US Navy F-4E Phantom II VF-51 'Screaming Eagles' USS Coral Sea May 1972 Hobby Master HA19043 Scale 1:72

US Navy F-4E Phantom II VF-51 'Screaming Eagles' USS Coral Sea May 1972 Hobby Master HA19043 Scale 1:72
Hobby Master Scale Air Power models collection
scale 1:72

One of the most famous and easily recognized fighter aircraft of the post-WWII era was the McDonnell F-4 Phantom II. This aircraft was developed as a private venture by the aircraft company but was soon ordered by the USN as a carrier-based attack aircraft. Its first flight took place on May 27, 1958 and it entered active service in December 1960. It wasn’t long after the F-4B appeared that a fly-off was set up with USAF front-line fighters. It was no contest, the F-4 performed so well that the USAF ordered their own variant, the F-4C. As time went on, the F-4 evolved into well over a dozen variants.

F-4B 151398 had served with 5 other squadrons since its 1963 maiden flight and in May 1972 F-4B 151398 belonged to VF-51 "Screaming Eagles" on board the USS Coral Sea. The aircraft was assigned to Lt. Winston “Mad Dog” Copeland and Lt(jg) Dale Arends but on May 10,1972 the aircraft was crewed by Lt. Ken “Ragin Cajun” Cannon and Bud Morris. That day they destroyed a MiG-17 with an AIM-9. Returning from SEA the aircraft was upgraded to an “N” variant and transferred to the VF-161 based in Japan and scrapped in 1993.