These photos are of one of our 390th TFS F-4D's wings that got holed by
a 37mm round at the leading edge slat. I took them within minutes of the
planes landing, so they show the damage as it was. The pilot had just gotten
out of the cockpit, still visibly shaken. And understandlingly so, there
are missiles still on the rack. The 37mm round had missed the missle, an
AIM-9 Sidewinder, by inches which - given the speed of the aircraft and the
speed of the round - translates to a nanosecond of a different scenario.
Return
to Best Little Stories