RF4X

[DaFROG]

Well I’ve been in a state of non modelling for about 6 years until my brother the infamous and justly feared (by desserts of all colours and creeds) puddingwrestler put me onto this site. Strangely enough one of my last modelling projects pre break is on here  I don’t think it was me who submitted it as it was a monogram 1/48 not italeri 1/72 as the article says, the text is also edited from what appeared on my webpage to make less sense.
I also built this abomination a while ago


It was a monogram 1/48 P61 converted to single seat torpedo bomber for reasons probably as tenuous as my grasp on sanity.

Now to the project at hand, The mecha style, variable fighter like idea of strapping giant tanks to a phantom to make it capable of mach 3+ speeds appeals to me so I decided to make an RF4X.
Here’s what I got so far



The conformal tanks are just the drop tanks with the noses tilted in.
The intakes were apparently revised to allow operation at higher mach numbers but
I’m not sure what they should look like any ideas?
I’m going to delete the M61 in the nose and fit a camera window.
It’d look pretty cool with a F106 style canopy but I don’t have one and the mig 25 has a “normal” looking canopy and is supposedly capable of mach 3ish without catastrophic canopy failure
I also read that the RAAF operated F4’s while waiting for the F111 and wanted to keep them even when they got the F111. So I’m thinking I might go with RAAF markings, or no markings at all a’la SR71 cos no doubt special paint (probably made from the blood of virgins and holy water) would be needed to keep an F4 together at mach 3+.

DaFROG  - Gangsta metallurgist to the gentry

[Eddie M.]

Glad to have you back and in top form. I had to quit for almost 6 years once . It sucked.
     Eddie

[sotoolslinger]

Cool dude , Happy to see that the Dessert Battler has siblings Your family must have been a blast to grow up in. My condolences to your parents

[GTX]

I also have an article (including pictures) just on the RF-4X if your interested.

Regards,

Greg

[The Rat]

Now THAT'S funky!    Welcome back, but we knew you would. Once you start down the dark path, forever will it dominate your destiny. 

[DaFROG]

GTX I'm interested in the article (though not to increase the accuracy of my model) frog_merchant at hotmail dot com

Falcon, thanks there are some real small photos out there of some model of an (R)F4X but you pic clears up the intake design.
Couple of questions though (again i  don't care  too much cos its a whiff) that pic looks like a F4 D or G i think (admittedly my source is a 1978 book called aircraft of the USAF written by an italian that i stole from the school library, the book not the italian, silly ) with the high manuveraboility tail made by bolting a shower curtain rail onto the leading edge of the tailplane it also has the hook, underwing stores and station keeping lights. since the aircraft was intended for israel and AFIAK they don't have carriers wouldn't the hook have gone to make up for all the extra weight of tanks etc. similarly the stores and pylons?

[GTX]

Article is on its way.

Regards,

Greg

[Jeffry Fontaine]

Link to two images of a 1/144th scale RF-4X model(Japanese text): http://www3.ocn.ne.jp/~tac1991/rf4x.htm

From Joe Baugher's Page on American Military Aircraft http://home.att.net/~jbaugher/:

McDonnell F-4X/RF-4X Phantom II

Last revised December 30, 1999
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The F-4X and RF-4X were proposals for advanced F-4E derivatives designed by General Dynamics to carry the HIAC-1 long focal length camera as part of Project Peace Jack. This project was a joint Israel-USAF study for an advanced photo-reconnaissance aircraft capable of Mach 3+ performance.

The HIAC-1 camera was an advanced high-altitude reconnaissance camera that had a focal length of 66 inches which offered unparalled resolution at extreme ranges The HIAC-1 camera was originally so large and heavy that it could only be carried by the Martin/General Dynamics RB-57F. However, later versions were sufficiently slimmed down so that they could potentially be carried by smaller aircraft such as the F-4 Phantom.

Israel had always wanted the HIAC-1 camera for its own use in keeping track of its Arab neighbors, but its requests had always been turned down. However, in 1971, US attitudes towards export of the HIAC-1 camera changed and approval was given for the development of a pod (designated G-139) which could carry this camera on the belly of a Phantom. The prototype G-139 pod was over 22 feet long and weighed over 4000 pounds, and was first tested on an RF-4C in October of 1971.

Unfortunately, the G-139 was still so large and bulky that the performance of the Phantom when it was carrying the pod was unacceptably poor. The Peace Jack project originated in an attempt to improve the performance of the Phantom when carrying this camera. Both the USAF and the government of Israel contributed funds for the project.

Rather than trying to slim down the reconnaissance pod, the original goal of the General Dynamics team was to improve the performance of the Phantom that was carrying it. The improved performance was to be obtained by using water injection for pre-compressor cooling, which would provided increased engine thrust at high altitudes. A similar system had been used successfully in the past in various F-4 record attempts. The water was to be contained in a pair of gigantic 2500-gallon tanks which were to be attached conformally to the intersection joints of the fuselage spine and the engine nacelles. The water injection system promised to give a 150 percent increase in engine thrust at altitude. In order to accommodate the increased engine thrust that would now be available, new air intakes had to be designed. The area of the intakes was to be made much larger and they were to contain a sophisticated system of internal cowls, splitter plates, vortex generators and bleeds. With the new intakes and the water injection system, it was anticipated that maximum speeds of up to Mach 3.2 and cruising speeds of up to Mach 2.7 could be attained. The project came to be known as the F-4X, although this was not an official USAF designation.

Israel was clearly very interested in the F-4X, as it promised a a performance which would approach that of the USAF's SR-71. This would enable it to fly unimpeded anywhere it wanted to. However, the advanced performance of the F-4X clearly made it a possible candidate for a new interceptor. Consequently, the US State Department became more than a little worried about the export of such advanced technology overseas, since it promised to give Israel a potential interceptor which was more capable than anything currently in the US arsenal, one which might one day pose a threat to the SR-71. In addition, the Air Force was itself rather nervous about the F-4X project, since it might threaten to divert support away from the F-15 program which was just then getting underway. As a result, the State Department decided to disallow export of this technology to Israel.

This ordinarily would have been the end of the game. However, in the meantime, Israel had expressed concern about the amount of aerodynamic drag produced by the pod carrying the camera. In response to these concerns, General Dynamics decided to relocate the HIAC-1 camera to the nose, displacing the AN/APQ-120 radar. The project was redesignated RF-4X. The removal of the interceptor capability seems to have reassured the State Department, and Israel was once again allowed back into the Peace Jack program.

An ex-IDFAF F-4E (USAF serial 69-7576) was delivered to General Dynamics in December of 1974 to act as a mockup for the RF-4X. The nose was recontoured on the starboard side only, and a paper-mache coolant tank was fitted to one side of the upper fuselage. New intakes with revised variable ramps were fitted. However, in the meantime, the Air Force began to have second thoughts about the project, still fearful of the impact of the RF-4X on the F-15 project and nervous about the safety and reliability of pre-compressor cooling. The USAF withdrew from the project shortly thereafter, forcing Israel to go it alone. By itself, Israel could not afford to continue the project, and the RF-4X program quietly died.

The idea for the nose-mounted HIAC-1 camera was later revived to form the basis of the F-4E(S), which was first applied to F-4E 69-7576.

Sources:

McDonnell Douglas Aircraft Since 1920: Volume II, Rene J. Francillon, Naval Institute Press, 1990.

McDonnell F-4 Phantom: Spirit in the Skies. Airtime Publishing, 1992.

The American Fighter, Enzo Angelucci and Peter Bowers, Orion, 1987.

[puddingwrestler]

Oh dear. You started it.

I guess this means the train is on hold again?

And toolslinger - He was not that great to grow up with. Spent most of his time screaming at the computer. Very unnerving.

[Tophe]

Nice P-61
Thanks.

[Radish]

Glorious......just glorious.

[Patrick H]

Nice "abomination". Simple but special.
And looking forward on the finnished Phantom.

[DaFROG]

Jeffry: those were the pics I was talking about
I also found that other link.

GTX's article is pretty cool (except the picture quality) I can attache it or host it or something if its ok with him.

PW: train is still progressing, it awaits paint which requires that i get home from work before sunset which has been problematic of late (even on weekends). Don't worry it will be finnished one day and we shall have a train jousting tournament

Patrick: abomination refers to the method of construction, there was wood, paper, plastic (sprue, sheet whatever was to hand) and probably some of PW's toenail clippings. this was tied together with gap filling superglue and a testors contour puty fueled PSR effort that would put sottolslinger to shame (and that was just the ~30mm long cockpit pod, everyhting else was stock) needless to say i saw the light of epoxy putty shortly thereafter

[John Howling Mouse]

This is going to be cooooool.  Whatever you do, complete the F-4X (mmmm...Phantom...drool) before you go back to the train (trains cannot compete with Phantoms!).

Besides, it will drive your brother nuts.  Remember all those nights when he performed the most horrendous "dutch ovens" on you....oh wait, those were MY brothers!

[BlackOps]

Nice work on all of the above shown projects there DF!