This thread reignites an old memory, many decades hence, but still too fresh for me.
I think it's relevant and enlightening so here it is, FWIW:
I was given a "cleared to arm, cleared to fire" by our controlling Red Crown, (USS Truxton or maybe Long Beach, I believe) on two enemy MiGs to our west, about 20 – 30 miles. My RO locked up one of them. Flipping switches quickly, armed and ready, I watched the radar as the enemy quickly came into Sparrow range, very fast, low and head-on.
Armed and ready, I only hesitated firing my AIM-7 so as to sweeten the shot, hoping for a better Pk.
Watching the enemy now entering the heart of the envelope on the scope – and with visions of a Silver Star with my first MiG kill in my head - I (fortunately) looked up to see if I could get a visual.
What I saw – to my astonishment – a speck with black smoke!
I knew Migs didn't smoke…. F-4s did. So thank God, I held my fire!!!
What I did not know was our sister squadron, on separate frequencies and controllers had been vectored 180 degrees out on the very same Migs as we had.
But meanwhile, our Migs had slipped out low, on the deck, undetected to the south. But we still had been both vectored onto the same Migs, formerly in-between us.
As it turned out our section had been (but their section hadn't been) cleared to fire BVR upon what later turned out to be, not MiGs, but our unknown - didn't ever know they were there - sister squadron's F-4s working on their separate AIC control and UHF frequency, and on an aggressive 180 opposite vector on same MiGs as us.
Although my friends in the brand-x F-4 casually brushed it off in the debrief and still later over San Magoo's in the 'Po, I still shudder at how close I came to accidentally bagging them in a friendly fire incident.
It's still something I often think about after all these many years, even though it all worked out OK. Thus, I cannot imagine how difficult it would be for ALCON if I had actually fired on them…. With almost certain disastrous results.
