421st TFS F-4E , hard wing with TISEO

[+ravenclaw_007]

i found this 2 pictures showing early F-4E´s with TISEO  ( about 1971 -1972 ) i would like to add them to my upcoming F-4E pack  , my problem is that i cant find any reference on the serial numbers , the only thing i can see is the 307 and the 317 , i was searching with 66-0307 / 67-0307 / 68-0307 and 69-0307 with no result the same i did with the 317 

both aircraft belong to the 421st TFS based at DA Nang AFB , the picture from 307 was taken 1972 at Clark AFB , the picture of 317 showing 2 ECM-pods 

if any body has some info on this 2 aircraft please send them to me , the 307 had the name "PROMETHEUS" on the left side of the nose the 317 has a name to but i have no clue what name

 

[+streakeagle]

The lower photo is a bird I struggled to find before. It is "Hey Jude", which was the box art for the Revell 1/32 F-4E in my childhood, H198.

Revell 1/32 McDonnell Douglas F-4E Phantom II Hey Jude, H198 (oldmodelkits.com)

Here is a modern decal sheet: F-4 Phantom Hey Jude Graphics Set – Callie Graphics (callie-graphics.com)

I did find a photo or two, maybe I have them linked on my Facebook?

 

[+Sundowner]

As far as I am aware, they were " in theatre" trails aircraft.

[+streakeagle]

I found the photo on my facebook account. The web page source is long gone, but here is the photo.

This is the info from the webiste: Photo of "Hey Jude" from website of a guy commissioned to build a model of it for its pilot, Brigadier General (Ret.) Bob Baxter. Apparently, "Hey Jude" was part of an operational evaluation of TISEO over Vietnam in February of 1972.

Edited March 12, 2024 by streakeagle

[+streakeagle]

My F-4 Phantom book collection might have some other similarly marked F-4Es in it, but notably not "Hey Jude".  Maybe even the other one in the above photo, but possibly the same photo. I have never seen many photos of this unit in my quest to find photos of "Hey Jude". However, I was able to find color profiles in the past, including "Hey Jude". These profiles were typically on Russian sites since they were mostly copied out of books and posted without permission.

[+streakeagle]

Here is a photo from the same unit, but the image is too low of a quality to be useful. It also appears to be lacking TISEO.

F-4E_of_the_421st_Tactical_Fighter_Squadron_at_DaNang.jpg (600×400) (wikimedia.org)

[+ravenclaw_007]

22 minutes ago, streakeagle said:

The lower photo is a bird I struggled to find before. It is "Hey Jude", which was the box art for the Revell 1/32 F-4E in my childhood, H198.

Revell 1/32 McDonnell Douglas F-4E Phantom II Hey Jude, H198 (oldmodelkits.com)

Here is a modern decal sheet: F-4 Phantom Hey Jude Graphics Set – Callie Graphics (callie-graphics.com)

I did find a photo or two, maybe I have them linked on my Facebook?

 

Thank You so much , now i have the name and 1 Serial number 

would it be safe to assume that the other serial number is 68-0307  ????

[+streakeagle]

Just now, ravenclaw_007 said:

Thank You so much , now i have the name and 1 Serial number 

would it be safe to assume that the other serial number is 68-0307  ????

I would bet on it.

I would love to see Hey Jude's skin on the Heatblur DCS F-4E despite being post Vietnam slatted variant <hint, hint>

[+streakeagle]

This is another decal sheet for Hey Jude.

Wolfpak Decals 72-112 - "Devil's Fork" (usaf-sig.org)

There is an image of the decal sheet itself that kind of shows the small red logo that it mounted low on the left side.
On the sheet it is next to the "Hey Jude" decal.
You can see the logo on the intake ramp of the first color photo of 307.

s-l1600.jpg (1139×1600) (ebayimg.com)

 

Edited March 12, 2024 by streakeagle

[+ravenclaw_007]

any idea what that could be ???  looks like a kiwi 

[+streakeagle]

2 hours ago, ravenclaw_007 said:

any idea what that could be ???  looks like a kiwi 

I can't find a better image than your first color photo and the decal sheet.
It looks like some kind of bird with its wings up and one foot extended forward.
Kiwis don't have wings.
On the decal sheet, it looks more like a Dodo bird.

Edited March 12, 2024 by streakeagle

[+streakeagle]

I did find the fate of the aircraft by serial number:

68-0307  3324  68-0307  THK 1981 (THK = Turkish Air Force)
68-0317  3343  wfu (withdrawn from use) 14may90 AMARC AA FP0501 (AMARC inventory number) rts (returned to service) QF-4E

68-307 might still be flying. 68-317 was probably shot down during training/testing.

[+streakeagle]

AMARC information on 68-0317
The AMARC Experience - AMARC Experience Database

[+streakeagle]

She really got around. Looks like TISEO was removed. As of 1978, the gun muzzle had been upgraded to the Midas style.

Aircraft Photo of 68-0317 / AF68-317 | McDonnell Douglas F-4E Phantom II | USA - Air Force | AirHistory.net #263205

68-0317 EG | F-4E. 33 TFW / 58 TFS. Eglin AFB, Florida. TAC.… | Flickr

68-0317 | 3343 | McDonnell Douglas F-4E Phantom II | USA Air Force | David F. Brown | AIRFIGHTERS.COM

68-0317 MY | F-4E. 347 TFW / 68 TFS. Moody AFB, Georgia. TAC… | Flickr

Edited March 12, 2024 by streakeagle

[+streakeagle]

I only found one later photo of 68-0307. As of 1975, the gun muzzle had been upgraded.
68-0307 | 3324 | McDonnell Douglas F-4E Phantom II | USA Air Force | Eric Tammer | AIRFIGHTERS.COM

Edited March 12, 2024 by streakeagle

[+streakeagle]

They best I can do on the red bird logo is the box art from the old model.

 

[+streakeagle]

I got my first F-4E model, a 1/72 Revell in 2nd grade after having watched a film on the Thunderbirds at school. Sometime between then and halfway through the 3rd grade, I got the 1/32 Revell F-4E pictured above. I loved it even more than my Monogram 1/48 B-17G. I tried to paint it as a Thunderbird with no decals and no photo references, so it was ugly. But I never forgot the box art. When you went to hobby shops or department stores, two large models were almost always prominently displayed: the 1/48 Monogram B-17G and the 1/32 Revell F-4E. The box art for both of those is forever etched in my brain. Of course, unlike the box art, "Hey Jude" flew South Vietnam ground attack sorties and never got near a MiG-21 much less kill one.

This is the B-17G box I always saw. I bought the same exact model just before I left the Navy in 1996 and have it painted/decaled per the box as El Lobo II hanging above me as I type this.

 

[+streakeagle]

One last shot of the red bird from an eBay photo of the decal sheet.

[+ravenclaw_007]

thanks for all the help on this one 

thats how they look like now

[+streakeagle]

Those look so beautiful to my eyes!

[EricJ]

Looks good but I think the LC is too close to the forward edge of the tail.

[Wilches]

...don´t make it bad!

[+ravenclaw_007]

i made a new tail for the F-4E/F/G´s and thats how it looks now i did not add the pilots name yet for the 68-0317 because there is a small problem with the canopy frames and i dont have the names for the 68-0307

 

and here is the F-4E_72_TISEO , it is still a BETA version but a very close to final one

F-4E_72_TISEO.7z

the aircraft has the 1971 cockpit , it is a early cockpit and therefor no ripple quantity selection , if you select for example the Mk82 bomb and you have 18 of them hang on the aircraft than all 18 will drop as soon as you press the button , the only selection you have is the ripple interval with 0.08 sec , 0.10 sec and 0.14 sec

if you carry nuclear bombs you may look at the right side panel there is a functioning DCU-94A bomb control panel for them

if you go true the radar options you will come also to the TISEO ( is on the 2nd ground mapping ) it has no lock on function it is just fixed view

 

 

Edited March 14, 2024 by ravenclaw_007

[+streakeagle]

This bird is older (67-0333), but shots of this unit are so rare and somehow this one is a MiG killer as well as having the later gun muzzle.

Edited March 15, 2024 by streakeagle

[+ravenclaw_007]

6 hours ago, streakeagle said:

This bird is older (67-0333), but shots of this unit are so rare and somehow this one is a MiG killer as well as having the later gun muzzle.

interesting is that on both pictures is the same aircraft bud in the upper one the ejection seat & canopy warning is just in red on the picture below it is with the white outline

i have this  version ( F-4E with hard wing and MIDAS 4 nozzle ) in the F-4E pack including the squadron , i just think about the shark mouth should i make a new one for this squadron ???

Edited March 15, 2024 by ravenclaw_007