV picture of the target, and could laser-illuminate anything it tracked. These jets were all 67- and 68- models, and had their ASQ-91 analog bombing computer upgraded to the ASQ-91B.
ARNIE jets. Many 69- and 70-models had their reliable Inertial Navigation (ASN-46) and Bombing systems (ASQ-91) gutted, only to be replaced by a kluge digital system called AN/ARN-101. While it was excellent at navigating, it made a very poor bomber. ( Major software errors which the contractor couldn't/wouldn't fix, even when shown what to fix, and how to fix it ! ) ARNie jets were capable of carrying the absolutely huge PAVE TACK pod, which performed the same sort of tracking and laser illumination as the much smaller and realistic Pave Spike. PAVE TACK also had the capability for real-time data link of reconnaisance TV transmission to ground commanders - though it is doubtful that this feature was ever really used.
Wild Weasels. A number of 69-7XXX tail-numbered F-4Es had their guns removed and the rather large cavity packed with ECM gear, to become F-4Gs. There were other modifications as well, so that most of the weapons systems on board became integrated with the EW equipment.
This was an F-4E sold to Germany. At the time, Germany was still under political restrictions - more than 30 years after WW II - that kept them from possessing "Offensive" weapons. The range of the AIM-7 missile made it "offensive". Therefore, the AIM-7 support circuitry in the APQ-120 was removed, and simple voltage-dividers provided the "right" outputs to enable the Built-in-tests to pass. Otherwise, it was identical to a USAF F-4E. It must have taken at least two hours to restore the AIM-7 capability.<G>
Identical to the USAF models. In fact, many of these were older USAF jets, repainted to match that nation's desired color scheme, rather than brand new planes from the factory.
The dart resembled a paper airplane, except it was made from aluminim-skinned plywood and was about ten feet ( 3m. ) long, with four fins; "wing"span of about five feet. Usually performed over water, a gun pass went like this:
The tow plane travelled a few miles ahead of the attacker, releasing the dart, and unreeling the five miles or so of steel cable attaching the dart to the reel. Upon signal, the tow plane snapped a 180-degree turn, heading back into the path of the attacker. ( The dart continued on it's tether line. )
When the tow jet passed the attacker, he was free to lockon and fire at the dart. ( This method ensured the tow plane was out of the field-of-fire.) As long as the 20mm didn't cut the wire, the dart could be reeled back in, and cut loose in a safe area just before landing; the dart was then recovered and scored by counting the holes or other damage inflicted by the 20mm. Some darts had a flare attached to one wing; these were used as IR sources enabling AIM-9 Sidewinder missile practice.
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