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McDonnell F-4J / F-4S Phantom II

The Navy's second-generation Phantom with look-down radar — later rebuilt with slats · First flight 1966 · In service 1966

The F-4J was the US Navy and Marine Corps' second major Phantom variant, replacing the F-4B in production. It introduced the AN/AWG-10 fire-control system with the AN/APG-59 pulse-Doppler radar, giving the Phantom look-down/shoot-down capability, together with more powerful J79-GE-10 engines. It first flew in May 1966, and 522 were delivered between 1966 and 1972.

The F-4J flew with the Navy's Blue Angels display team from 1969 to 1974, and in the 1980s fifteen ex-US Navy F-4Js were refurbished for the Royal Air Force as the F-4J(UK) Phantom F.3.

From 1977 a large part of the F-4J fleet was rebuilt as the F-4S, which first flew in July 1977. It received a strengthened airframe, smokeless engines, the upgraded AWG-10B radar and leading-edge manoeuvring slats. The last F-4S left the Navy's deployable squadrons in 1987, while Marine Corps and reserve units flew it for several more years.