Talyn
Emissary
On June 2, 1972, at approximately 1330 hours, while in a flight of four F-4Es on CAP (combat air patrol) flying Brenda 01, a "hard-wing" F-4E, tail number 68210, at over Mach 1.2, Maj. Phil "Hands" Handley and his WSO, 1st Lieutenant John Jackie Smallwood, of the 58th TFS, shot down a MiG-19 with 20 mm cannon fire 40 miles northeast of Hanoi.
The estimated flight parameters were; F-4E speed over 1.2 Mach (800 kts); MiG -19 speed Mach 0.77 (500 kts); altitude above terrain 500 feet; slant range 200-300 feet; and flight path crossing angle 90 degrees.
It was one of the first victories for an F-4 with internal cannon, the only MiG-19 shot down by cannon fire during the course of the war in Southeast Asia, and believed to be the highest speed deflection-shot gun kill in the entire history of aerial combat, the world’s only supersonic gun kill.
.
After firing all of his AIM-7 and AIM-4 missiles, which failed to guide, he destroyed a MiG-19 with a three-second burst from his 20mm M-61 Gatling gun. At the time of the kill, his aircraft was traveling at Mach 1.2, or almost four and one-half football fields per second, while only 500 feet above the ground, at a slant-range of 300 feet, and with a heading-crossing angle of 90 degrees.
For this victory, Major Handley and his Weapon Systems Officer, 1st Lt Jack "Karst" Smallwood, were awarded the Silver Star.
theaviationgeekclub.com
www.richthistle.com
goefoundation.org
WSO 1/Lt. Jack Smallwood. Phil's best friend and partner on many combat missions, Smallwood was the last rated officer to die in the War of 1000 Days, when his F-4 was shot down over Cambodia as the war ended.
www.findagrave.com
The estimated flight parameters were; F-4E speed over 1.2 Mach (800 kts); MiG -19 speed Mach 0.77 (500 kts); altitude above terrain 500 feet; slant range 200-300 feet; and flight path crossing angle 90 degrees.
It was one of the first victories for an F-4 with internal cannon, the only MiG-19 shot down by cannon fire during the course of the war in Southeast Asia, and believed to be the highest speed deflection-shot gun kill in the entire history of aerial combat, the world’s only supersonic gun kill.
.
After firing all of his AIM-7 and AIM-4 missiles, which failed to guide, he destroyed a MiG-19 with a three-second burst from his 20mm M-61 Gatling gun. At the time of the kill, his aircraft was traveling at Mach 1.2, or almost four and one-half football fields per second, while only 500 feet above the ground, at a slant-range of 300 feet, and with a heading-crossing angle of 90 degrees.
For this victory, Major Handley and his Weapon Systems Officer, 1st Lt Jack "Karst" Smallwood, were awarded the Silver Star.
How a USAF F-4E flying at Mach 1.2 gun killed a North Vietnamese MiG-19 scoring the world’s only supersonic gun kill - The Aviation Geek Club
How a USAF F-4E flying at Mach 1.2 gun killed a North Vietnamese MiG-19 scoring the world’s only supersonic gun kill
theaviationgeekclub.com
Rich Thistle Original Art - Rhino Charge F-4 Phantom Viet Nam War - Col Philip W. 'Hands' Handley 'A Pilot's Story'
Canadian Military & Civil Aviation Articles by Rich Thistle
Handley, Phil | Gathering of Eagles Foundation
goefoundation.org
WSO 1/Lt. Jack Smallwood. Phil's best friend and partner on many combat missions, Smallwood was the last rated officer to die in the War of 1000 Days, when his F-4 was shot down over Cambodia as the war ended.
Capt John Jackie “JJ” Smallwood (1945-1973) - Find...
Captain John Jackie ‘JJ' ‘Jack' Smallwood was the son of Lois Sorrow (1922-2001) and Hugh A. Smallwood (1917-1993). Jack graduated from Marietta High School, Marietta, Georgia in 1963. Jack graduated from Undergraduate Navigator Training at Mather Air Force Base (AFB), Sacramento, California...
www.findagrave.com
Last edited:
