@ New York, NY
August 2018
My first visit to the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum brought me face to face with this U.S. Marine Corps Phantom wearing the colors of VMFA-323. On 24 April 1980, VMFA-323 was prepared to fly combat missions into Iran in support of American hostages rescue attempt Operation Eagle Claw. When Operation Eagle Claw failed, VMFA-323 F-4s flew combat air patrol until all US support ships had exited the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. Designed by McDonnell Aircraft and first flown in 1958, the classic F-4 Phantom II served with all three US services and air forces around the world. December 21, 2016 would mark the phinal retirement of the Phantom from US service. F-4 production ran from 1958 to 1981, with a total of 5,195 built, making it the most produced American supersonic military aircraft. The F-4N was the designation for F-4Bs modernized with smokeless engines and improved aerodynamics carried over from the F-4J. Fuji X-E2s w/18-135mm.
