Name something better than a J-79 on afterburner.
Two J-79’s on afterburner?
The F-4 remains proof that even a brick can fly if you give it enough thrust.
That was where they tied the planes down with their tailpipes pointing out over the water and would do high power testing there.
There were two large white signs with red letters on the beach that said DANGER-JET EXHAUST-KEEP BACK
Of course, I had to go RIGHT up to the signs and even into the exhaust area when they were testing those things and they were idling, but I was never stupid enough to try to walk through the zone at high power.
Like most young guys, the louder it was, the more I loved it. No wonder I am hard of hearing today-even now, my ears are ringing in unison at me!
I became an Aviation Machinists Mate in the Navy, and got plenty of experience close up and personal on the flight deck, once even stupidly getting caught behind a JBD while a Tomcat was taking off in full afterburner. Those twin TF-30's on the Tomcat were nowhere as loud as a pair of J-79s, but as I took refuge in a wheel well of an A-7 with my flight deck jersey pulled up around my mouth and nose in desperation, unable to breathe and feeling like I was going to fry, the difference felt trivial to me!
When the F-14 shot and I came out looking like a cat who had been unceremoniously shoved into a hot oven, my fellow White Shirt (Flight Deck Troubleshooter) grinned merrily at me through his goggled, mirthful eyes as his mouth bulged with a chunk of chewing tobacco, and shouted in my ear: "SEE??? THAT'S WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU AREN'T PAYING ATTENTION!"
He was right...I hadn't been paying attention to THAT. After that, I always stayed attuned to when everyone else skittered out from behind the JBD when an F-14 was on the catapult!!!
Two J-79s on afterburner. F-4 rules!