According to the British Phantom Aviation Group, F-4 Phantom XT907 is currently up for disposal at Chattenden, Kent, and awaiting its fate, which means one of two options – preservation or scrapping. We hope for the latter, though there have historically been major obstacles to Phantom preservation in the UK.
(Image: US Navy, public domain – above, XT907 at Patuxent River, MD around 1970)
Unfortunately, the original 1960s terms of sale by McDonnell Douglas to the United Kingdom included a US government condition that all UK Phantoms be destroyed upon retirement, rather than sold to museums and private collectors. Worried that F-4 parts would find their way into the hands of unfriendly nations – namely Iran – that operate the type, the policy of destruction has led to a significant cull of British-operated F-4Ks, F-4Ms and F-4Js.
The result is that, 50 years later, only a handful survive. Officially still the property of the UK government, many remain at risk, despite their low tech (by modern standards) and generally far-from-airworthy conditions.
But there is some good news – Help Save Phantom XV582 ‘Black Mike’
