F-4 chaff/flare loads

"Ed Rasimus" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 22 Sep 2003 10:23:25 GMT, "Tom Cooper" wrote:

They weren't mounted because they didn't yet exist. The ALE-40 (the
blister dispenser bolted on the side of the wing pylons) came into
production around '73 or '74 after the air war was over. As I
mentioned, the operational E-models got them, but they never got
retrofitted to the C's that were still active. (I don't know about the
D's.)

I see. Thanks.

One more question, if you don't mind: what was the chaff/flare dispenser
that could have been mounted into one of the rear Sparrow-bays, and when was
it introduced?

What's an R-13? Do you mean SA-7 or Atoll?

That's the original service designation for the AA-2 Atoll (K-13 was the
design designation).

I know the SA-7 was not that widespread nor as a serious a threat as some
other stuff at the time, and remember from reding Mitchel's "Clashes" and
few other books about the air war in SEA how often it happened that the
first warning from a MiG was either a Phantom or a Thud going up in flames.

But, in several cases the attacks were noticed when one of the crews saw
contrails from R-13s being underway behind them. Clear, the R-13 could't do
much against a maneuvering aircraft (AFAIK any maneuver beyond 2g was too
much for it to track), but, IMHO, perhaps the use of flare-dispensers
could've saved a crew or two more?

Tom Cooper
Co-Author:
Iran-Iraq War in the Air, 1980-1988:
http://www.acig.org/pg1/content.php
and,
Iranian F-4 Phantom II Units in Combat:
http://www.osprey-publishing.co.uk/t...hp/title=S6585