THE RECORD BREAKING PHANTOM II

[Music] this is the McDonald Phantom 2 a powerful and steadily growing Force for the defense of the Free [Music] World this is a pilot's airplane and the Phantom's flight Crews have adapted quickly to the aircraft's power and ease of handling to demonstrate time and again that this is the most versatile air weapon in the world they have demonstrated it not only in official military tests but by a series of official World Records which and as a reassurance to America and her friends and a warning to her enemies the Phantom has two engines for power and reliability and two crewmen for efficient weapon delivery as an Interceptor it carries both heat seeking Sidewinders and radar guided Sparrow missiles to destroy attacking aircraft [Music] for longrange attack and Troop support the Phantom can deliver a wide variety of conventional or nuclear weapons as a Navy fighter the Phantom operates from aircraft carriers it can fly efficiently from World War II carriers with their limited deck space as well as from the latest super carriers taking full advantage of their multiple launch facilities [Music] its stable landing approach brings it safely [Music] aboard this same slow flight capability also enables it to operate from relatively small land bases many other capabilities have been proved by strenuous test programs range speed endurance and reliability these qualities were emphatically demonstrated as the Navy showed the Phantom's performance to the World by an allout assault on existing World Records a look at these records will dramatically illustrate the fighting Power of the distinguished Phantom 2 an intruding bomber for instance may be flying at an extremely high altitude to down the enemy before he can strike his Target an interceptor must be able to take off and climb swiftly to his altitude early in the development phase project Top Flight proved the zoom climbability of the [Music] Phantom carrying recording instruments sealed by officials of the National Aeronautics Association Commander Larry Flint took off from Edwards Air Force Base in California in an attempt to better the existing altitude record after a level flight speed buildup Peak altitude would be reached in a [Music] zoom his momentum carried him upward into the stratosphere to an altitude of 98557 Ft [Music] as the aircraft dive toward Earth instruments in the aircraft as well as those on the ground indicated that the Phantom had set a new world altitude record this was confirmed by the federa aeronautic International and its American affiliate the national aeronautic [Music] Association an effective Interceptor must also be able to hold a high altitude for a sustained period to reach out toward the enemy before he reaches his Target another world record demonstrated that the Phantom can do this too Top Flight was a zoom above the normal operating altitude this time Commander GW Ellis flew through a straight 25 km course at 66443 FT to establish a new world record for sustained altitude he maintained an average speed well over MCH 2 through the course this record like all the Phantom's other Records Was Made official by the Fai split seconds assume immeasurable importance as an Interceptor moves to launch its missiles against incoming attackers here the Phantom speed pays off speed that has been proved officially Three Times both in straightaway flight and in turns one of these races Against Time was Project skyburner its purpose was to establish the allout straight and level speed of the aircraft and thus demonstrate its ability to attack and reack evasive targets Radars and Optical trackers followed as Lieutenant Colonel Robert B Robinson flashed through a straight 15 km course over the dry lake near Edwards Air Force Base as required by Fai rules he turned and repeated the run in the opposite direction reaching a peak speed of over 1650 mph his average speed of over 1600 6 mph mck 2.57 made the Phantom the fastest jet powered aircraft in the world but straightaway speed is not enough to utilize its multiple missile load against enemy bombers the fighter must be able to turn and maneuver at high speed and altitude the Phantom proved this capability in two record-breaking flights around both long and short Cor [Music] es the first course was a 500 km triangle precise maneuvering was required to enter the Starting Gate at high speed and on course and to negotiate the sharp turn at the far end Colonel Thomas Miller flashed around this course at an average speed of over 1216 mph this was 400 mph faster than the previous record Another record was slated to fall as Commander John F Davis took off for an even more exacting flight over a 12-sided course only 100 km around maneuvering Precision was critical the pilot was guided only by a radar plot and if one wing tip should slide inside the markers he would be disqualified on the other hand if he should fly too wide his flight path would be too long and his calculated speed would therefore be lower but careful planning and practice paid off on the record flight Commander Davis held the Phantom in a steady 3G turn at 45,000 ft averaging over 1390 mph once again the data showed that the Phantom had set a new record McDonald Engineers designed the Phantom to be an attack bomber as well as a fighter and its bombing capabilities too have been well illustrated by official World Records let's look at Sage burner one very effective bombing technique is to approach the target at high speed and low altitude thus hiding the aircraft from enemy radar and observation and and gaining the advantage of surprise to demonstrate the Phantom's suitability for this type of attack the Navy undertook to fly a straight 3 km course at top speed less than 300 ft above the ground Lieutenant hunt Hardesty as pilot and Lieutenant Earl dsh as radar Observer made repeated supersonic passes over this course at an average speed of 92 mph MO 1.2 averaging only 125 ft over the terrain and sometimes flying as low as 50 ft the density of the air at this extremely low altitude coupled with supersonic speed made severe demands on the Pilot's skill as well as the structural strength and controllability of the aircraft announcing this world record Admiral George W Anderson chief of Naval operations said the 3 km record is is one more bit of proof that the Phantom 2 is one of the best fighter aircraft in the world the world is the Phantom sphere of influence in fact operating from carriers and existing friendly Shore bases the Phantom can bring its fighting ability to bear on 96% of the world surface and do it quickly and efficiently [Music] project Lana proved the Phantom's longrange speed Lana commemorated the 50th anniversary of Naval Aviation by showing the Navy's ability to deploy rapidly to far off trouble spots a group of phantoms equipped for combat crossed the country non-stop from coast to coast faster than any aircraft had ever done before the start was from onario California and the Finish Line was New York's Floyd Bennett Field the fastest plane of the group would also win the famous Bendix trophy there were three inlight refueling points over New Mexico Missouri and Ohio when all was ready the starting command came from NORAD headquarters the Phantoms roared Off The Runway at Ontario at timed intervals the Air Defense command and the Federal Aviation agency had organized an electronic Network for flight surveillance and Communications at the first refueling rendevu the Phantoms dropped to the tanker's altitude and slowed to match the tanker subsonic speed then fuel replenished they were off again at their own high altitude and supersonic Pace after the three lead Phantoms completed all refuelings they began their let down all three broke the record the best time was set by Lieutenant's RF Gordon and BR young in the third Phantom they had spanned the country in 170 minutes at an average speed of over 869 [Music] mph these official records impressive as they are are not only significant for themselves alone they serve to show the people of the world the true power of one of America's newest and best Defenders of Freedom The Versatile Phantom 2