[F-4 PHANTOM CREW RESCUE EMERGENCY PROCEDURES]

like everyone else I figured it would never happen to me until it did in 1967 but I was lucky in a way the station where I dug in had an experienced Crash Crew they must have been they sure got me out in a [Music] hurry it will probably never happen again but if it does well I like to think that every station has good crash crewman but have they this station doesn't see f4s very often but I'm sure they know everything there is to know about their own aircraft and like all good Crews they know it is good practice to watch for incidents that could lead to a crash such as Sparks or skidding excessive breaking or erratic Maneuvers and if they did have to make a rescue from The Familiar aircraft it would be fast and efficient but what about unfamiliar aircraft with the rain of today's aircraft and the speed that they fly you never know when you're going to get an unfamiliar visitor so I wasn't too surprised when these crash crewman asked if I had a minute to show them around my airplane I was in kind of a hurry but well I know from personal experience you can never tell when you're going to need help so like all smart aviators I took the time I mean wouldn't everybody sure they [Music] would as with all aircraft the F4 has certain danger areas that must be remembered since fire protection is based upon the plan's maximum gross takeoff weight the various fuel loading capabilities must be known internally the f4j contains a number of fuel cells in the fuselage and a tank in the forward section of the wing these internal tanks can hold a total of 231 Gall notice the way the fuselage tanks cover the entire upper fuselage and most of the sides two EX external drop tanks will hold 370 Gall each the f4j carries a Centerline drop tank which will hold 600 Gall thus the maximum fuel load for this airplane is 3,377 Gall as for hazard areas on the F4 the jet engine Inlet suction danger area is located behind the cockpit on each side of the fuselage and is dangerous out to 25 ft at full power this distance is even greater the engine exhaust area is dangerous on any High Performance jet aircraft out to a distance of 150 fet or more the jettison danger area for each canopy is after the cockpit and includes the entire fuselage area out to about 6 ft on either side naturally with a falling canopy wind conditions must be considered if the airplane is made a maximum braking stop there is a danger area near each wheel due to hot brakes therefore approach the Wheel from the front or rear thus avoiding the blowout plugs Incorporated in the late model f4s use caution on all f4s with hot brakes since the Crash Crew has no way of knowing the aircraft model a hazard unit unique to the F4 is the danger of burns from bleed air used in the boundary layer system with the engine running extremely hot air comes from the bleed air ducts located along the leading and trailing edges of the Wings if the wing fold area is broken off or folded this hot air May Blast from the three bleed air ducts in the wing tips inadvertent retraction of the landing gear is also a danger down locks should be carried on the crash truck for this airplane the locks tank on the F4 is located under the AFT cockpit if the gear is collapsed it is impossible to reach the tank some f4s have smoke abatement tanks these are located below the middle fuselage fuel tank but as with other aircraft smoke abatement chemicals are rarely carried the tanks have been purged and as such are not toxic weapons being carried are of course always an extreme hazard and the f4j can carry an unusually wide assortment including Sparrow and Sidewinder missiles and a variety of explosive ordinance these are carried on pylons mounted under the wings and fuselage it must be remembered that even empty pylons may contain explosive separation devices that could cook off in a fire so that these areas should be avoided the Navy F4 does not carry a 20 mm gun internally it may carry a Gatling gun in an external pod mounted under the cockpits the Air Force F4 however does carry a gun internally in any case the forward firing zone on any High Performance jet should be avoided the approach to an F4 after a crash is like that for any other airplane taking into consideration its special danger areas if the engine is running give the pilot the cut off sign he might be dazed but not unconscious and able to respond however should he not respond the crash crewman must shut down the engine if the landing gear is intact reach inside door 81 L located on the underside of the F4 and rotate the left engine throttle linkage in a counterclockwise direction if the airplane is surrounded by Flames you'll have to clear away in using standard procedures that will probably be the mb5 using light water the cockpit area of course should be kept cool not only to protect the crewman but to prevent cook off of the seats as a last resort the engines can be stopped by injecting water or foam into the inlets do not use a direct stream into the inlet either use a spray or bounce the stream off the sides of the inlet all crash trucks carry a ladder designed to reach the cockpit on an F4 you can also reach the cockpit by releasing the internal ladder but it makes a difficult work platform and instead the portable ladder should be used when the canopies are closed one of the critical points of a rescue is entry to the cockpits so do not raise either canopy if either crew member has pulled his ejector face curtain or his alternate ejection handle since it is always hazardous to jettison an F4 canopy a normal entry should always be made if at all possible on the F4 exterior canopy release buttons are located on the port side below each canopy pushing the the open Button causes the canopy to unlatch and it will automatically raise by pneumatic pressure to open the canopy manually a manual unlock handle is located below each cockpit depressing the button on the handle causes it to pop out depressing the open button and twisting the manual unlock handle unlocks the canopy the canopy must then be pushed open notice that the canopy will not stay open it must be propped open all f4s have been modified to provide a connecting link between the canopy interlock block and the primary firing system with the modification the seat is safe at all times when the canopy and the Interlock system are intact but when the canopy leaves the aircraft the seat is armed to eject so warning do not Shear the canopy off because this pulls the interlock block and safety pin and the seat is armed to fire if the canopy is off a safety pin must be inserted in the sear of the primary firing system which is located behind each headrest all CR crewman should carry these pins warning do not touch touch the interlock block before the safety pin is inserted as this may cause ejection also remember when reaching into the cockpit do not pull the face curtain ejection handle and do not pull the secondary ejection handle in the event forcible entry is required the canopy should be chopped through close to the metal frame starting at the forward Corner chilling with CO2 may be required since the canopies on this airplane are thick and will not shatter or break using a power saw is quicker and does not leave Jagged edges since a forcible entry does not remove the canopy the primary firing system is still intact and does not have to be saftied on modified aircraft as a last resort entrance can be made by jettisoning the canopy a canopy jettison handle is located on the port side below the forward cockpit the handle is held by a clip to operate the handle is pulled to the full length of the lanyard about 20 in then yanked hard this jettison both canopies remember it also arms the seat ejection systems and the primary firing system in each cockpit must be safe before rescue can begin if either crewman is unconscious it is possible he may not be receiving oxygen and you must quickly prevent Suffocation by removing his oxygen mask first raise the sun visor on his helmet do not remove the helmet unfasten the crewman's oxygen mask you should have memorized the three types of Fasteners so whichever type he is wearing will be totally familiar it is unlikely you will encounter a full pressure suit but you should know how to open it if you do the quickest way to shut off the flow of oxygen is to pull the yellow apple located on the left rear corner of each crewman's ejection seat warning do not disconnect or cut the oxygen line until after the oxygen mask is removed since this would automatically cut off the crewman's only source of oxygen if either engine is running it should be shut down immediately to prevent the possibility of fire or explosion on the Navy F4 the throttles are located in the forward cockpit only the throttles are pulled AF to the idle position then outboard past the detent and all the way AF the engine Master switches are located next to the throttles these switches have to be lifted before they can be pulled back to the off position before the crewman can be rescued the leg restraints must be released by means of a lever located on the left forward side of the seat bucket and the shoulder harness must be disconnected the two Hip Coke fittings are first disconnected they may be difficult to see because of the crewman's survival gear Coke fittings on Navy parachutes operate by lifting the Locking latch upward and with the same motion rotating the nled Locking bar downward this downward motion separates the figs if they do not then separate manually Coke fittings used by the Air Force are slightly different but they operate in much the same manner by lifting the Locking latch upward and with the same motion rotating the knurled Locking bar downward this downward motion separates the fittings when disconnecting the two shoulder fittings be careful not to pull the parachute ding if necessary the parachute harness can be cut with a rescue knife as a last resort the crewman can be released from the seat by pulling the emergency harness release handle but this leaves 60 lbs of parachute and survival gear attached to the crewman and it is extremely difficult to lift him from the cockpit the normal operation on the F4 is to lift the air crewman out in much the same manner as in all high performance Jets and the procedure should be practiced from time time to time by all crash crewman it's a three-man job the best method is for one man to straddle the nose or to stand on the edges of the cockpit while the other men remain on the ground or on a ladder when the gear is down the cockpit is several feet above the ground and air crewman as well as crash crewman have been seriously injured when they fell so caution must be used in case the crewman are trapped in an inverted airplane the nose must be lifted before the canopies can be opened the fastest way is to use a crane attached to the nose wheel gear or to any strong structural member as a last resort dig under the canopies although the position of the AF canopy makes it very difficult to reach by this method chopping through the fuselage is almost impossible due to the many stringers consoles and Equipment if time is available after the crewman have been rescued all hazardous equipment should be saftied crash Crews should carry these safety pins for example a safety pin can be inserted in the face curtain ejection handle it is not necessary to safety the ejection seat firing system unless the canopy has been removed caution an unpinned Dro gun will fire if the trip Rod is pulled when working in either cockpit be careful not to pull the emergency canopy jettison handle if not already done the down locks should be placed on the landing gear if the tail Hook is down it should be raised and secured before the airplane is moved when it comes to the actual fighting of fires on the F4 a couple of points should be remembered at my own station Crews run through procedures on an old airplane carcass in general standard fighting procedures are used but it must be remembered that because of the fuselage fuel tanks penetration to the Eng can be accomplished only in a relatively narrow area just above the upper Wing routs I guess to sum the whole thing up it does take a certain amount of time and trouble to check out an unfamiliar airplane both for the air crewman and the Crash crewman I know why the air crewman shouldn't mind taking the time but about the only motive the crash crewman has is his own sense of responsibility and pride in his crew and in himself when the time comes he wants to do everything he can to get the crewman out of that airplane fast and with a minimum danger to himself the only way to do this is by knowing in advance exactly what you're going to do obviously that fellow does well maybe not [Music]