How low can you go? (old but true)

I posted this a couple years ago but will post it again.

When I was high school age (1986 or so), I was browsing thru a Safety Magazine
while in an Aviation explorers post located at the 80thFTW, Sheppard AFB.

I always remembered this story about an F-4 coming back with a dent in a wing
tank, and a jeep with a mast antenna, suspiciously bent at the top.

Two years ago, I was flying skydivers in south Texas, and this ex-ANG F-4 pilot
from Missouri shows up. We start talking about flying F-4s, and I recalled the
story from that magazine and related it to him.

He was quite familiar with that story, since he was the wingman when it
occured.

He was flying wingman for the wing CO, and they were to do a pass over an field
with an army unit, for a mock attack, flying over at 500 agl.

Lead just kept going lower and lower and lower, and was heading right for a
jeep. A soldier jeep was excitedly taking photos of the F-4 that was bearing
right down on him, and passed just over him.

That was to be the last flight for the CO after a stunt like that..

That same soldier shows up at the wing with those "really cool" pictures of the
F-4 coming at him. My friend and some others got it blown up really big, and
used for the COs retirement party. They also worked out the geometry of the
photo, and determined the F-4 was climbing, at about 10 ft!!


Ron
Tucson AZ
C-421 air ambulance