What is that you say?
Posted on 09/01/2016 3:33:24 AM PDT by sukhoi-30mki
Will never forget the dichotomy of emotions when we had a skin-on-skin impact between our SM-1 and the small drone brought onboard for our live training onboard the Rodney M Davis (FFG-60) off the coast of the PI in the early 90’s. CO was grinning ear to ear and the drone guys were absolutely livid and going on about how they had specifically instructed us to avoid that. Good times.
Bookmark.
I’ve heard that there’s nothing quite as loud or sphincter-clenching as the roar of an F4 taking off under full afterburner.
Worked at an airbase in Israel for a few months back in ‘99 - every morning F-4s would take off from the airstrip right behind our hangar. Full after-burners, screaming down the runway. Just mind-blowing.
There is and it's when two take off side by side. I attribute hearing loss to the F-4.
That would be air refueling of them. My most terrifying air refueling missions involved the F-4 to include my only Class C mishap when they tore an 8 inch crack in the fork of the boom. It just went to show if you gave a brick enough thrust it would fly.
An RF-4B Phantom II doing a tail stand.
That right there is an undisputed fact, as far as I’m concerned. I grew up in the Air Force and my father was always in TAC units. At Lakenheath and Eglin, my brother, my friends and I would ride our bikes to an area where we could watch the Phantoms light up those twin GE J-79s and kick them into afterburner. The very best, however, was when the Thunderbirds flew the F-4; what a show! An airplane that big, that fast and that loud made for a spectacular show. As they say around many Air Force bases, “That’s the sound of freedom.”
We used to park up in the hills above Luke AFB near Phoenix and watch then new F-15’s do touch and go practices. I still remember one pilot going full vertical and afterburner. It sounded like a rocket launch from the Cape.
I can’t imagine having that much raw power at my fingertips. It must be what God feels when He’s slinging lightning.
Was a crew chief on F-4C/D/E/G models. They are a maintenance nightmare. They are stone age blunt instruments compared to current aircraft.
My knees and back are paying the price for many years of abuse attributed to these bent wing trashcans.
Dirty, smelly, leak like pigs. I feel for the people who have to keep that piece of junk in the air.
Good riddance.
I can attest to that. PO’ed at having to work Saturday (turned out to be morning only, but a ruined weekend anyway), we went out and got drunk in Beaufort, SC.
Anyway, next morning we’re walking down to the flight line with the mother of all hangovers. These two F4H’s take off and hit their afterburners and I hit the ground. I thought my head was going to split open.
” there’s nothing quite as loud or sphincter-clenching as the roar of an F4 taking off under full afterburner”
Nope. B-1 is louder and more awesome. Especially at night.
“I grew up in the Air Force “
Same here. Ever see a B-1 take off with full burners in the pitch black of night? Nothing compares.
I worked atba local naval base for 19 years one of my tasks was retrieving the target banner after gunnery practice. Laser sighting, not bullets. A major from the ANG base that was 20 miles away was taking his last flight and decided he would buzz the field at NASMER. I happened to be picking up the banner at the time, driving the truck as a man in back was rolling up the banner cable. I saw a shadow pass the truck and then a gawd aweful howling scream as the Major flew 25 ft off the ground full throttle. Barely caught a glimpse and it was gone. The man rolling up the cable was nowhere to be found until I looked under the truck where he was hiding. RF4C Phantom strikes Again . the Phantoms were replaced by BY kc135S a few years later and my job working on the venerable T2C Buckeye came to a end in 2004. And our military has been under attack since 2008 or earlier.It just aint the same at Nasmer I’m told, but I cant go back. I pissed the senior steward of the local IAM off and likely will never work on military aircraft again.
I worked on the F4-B and the F4-J while in the Navy. The F4-J had improvements which made it easier to work on.
What is that you say?
There was an ANG fighter squadron based out of my hometown and they flew F4s for a while. I never got close enough to see them taxi and take off, but I was near enough to hear them on occasion.
It was loud with them in the clouds. I can only imagine what it must be like on the runway.
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