Another bare pre-built Die-cast metal replica aircraft which I casually bought on sale only a few month before this post, a short online product research actually does specify it as an F4-Phantom II in 1/100th scale, the exact version is unspecified. I had already featured a regular plastic kit model of this aircraft more than half a decade ago on my lost “Geocities” website at 1:144 scale, and as “then and now” I’ve always though it’s a good idea to post the Phantom in sequence with my other “historically” significant pieces. My earlier 1:144 scale plastic kit Phantom II already lost its canopy, by scale a part very hard to fabricate convincingly by scratch building.
This new 1/100 die-cast version is pre-painted and fairly complete, markings on the specimen indicates that it is supposed to be a replica of a Phantom II whose
mother ship is the US aircraft carrier “Constellation”. The landing gears,
wheel well panels and missiles are scratch built from varied materials
like paper clip wires, cotton bud shafts,
and prepaid cards. The mock-up landing gear system’s dimensions are based on
actual online plans of an F4-Phantom but it is not mechanically and
thoroughly detailed. Because of the
varied weapons the Phantom is capable of
carrying and the difficulty involved in making small parts for a
middle-aged man like me. The missile are made based on observations of popular images of the F4 and
meant only to be an aesthetic enhancement to the model.
Introduced in early 60’s, The McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II is a twin engine Mach-2 (2,300+
kph) fighter interceptor originally conceived to neutralize high altitude
Soviet inter-continental Bombers. Early Phantoms did not have internal mounted guns
due to the over anticipated notion by
some bureaucratic experts that the newly introduced “guided missiles”
are advantageously enough to defeat an opponent aircraft … a classic case of over
reliance on infant technology based on futuristic Science fiction theories.
This mistake is eventually realized on-hand during the Vietnam War when the
F4 despite its huge size and tandem pilot configuration was employed as a
close-in dogfighter against slower and nimble Russian built fighters like the
MIG 15s and MIG 17s. Many of the heat seeking missiles fail to find its target and due to absence of guns the Phantom has
lost the capability to kill at close range. Later Phantom was mounted with
external gatling gun under the belly and the most modern variants have internal guns (or cannons) under the
nosecone where the infrared seeker was used to be mounted.
Gradually retired by the US armed
forces right after “Desert Storm”, it since
been replaced by new generation
combat aircrafts. Phantom IIs was used
by more than ten countries like Iran, Japan, Israel, Egypt, Spain, Germany and UK from 1960 to the present. Phantom IIs are
also the U.S. warplanes that conducted the controversial “Persuasion flights” on one
of the most captivating Military Uprising in the Philippines during the last quarter of the 1980s. I
actually found the manuscript of my old
Geocities post about this event with old
photos of its coinciding 1:144 scale Phantom
II resin model of an unfamiliar Chinese brand called “mini hobby toys”, its one
of the earliest kits I bought that is made in China the parts have many casting
imperfection back then. If circumstances allows it; It will be published with this feature as a post update.
Featured 1:100 scale unbranded Die-Cast F4 Phantom II with an earlier built 1:144 scale plastic model kit Phantom by "Mini Hobby Toys " brand. Note that the smaller plane has a missing canopy.
:-)
