When McDonnell produced the film “The Phantom Joins the Fleet” during 1962 their F4H-1 (later F-4B) Phantom II was a new product. Featuring Fighter Squadron SEVEN FOUR (VF-74) Bedevilers flying from the nearly-new aircraft carrier USS Forrestal (CVA-59) along with the rest of Carrier Air Wing EIGHT (CVW-8), the film takes a look back at what air ops aboard aircraft carriers looked like when the Phabulous Phantom joined the fleet. The film was uploaded to YouTube by PeriscopeFilm.
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During July of 1961 VF-74 began their transition from the Douglas F4D-1 Skyray to the McDonnell F4H-1 Phantom II and in so doing earned their sobriquet “first in Phantoms” by becoming the first deployable F4H-1/F-4B squadron. VF-74 first deployed aboard the Forrestal on August 3rd 1962. Over the next 20 years VF-74 would deploy to the Mediterranean 13 times and to Southeast Asia twice while flying the F4H-1/F-4B, F-4J, and F-4S variants of the Phantom II.
The other CVW-8 aircraft seen in the film include the Vought F8U-2N Crusaders of VF-103 Sluggers, the Douglas A4D-2N Skyhawks of VA-83 Rampagers and A4D-2 Skyhawks of VA-81 Crusaders, the Douglas AD-6 Skyraiders of VA-85 Black Falcons, the A3D-2 Skywarriors of VAH-5 Savage Sons, the Vought F8U-1P Photo Crusaders of VFP-62 Fighting Photos (Detachment), the Grumman WF-2 Tracers of VAW-12 Bats (Detachment), and the Piasecki HUP-2 Retriever helicopters of HC-2 Fleet Angels (Detachment).
