The McDonnell FH Phantom is a twinjet, straight-wing, carrier-based fighter aircraft designed and produced by the American aviation firm McDonnell Aircraft. A first-generation jet fighter, the Phantom was the first purely jet-powered aircraft to land on an American aircraft carrier in 1946, as well as being the first jet aircraft to be deployed by the United States Marine Corps.
Developed during the latter half of World War II for the United States Navy (USN) to harness the newly-developed turbojet engine, an order for three prototype aircraft was placed in August 1943. Despite its then-unconventional propulsion, much of the airframe conformed to design conventions of the era; designed purely for aerial combat, it was unable to be used as a fighter-bomber. Development was protracted due to engine-related difficulties, chiefly the availability of the Westinghouse J30-WE-20 powerplant to fit into the prototype, delaying progress by roughly one year. The XFD-1 prototype performed its maiden flight on 26 January 1945; during subsequent flights, it became the first USN aircraft to exceed 500 mph (434 kn, 805 km/h). Originally designated the FD Phantom, this was changed as the aircraft entered production to FH Phantom. During August 1947, the first squadron equipped with the type became active. Although only 62 aircraft were ever produced, the Phantom helped prove the viability of carrier-based jet fighters and provide the USN with its first operational aircraft using such propulsion.
The availability of more powerful engines led to McDonnell proceeding with the development of the follow-on F2H Banshee which, while derived from the Phantom, shared little in terms of components due to various elements being redesigned. The arrival of the Banshee in the late 1940s led to the Phantom being promptly relegated to secondary duties, such as training pilots in preparation for operating newer jet aircraft, all examples being transferred to the United States Naval Reserve by late 1949. As such, while the Banshee became one of the two most important naval jet fighters of the Korean War, the Phantom never saw live combat. Nevertheless, both the Phantom and Banshee established McDonnell as an important supplier of naval aircraft. During the late 1950s, McDonnell chose to bring the name back with the third-generation, Mach 2-capable McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II, the most versatile and widely used Western combat aircraft of the Vietnam War era.
Design and development Early work In early 1943, officials within the United States Navy (USN) were impressed by McDonnell's audacious XP-67 Bat prototype. Thereafter, McDonnell was invited by the USN to cooperate in the development of a shipboard interceptor; the standout feature of this envisioned aircraft was that it would be powered by a turbojet engine, which were already under development by Westinghouse Electric Corporation. Three prototypes were ordered on 30 August 1943 and the designation XFD-1 was assigned. Under the 1922 United States Navy aircraft designation system, the letter "D" before the dash designated the aircraft's manufacturer. The Douglas Aircraft Company had previously been assigned this letter, but the USN elected to reassign it to McDonnell because Douglas had not provided any fighters for navy service in years.Mesko 2002, p. 7.
McDonnell's design team evaluated a number of engine combinations, varying from eight diameter engines down to two engines of diameter. The final design used the two engines after it was found to be the lightest and simplest configuration.Air International November 1987, p. 233. While early considerations had been made towards the incorporation of an auxiliary 'boost' engine, however, the design team were sufficiently satisfied with the power output of the base engines. The engines were buried in the wing root to keep both the intake and exhaust ducts short, an arrangement that offered greater aerodynamic efficiency in contrast to underwing nacelles.Air International November 1987, p. 234. Furthermore, the engines were angled slightly outwards to protect the fuselage from the hot exhaust blast. Placement of the engines in the middle of the airframe, behind the center of gravity, required the cockpit with its bubble-style canopy to be placed ahead of the wing, which also granted the pilot excellent visibility in all directions. The long nose allowed designers to use tricycle gear, thereby elevating the engine exhaust path and reducing the risk that the hot blast would damage the aircraft carrier deck.Mesko 2002, p. 5.
The construction methods and aerodynamic design of the Phantom were fairly conventional for the time, which was an intentional choice of the design team. Accordingly, the aircraft had unswept wings, a conventional empennage, and an aluminum monocoque structure with flush riveted aluminum skin. Folding wings were used to reduce the width of the aircraft in storage configuration. Provisions for four .50-caliber (12.7 mm) machine guns were made in the nose, while racks for eight High Velocity Aircraft Rockets could be fitted under the wings, although these were seldom used in service. Adapting a jet to carrier use was a much greater challenge than producing a land-based fighter because of slower landing and takeoff speeds required on a small carrier deck. The Phantom used split flaps on both the folding and fixed wing sections to enhance low-speed landing performance,Air International November 1987, pp. 234–235. but no other high-lift devices were used. Provisions were also made for Rocket Assisted Take Off (RATO) bottles to improve takeoff performance.
In May 1944, a mock-up of the aircraft was presented to officials, after which several design revisions were made; details related to the engine installation were the last to be firmed due to the development cycle of said engine having not yet been completed. While the maiden flight of the XFD-1 prototype had been scheduled to take place during early 1944, the persistence unavailability of the engine would delay its completion into XFD-1.Naval Aviation News 1987, pp. 16-17.
Into flight
When the first XFD-1, serial number 48235, was completed in January 1945, only a single Westinghouse 19XB-2B engine was available for installation. Accordingly, ground runs and taxi tests were conducted using this single engine, and such was the confidence in the aircraft that the first flight on 26 January 1945 was made with only the one 19XB-2B engine in place.Francillon 1979, p. 382. Early flight testing of the aircraft revealed a bearing issue with the engine, requiring a one month suspension while this was rectified.Naval Aviation News 1987, p. 17. It was during this test flight programme that the Phantom became the first USN aircraft to exceed 500 mph (434 kn, 805 km/h).
Following further flight testing, a production contract was awarded on 7 March 1945 for 100 FD-1 aircraft. Months later, in response to the end of the conflict, the Phantom production contract was reduced to 30 aircraft, then promptly increased back to 60.Air International November 1987, p. 258.
The first prototype was lost in a fatal crash attributed to aileron failure) on 1 November 1945.Angelucci and Bowers 1987, pp. 297–298. The second and final Phantom prototype (serial number 48236) was completed early the next year; it incorporated improvements aimed at improving the aircraft's lateral control characteristics amongst other changes made to be more representative of production-standard aircraft. The second prototype became the first purely jet-powered aircraft to operate from an American aircraft carrier, completing four successful takeoffs and landings on 21 July 1946, from near Norfolk, Virginia.Grossnick 1997, pp. 163-164. At the time, she was the largest carrier serving with the USN, which permitted the aircraft to take off without assistance from a catapult. The second prototype crashed on 26 August 1946.
Production Phantoms incorporated a number of design improvements. These included provisions for a flush-fitting centerline drop tank, an improved gunsight, and the addition of speed brakes.Polmar and Genda 2006, pp. 23-24. Production models used Westinghouse J30-WE-20 engines with of thrust per engine. The top of the vertical tail had a more square shape than the rounder tail used on the prototypes, and a smaller rudder was used to resolve problems with control surface clearance discovered during test flights. The horizontal tail surfaces were shortened slightly, while the fuselage was stretched by . The amount of framing in the windshield was reduced to enhance pilot visibility. While the prototype Phantoms had a curved tip present on their vertical tailplane, production examples had squared-off tips instead.
Halfway through the production run, the navy reassigned the designation letter "D" back to Douglas, with the Phantom being redesignated FH-1. Including the two prototypes, a total of 62 Phantoms were finally produced, with the last FH-1 rolling off the assembly line in May 1948.Wagner 1982, p. 503.
Realizing that the production of more powerful jet engines was imminent, McDonnell engineers proposed a more powerful variant of the Phantom while the original aircraft was still under development – a proposal that would lead to the design of the Phantom's replacement, the F2H Banshee.Polmar and Genda 2006, p. 28. Although the new aircraft was originally envisioned as a modified Phantom, the need for heavier armament, greater internal fuel capacity, and other improvements eventually led to a substantially heavier and bulkier aircraft that shared few parts with its agile predecessor.Mesko 2002, p. 10. Despite this, the two aircraft were similar enough that McDonnell was able to complete its first F2H-1 in August 1948, a mere three months after the last FH-1 had rolled off the assembly line.Wagner 1982, p. 504.
Operational history
The first Phantoms were delivered to USN fighter squadron VF-17A (later redesignated VF-171) in August 1947;Air International November 1987, p. 259. the squadron received a full complement of 24 aircraft on 29 May 1948.Cleaver 2019, Beginning in November 1947, Phantoms were delivered to United States Marine Corps squadron VMF-122, making it the first USMC combat squadron to deploy jets. VF-17A became the USN's first fully operational jet carrier squadron when it deployed aboard on 5 May 1948.Grossnick 1997, p. 171.
The Phantom was one of the first jets used by the U.S. military for exhibition flying. Three Phantoms used by the Naval Air Test Center were used by a unique demonstration team called the Gray Angels, whose members consisted entirely of naval aviators holding the rank of rear admiral (Daniel V. Gallery, Apollo Soucek and Edgar A. Cruise.)Goebel, Greg. The McDonnell FH-1 Phantom & F2H Banshee, 1 November 2010. Retrieved: 10 May 2011. The team's name was an obvious play on the name of the recently formed U.S. Navy Blue Angels, who were still flying propeller-powered Grumman F8F Bearcats at the time. The "Grays" flew in various air shows during the summer of 1947, but the team was abruptly disbanded after their poorly timed arrival at a September air show in Cleveland, Ohio, nearly caused a head-on low-altitude collision with a large formation of other aircraft; their Phantoms were turned over to test squadron VX-3. The VMF-122 Phantoms were later used for air show demonstrations until they were taken out of service in 1949, with the team being known alternately as the Marine Phantoms or the Flying Leathernecks.