This aircraft last served with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron VMFA-235, known as the Death Angels. Originally a F-4J, it was converted to a F-4S in the late 1970s. VMFA-235 was the last active duty fighter squadron to fly the F-4 Phantom. MAPS received this aircraft from Cherry Point Air Station, North Carolina in 2004.
McDonnell Douglas
F-4S Phantom
The F-4S was fitted with smokeless
J79-GE-10B engines
that corrected problems earlier Phantoms had with producing a prominent
trail of sooty black smoke. They were also fitted with two-position
wing leading-edge maneuvering slats, which gave the F-4S a 50% improvement
in combat turning capability when compared with an unslatted F-4J.