Built by McDonnell Douglas in St. Louis, Missouri, the F-4 Phantom II became famous as a military fighter during the Vietnam War. The Navy developed it in the 1950s as a high-speed, long-range interceptor to protect the fleet, and the U.S. Air Force adopted it as a multi-mission tactical fighter because of its range, speed, load-carrying capacity, and low maintenance needs. The aircraft also served during Operation Desert Storm in the 1990s, and it flew simultaneously with the U.S. Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps. More than 5,100 F-4s were built by McDonnell Douglas, and the Phantom still holds the record for the largest production run of any supersonic fighter built in the United States from 1958 to 1979. It has also served in the first line of more Western air forces than any other jet.