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Phantom 68-0375 Photos


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Thats actually what I was looking for since those are the decals I have. I just wasn't sure if it used the Euro or SEA camouflage scheme.

Thanks!

375 was painted Euro-1 while still assigned to the 512th TFS at Ramstein. She was never in SEA in the Jersey Guard. Here's a shot from the web:

68-0375Fairford85MB.jpg

Edited by Scott R Wilson
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  • 2 months later...
NJ17.jpg

Does anyone know if the NJ ANG F-4E Bu. No. 68-534 ever had the tiger head with the SEA wrap around scheme like 68-527 shown above? Picture of 68-534 in the SEA wrap around without the tiger head can be found in this thread, http://www.arcforums.com/forums/air/index....howtopic=218768, it is in post number 5, picture number 3.

Edited by twong
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Does anyone know if the NJ ANG F-4E Bu. No. 68-534 ever had the tiger head with the SEA wrap around scheme like 68-527 shown above? Picture of 68-534 in the SEA wrap around without the tiger head can be found in this thread, http://www.arcforums.com/forums/air/index....howtopic=218768, it is in post number 5, picture number 3.

I don't have any info specifically on 68-0534, but I do have some reference material on the 141 TFS Phantoms that may be of use to you. Walter Wright's USAF Today (Motorbooks, 1992) includes several photos of these birds from the late 80s/early 90s. According to Wright, the "Jersey Tiger" motif was adopted some time "in the 1980s" (unit first converted to F-4Es in 1985). By the time of the photos in the book (unfortunately not dated), the aircraft wore a mix of paint schemes including Euro I, Hill Gray I, and Hill Gray II (there may still have been SEA wrap birds at this time, but if so they don't appear in the book). Each of these schemes had similar tiger heads on both sides of the nose:

Euro I: outline tiger in tan (probably FS 30219)

Confirmed serials: 67-0343, 68-0413, 68-0377, 68-0379

http://www.airliners.net/photo/USA---Air/M...F-4E/1169748/L/

Hill I: outline tiger in dark gray only (FS36081)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/f18e777/2177819471

Hill II: "shaded" tiger in two grays (FS36081 with FS36118 shading)

http://www.airliners.net/photo/USA---Air/M...F-4E/0479131/L/

A search on Airliners.net shows that 68-0413 was in Euro I by 1987, and received its tiger some time between May and August of that year. By 1991 it was in the Hill II scheme (photos in the Wright book show it still in Euro I):

http://www.airliners.net/search/photo.sear...gsearch=68-0413

I also turned up this photo, showing 67-0343 in SEA (wrap) with the tiger in tan:

http://www.afwing.com/intro/f4/book/f4_phantom-20.htm (scroll to bottom)

So there were at least four different color schemes used with the tiger, and SEA (wraparound) was one of them.

Edited by Quixote74
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Quixote74,

Thanks for the info and links. I already had some of those images except for the 67-343. I am more innterested in the SEA wrap around scheme and seeing 67-343 was very helpful. The reason I was asking for 68-534 specifically is because I already have decals for that aircraft. 68-527 and 67-343 are doable though. I might be able to scrounge up the appropriate decals for those Bu. No's.

Thanks!

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Quixote74,

Thanks for the info and links. I already had some of those images except for the 67-343. I am more innterested in the SEA wrap around scheme and seeing 67-343 was very helpful. The reason I was asking for 68-534 specifically is because I already have decals for that aircraft. 68-527 and 67-343 are doable though. I might be able to scrounge up the appropriate decals for those Bu. No's.

Thanks!

Glad I could help out. Based on photos in the Wright book there was a lot of variation in schemes at any given time (one pic shows a lineup with all three of the schemes I mentioned). If you've got photos of -534 in SEA wrap, then the only question is whether it went through a Euro I and/or Hill I paint job before ending up in Hill II. And since the photo of -343 proves all four schemes wore tigers, unless someone worked on the actual bird during the timeframe in question there's no way they could say definitively that -534 *didn't* have it while still in the SEA scheme.

One thing I did notice looking back at the pic of -343: if you look closely at the bottom of the tiger, it actually edges over into the tan area of the camouflage - with the tiger changing to a darker color in that area (probably FS34079). A small but important detail if you're looking to do a SEA bird with the tiger. Compare this to the Euro I birds, where the tiger was all tan. Not sure which color(s) your decals are printed in, but something to keep in mind if you're trying to be as accurate as possible.

As for serials, all the SEA and Euro I photos I've seen have them in black, so it should be pretty simple to swap out numbers.

Best of luck on this project!

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Glad I could help out. Based on photos in the Wright book there was a lot of variation in schemes at any given time (one pic shows a lineup with all three of the schemes I mentioned). If you've got photos of -534 in SEA wrap, then the only question is whether it went through a Euro I and/or Hill I paint job before ending up in Hill II. And since the photo of -343 proves all four schemes wore tigers, unless someone worked on the actual bird during the timeframe in question there's no way they could say definitively that -534 *didn't* have it while still in the SEA scheme.

One thing I did notice looking back at the pic of -343: if you look closely at the bottom of the tiger, it actually edges over into the tan area of the camouflage - with the tiger changing to a darker color in that area (probably FS34079). A small but important detail if you're looking to do a SEA bird with the tiger. Compare this to the Euro I birds, where the tiger was all tan. Not sure which color(s) your decals are printed in, but something to keep in mind if you're trying to be as accurate as possible.

As for serials, all the SEA and Euro I photos I've seen have them in black, so it should be pretty simple to swap out numbers.

Best of luck on this project!

Thanks again for the info on the color change on the tiger head. The color of the tiger on the SEA scheme looks like it is in tan and also on some of the Euro 1 schemes as well. Hasegawa printed their tiger head decals in a dk. yellow/orangish color. I wonder if it lays down a different shade once the model is painted though. I might have to scan the decal in and print out to make a paint mask for it to paint the right color. Yes, changing the Bu. No's shouldn't be a problem.

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  • 1 year later...

Thanks for the link. That is another one to consider. Looking forward to seeing more on 375. Any help is greatly appreciated.

This is a bit late as I just found this site, but to help answer some questions I can provide some info. To the best of my recollection 534 came into the 141st in the Euro 1 paint scheme, then was later repainted into the grey ghost scheme.

As for 68-375, it originally came in with the SEA paint scheme, then went to Euro 1 shortly after arrival and then finally to the grey ghost scheme. The Tiger was not applied until the Euro 1 paint scheme. If you want to do a real life-like repro, add on the canopys (left side of plane) Pilot - Maj Stan Stovold WSO - Cpt John Kokas. This was the last assigned crew before retirement. You can barely make out part of the WSO's name on the QF-4 conversion photo.

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As for 68-375, it originally came in with the SEA paint scheme, then went to Euro 1 shortly after arrival and then finally to the grey ghost scheme.

How can this be, when a previous photo in this thread of the same jet with the 512TFS 86TFW shows her in full Euro 1 dress? Please see the pic in post #5 ;)

Edited by Niels
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This is a bit late as I just found this site, but to help answer some questions I can provide some info. To the best of my recollection 534 came into the 141st in the Euro 1 paint scheme, then was later repainted into the grey ghost scheme.

As for 68-375, it originally came in with the SEA paint scheme, then went to Euro 1 shortly after arrival and then finally to the grey ghost scheme. The Tiger was not applied until the Euro 1 paint scheme. If you want to do a real life-like repro, add on the canopys (left side of plane) Pilot - Maj Stan Stovold WSO - Cpt John Kokas. This was the last assigned crew before retirement. You can barely make out part of the WSO's name on the QF-4 conversion photo.

25-plus-year old memories can be faulty as I've often found out. Here's a nice photo by John Binford of 68-0534 still in SEA while in NJ markings. She's taxiing out for a gunnery sortie, note the RBF flag hanging from the gun bay door:

68-0534March141987JohnBinford.jpg

And a shot of 68-0375 in Euro-1 in 1985 while still assigned to the 512th TFS at Ramstein:

68-0375Fairford85MB.jpg

Edited by Scott R Wilson
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