Originally shared by +Fly By Photography Today's fast jet is the McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II. The F-4 is a two seat, twin engine jack of all trades. Designed in the mid '50s for the US Navy as an interceptor, the F-4 also took on the roll as a Navy and Marine Corps fighter-bomber and reconnaissance aircraft. The US Air Force latter purchased the F-4 for use as a fighter-bomber, air superiority fighter, reconnaissance platform and latter still converted many to Wild Weasel SAM suppression aircraft, hunting and killing surface-to-air missile sites and their associated tracking installations. Over 5,000 F-4s were built between 1958 and 1981 with many being exported to countries friendly to the US. The F-4 weighed over 30,000 lbs. empty and had a maximum takeoff weight of over 61,000 lbs. It was powered by two General Electric J-79 engines capable of producing over 17,000 lbs. of thrust each and propelling the Phantom to speeds over Mach 2. The F-4 holds the distinction of being the only aircraft to be used by both the US Navy's Blue Angles and the US Air Force's Thunderbirds flight demonstration teams. The last F-4s in active US service were retired in 1996. […]