Customer Reviews

US Navy F-4 Phantom II MiG Killers (1) 1965-1970 (Osprey Combat Aircraft 26)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This Osprey book deals with the exploits of Navy F-4 drivers in the early portion of the Vietnam War and how they performed against the North Vietnamese Air Force and more importantly how they compared to the Navy F-8 Crusader pilots. The chapters follow the Vietnam War from its introduction thru the lull point of 1970. This break point selected due to the Navy changing tactics and the overall change in the air war. Within each of the chapters is a good breakdown of events during the given year. Attention is paid to the the individual encounters and if a shoot down occurred. A somewhat depressing piece was the number of aviators who would achieve their first kill and then get shot down, usually by air defense forces. Something that was a little hard to follow at times was which squadron was from which aircraft carrier, however Osprey does have a section in the Appendices that helps with that. Speaking of the Appendices, there's a great table in there comparing F-4 kills/losses to F-8 kills/losses. Seeing this table, one has to wonder why the Navy either didn't hold on to the F-8 longer than they did or didn't equip their F-4's with cannons earlier than they did.

The bottom line is this is a solid 4 star book! The graphics are good, the pictures meaningful, and the color plates are very nice.

This is an excellent account of the difficulty faced by U.S Navy Phantom crews during Rolling Thunder in vietnam. A combination of overtly restrictive rules of engagement,lack of ACM training and malfunctioning missiles all contributed to a low kill ratio by Phantom crews. This book discusses these issues through first person account and rare photos of the naval aviators and their planes. It shows that despite all the disadvantages, the Phantom crews still managed a superior 2-1 kill ratio in their favour.

Like I said in the USAF F-4 review, you gotta love this bird. While the illustrations don't have the appeal of later F-4 paint schemes, they are presented quite well and in great variety. Standard white grey color schemes save the back cover camo scheme. Lots of nice color maps detailing op zones and areas make this quite readable, thanks for that. Nice color photo selection. Can't miss with this one. Love the Mig camo picture shown on page 21. I remember watching these F-4s land and take off while stationed on the Midway. Recommended for all Phans of the Phantom!

Part one of two great books detailing the coming of age of the F-4 Phantom II fighter during US Naval operations off Yankee Station in the Gulf of Tonkin during the Vietnam War. A must for air war enthusiasts!