Palm Springs, CA — Aviation and history buffs will have a rare opportunity to sit behind the controls of the F4 Phantom II from 1-3 p.m. Aug. 24 as the Palm Springs Air Museum hosts its final “Open Cockpit” event. Currently on loan from the U.S. Navy, this particular Phantom fighter jet will not fly (the engine has been removed), but it has special significance to the museum. Naval Commander Wayne “Deacon” Connel was not only the captain of a squadron that actually flew this type of jet during the Vietnam War, he was a volunteer docent in the museum’s Pacific Hanger.
Upon his passing, Connel’s squadron alumnae came together to raise money to cosmetically restore this particular F4 Phantom II.
According to Bill Hughes, volunteer coordinator with the Palm Springs Air Museum, “When the VF161 Squadron said they wanted to honor their former Commander by donating the money to fully repaint the plane with the markings, lettering, and numbers to reflect their squadron, we could not have picked a better person than one of our own volunteers. Wayne was a modest man with an outstanding career and now this plane has his name on the fuselage.”
Why this jet is unique
• The F4 Phantom II was originally developed for the U.S. Navy entering service in 1960.
• The F4 was the last U.S. fighter jet to attain Ace status in the 20th Century, a distinction given to a plane that destroyed at least five enemy aircraft in air-to-air combat.
F4 Phantom II Carries Personal Touch at Palm Springs Air Museum