Phantom Boys: True Tales From UK Operators Of The McDonnell Douglas F-4 (The Jet Age Series) - Hardcover Pike, Richard Richard Pike, best-selling author of Hunter Boys and The Lightning Boys volumes, comes the newest addition to Grub Street’s popular Boys series; Phantom Boys. Originally developed for the US Navy, this twin-engined supersonic long-range fighter-bomber first flew in the spring of 1958. It then entered service for the US Navy in 1961, and in 1969 with the Fleet Air Arm and RAF in the UK