On May 27, 1958, the McDonnell Aircraft (later McDonnell Douglas) F-4 Phantom II naval interceptor made its first flight. Designed as a carrier airplane to defend the fleet against Soviet supersonic bombers, the concept was to create an interceptor that could climb rapidly and fly fast enough to catch bombers before they got close enough to attack the fleet.
Digging Deeper
Prior to entering service in 1960, the F-4 proved its concept by setting 15 aviation records for such things as speed and altitude. Designed to shoot down bombers rather than dogfight with fighters, the F-4 was built without a gun and maneuverability was not a priority. It was to be a big, immensely powerful, fast jet that could quickly shoot down supersonic bombers as far from the fleet as possible.
