5 Things To Know About The Final Days Of The US F-4 Phantom II
5 Things To Know About The Final Days Of The US F-4 Phantom II
- Korea retired its F-4 Phantoms after 55 years of service, marking the end of an era.
- Greece plans to retire F-4 Phantoms along with other aircraft and upgrade to F-35s and Rafales.
- Turkey and Iran will become the final operators of the F-4 Phantoms as Greece and Korea phase them out.
The legendary F-4 Phantom II's days are finally coming to a close, and soon, only Turkey and Iran will operate them. The F-4 Phantom is generally regarded as one of its era's best supersonic fighter jets. When the F-4 Phantom was produced, the idea was a fighter jet could run, but it couldn't hide and had a max speed of Mach 2.23. Today, fighter jets like the stealthy F-35 are slower (Mach 1.6) and built with the idea that a fighter jet can't run but can hide.
Korea Retired Them
Around 55 years of Phantom service in the South Korean Air Force came to an end as Korea retired its Phantoms in June 2024
South Korea finally retired the last of its F-4 Phantoms in June 2024. The Korean Air Force retired its last two Phantoms at a ceremony on 7 June after they had completed their final patrol that lasted around an hour. This marked the end of over five decades of service in the Korean military.
Photo: Parkdolly l Shutterstock
The first F-4 Phantoms arrived in Korea in 1969 during the Cold War in what was then a major boost for South Korea's air force. So much has changed since then. Back then, North Korea had a larger and more industrial economy while receiving some of the most advanced jets from the USSR. Today, the North Korean Air Force is little more than a flying museum, while the prosperous South is receiving advanced fifth-generation F-35 fighter jets.
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Greece Will Retire Them
Greece has announced it will divest its F-4 Phantoms, F-16 Block 30s, and Mirage 2000-5s
Greece announced earlier in 2024 that it will soon retire its aging F-4 Phantoms (while also selling off its aging Mirage 2000-5s and F-16 Block 30 fighters). Greece fields a single squadron of 34 F-4E Phantoms. They are operated by the Greek (Hellenic) Air Force 338 Squadron - originally established in 1952. While it is possible Greece might be able to find a buyer for the Phantoms, their advanced age means it is more likely they will be scrapped.
Photo:Flight Video and Photo l Shutterstock
Greece is also upgrading its airforce with new American F-35 fighter jets and French-made Rafales. This will significantly increase the capabilities of the Greek Air Force. The transformation has been described as the largest the Greek Air Force has undertaken.
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US Air Force blew them up
Many of the US F-4 Phantoms were converted to zombie targets and blown up
In a certain sense of the word, the US Air Force is also one of the final operators of the F-4 Phantom. The US retired hundreds of them and then converted them into drones called the QF-4. The QF-4 is a remotely piloted aerial target the US Air Force uses for training, weapons testing, and shooting, providing "a realistic full-scale target for air-to-air weapons system evaluation..."
Photo: US Air Force
But the US can only blow up so many of them. It is unclear if any QF-4s are still being used by the Air Force (the website may not have been updated but lists an active inventory of 84). Having exhausted the supply of retired F-4 Phantoms, the Air Force is now converting retired F-16 Fighting Falcons into zombie aerial targets.
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Turkey & Iran: the final operators
It is unclear when Turkey and Iran will retire their final F-4 Phantoms
Once Greece finally retires its F-4E Phantoms, Turkey and Iran will be the last air forces still operating the aging F-4 Phantom. It is unclear how long Turkey will continue to operate the aircraft, but it is bound to retire once more recently contracted F-16s enter service or at least when the domestic Kaan fighter jet enters service.
Photo: yiannisscheidt | Shutterstock.com
Before the revolution of 1979, Iran was a close American ally and received a large amount of American military equipment. Since then, it has been largely cut off from international arms sales. With no other choice, Iran has kept its fleets of F-4 Phantoms and F-14 Tomcats flying despite sanctions. It's anyone's guess how long it will be able to keep them in service and flying.
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F-4 Phantom II lost its last fight
A Phantom was shot down in what could be the last fight the F-4 Phantoms see
A Turkish Phantom lost what could prove to be the last F-4 Phantom engagement. On June 22, 2012, a Turkish RF-4E Phantom II reconnaissance jet was intercepted and shot down by the Syrian Army in international airspace after it had strayed into Syrian airspace during the Syrian Civil War.
Photo: twintyre l Shutterstock
Both of the Turkish pilots were killed in the incident. The Turkish Phantom was hit by a Syrian surface-to-air missile, and it was the first time a Phantom had been shot down since the Gulf War. It is unclear if Turkey will use the aging aircraft again in combat; this could be the last time the F-4 engages or is engaged in anger. That said, it is also possible that the Phantoms could see combat again if a war breaks out with Iran.
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