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Phantom FGR.2 brake 'chute housing - what's the semi-circular vent?


Simon

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Hello everyone

 

I'm busy with the Airfix 1/72 FGR.2, and I see that 'later' RAF Phantoms had a formation light and also a small semi-circular vent/hole on the rear of the brake parachute housing, which are missing from the kit. I'm assuming (rightly or wrongly :whistle:), that the light was moved from the rear of the fin just above the top of the rudder when the Phantoms got their fin-top RWR fairings fitted, but what's the vent for? Just out of interest...:hmmm:

 

There's a nice clear piccy of it on this thread:

 

 

xv497%20(45).jpg

 

Thanks

 

Simon

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You are correct on your theory of the nav light. As for the "vent", there was nothing else in the drag chute door to require venting. No pipes came through from the main tail cone.

The only thing it was for to my knowledge was to help close the spring loaded door. Insert the fingers of your right hand and grip the door. Close the door and pull out the T bar shown in the photo with your left hand to lock the door.

It required a good technique and timing to get it to go smoothly.

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Thanks for that @Phone Phixer Sounds like you needed to be a bit of a contortionist. :wacko:

 

As I mentioned in my post, there's neither the re-positioned light nor the hole on the Airfix kit's tail 'chute door. Was the "vent" or handhold fitted originally, or was it a modification?

 

Simon

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21 minutes ago, Simon said:

Thanks for that @Phone Phixer Sounds like you needed to be a bit of a contortionist. :wacko:

 

As I mentioned in my post, there's neither the re-positioned light nor the hole on the Airfix kit's tail 'chute door. Was the "vent" or handhold fitted originally, or was it a modification?

 

Simon

The hole is on all F-4s. It was either round or half-moon shaped.

 

Ben

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On 30/10/2021 at 11:08, Ben Brown said:

The hole is on all F-4s. It was either round or half-moon shaped.

 

Ben

I never noticed it until you pointed it out,

 

Happy RF-4C

RF-4C%20003_resize.JPG

 

More spaced out F-4N

n%2010.jpg

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Ooh, brake chutes... They are always "armed" with some temper. Flying a Learjet I always volunteered to pack the brake chute rather than check the engine oil levels. Inserting a spring loaded chute into a container sized only slightly larger than a family size pea soup tin is always interesting to say the least. I've read that it wasn't completely without some heavy breathing with Phantoms either.

 

Cheers,

Antti

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You had to follow a set sequence of actions with the chute handle in the cockpit and locking the door. Otherwise things could go wrong.

Lineys could make an occasional error, but let aircrew do their own flight servicing and oooer.

 

This is a photo I took, mid Atlantic from a Tristar tanker. We (19 Sqn) were enroute to Nellis AFB for Red Flag, Oct 1987. The Phantoms went from Wildenrath to Leuchars and overnighted, with the aircrew doing their own AFs, BF,s and drag chute fits.

The groundcrew main party flew on a Herc to Brize, then got on a Tristar for the journey to the states, via Goose Bay. The Phantoms took off from Leuchars to meet up with us and be re-fueled on the flight leg to Goose.

Unfortunately on take off from Leuchars, XV422 "J" (yes, the infamous Juliet the Jag Killer) had it's drag chute fall out still packed in its shell. The door and the main shackle had not been locked properly.

It flew all the way across the pond with the door open. The riggers on the support party had to do some repairs to the door in Goose Bay.

 

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