Last of the gunfighters

[tbm3fan]

Years ago when the plane just came back from the paint shop. Who knows the plane and why it has that nickname?

 

[Big_John]

F-8 Crusader

I think that was the last fighter to have guns as the main weapon.

 

[53ryder]

The F-4 Phantom, which would follow the F-8, didn't have machine guns included in the fuselage. The the thinking was jets would attack at distance with missiles. There would be no need for close air-to-air combat. Incorrect thinking. Later a gun pod was developed and often attached under the centerline of the jet.


Glenn
(follow the smoke...find the Phantom)

 

[tbm3fan]

The F-4 Phantom, which would follow the F-8, didn't have machine guns included in the fuselage. The the thinking was jets would attack at distance with missiles. There would be no need for close air-to-air combat. Incorrect thinking. Later a gun pod was developed and often attached under the centerline of the jet.


Glenn
(follow the smoke...find the Phantom)

True, they loaded a 20mm Gatling gun pod under the plane. Useless in air to air combat as they were never sighted in. No gunsight in an F4 Phantom.[video]https://youtu.be/zQvObtxH2EY[/video]

 

[tbm3fan]

What you see in your rear view mirror. This F4-S is the last Phantom to make a carrier landing back in the days. The landing was aboard the USS AMERICA and we located the plane in the back areas of North Island Naval Air Station. How we got it is a miracle in itself since the USS MIDWAY museum had opened right across the bay. On top of that this plane flew off the MIDWAY. Nonetheless, a retired Navy Commander associated with our ship and writes historical books on ships, located it and got it up to us. Still needs to be painted which was supposed to be 5 years ago according to him. I guess he is still busy with his 50 Oldsmobiles.

A short story. There is a small compartment in the tail of these jets. One of our volunteers was a Marine aircraft hydraulic mechanic on the East Coast in the 70's. When the squadron made training missions down to Guantanamo they would fill that compartment with bottles of booze. They made sure the pilot was aware so there was no breakage and when it arrived at Cherry Point the stuff was quietly removed.