US Navy F-4 Phantom II Units of the Vietnam War, 1969-73

Although the F-4 Phantom II was the most important fighter-bomber to see action with all three American services during the Vietnam War, it was essentially a US Navy design, and the carrier-borne squadron crews were its main operators in combat.

The aircraft pioneered the use of long-range, radar-guided missiles in combat, although the majority of its Vietnam missions involved ground-attack with a variety of innovative ordnance. From 1968 to 1973 the Phantom II was the standard US Navy fighter in Southeast Asia, having replaced several other types. Its performance and versatility enabled it to perform a variety of different missions, and switch roles as necessary, in the assault on some of the world's most heavily defended territory.

Including detailed color profiles and first-person commentary from active participants in the F-4's naval combat history, this is a detailed study of the US armed services' most famous post-war fighter.

Peter E. Davies has published 27 books concentrating on modern combat aircraft and the Vietnam War. He has written 17 previous Osprey titles and co-authored two others. Four of these have concentrated on the US Navy's use of the F-4 Phantom II. All of Peter's books on this topic have contained extensive input from interviews with more than 100 former U.S. Navy Phantom II aircrew, maintainers, and mission planners. He lives in the UK.

Jim Laurier is a native of New England, growing up in New Hampshire and Massachusetts. He has been drawing since he could hold a pencil and throughout his life he has worked in many mediums creating artwork on a variety of subjects. He has worked on the Osprey Aviation list since 2000 and in that time he has produced some of the finest artwork seen in these volumes. He has specialized in aircraft of the Vietnam War period.