Final Flight To Be Conducted December 21

The U.S. Air Force will hold a hail and farewell to the venerable F-4 Phantom at Holloman AFB, New Mexico December 21.

The F-4 Phantom II entered the USAF inventory in 1963. The F-4 was the primary fighter-bomber aircraft in the U.S. Air Force throughout the 1960s and 1970s. F-4s also flew reconnaissance and "Wild Weasel" anti-aircraft missile suppression missions. Phantom II production ended in 1979.

The current variant of the Phantom II is the QF-4, unmanned aerial target. The remaining QF-4s are assigned to the 82 ATRS, Detachment 1 at Holloman AFB, New Mexico. The QF-4 program attained initial operational capability in 1997. It was the successor to the QF-106 in the Air Force aerial target inventory. The aerial target fleet is owned and operated by the 82nd Aerial Target Squadron, 53d Weapons Evaluation Group, 53d Wing. The 82 ATRS operates the only Full Scale Aerial Target in the Department of Defense.

To date, the QF-4 has flown approximately 145 unmanned sorties, and about 70 jet have been destroyed through the FSAT program. The QF-4 will be replaced by the QF-16.

There will be a media day at Holloman on December 20, with the final flight and ceremony at 8 a.m. – 1 p.m. on December 21.

(Source: Holloman AFB media advisory. Image from file)

FMI: www.af.mil