In its later years of Phantom usage, there were many special schemes painted on aircraft. No other unit had more of these special aircraft than did the 106 TRS, Alabama ANG at Birmingham. This particular aircraft was painted to celebrate the 35th anniversary of the first flight of the Phantom II. That was over ten years ago in 1993 and the F-4 looks like it may well reach a 50th anniversary in the air forces of some nations.

Those who take a look at this scheme will notice that it is very different from what is normally seen in Europe or Canada. There, a special scheme is painted to have its greatest impact while the aircraft is flying. You'll see large, bold designs painted on the top or underside of the aircraft. In the US, the trend is for a lot more detail in the scheme. There is rarely any really large overall design, as these schemes are designed to be viewed from the ground. Just as there is a major difference in the way the military display teams give shows, so there is a difference in special paint schemes.

This aircraft is painted in the standard Hill Grey II scheme of FS 36118 over 36270. Being a display plane, these colors are more of a semi-gloss than a full matte. The edges of the intake are polished metal and the exhaust area is also a lot less grungy. You should also note that this aircraft uses the F-15 style centerline tank.  Since this sheet was released over 10 years ago in 1994, the recommended kit was the Testors RF-4C. Now we have the superb Hasegawa version and these decals should fit. Probably the biggest difficulty may be finding this sheet as decals tend to sell out rather quickly. Though the normal retail stores may not carry it, it probably can be found at swap meets or other secondary markets.

January 2005

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