 Wind tunnel testing had revealed lateral instability requiring the addition of 5 ° dihedral to the wings . To avoid redesigning the titanium central section of the aircraft , McDonnell engineers angled up only the outer portions of the wings by 12 ° , which averaged to the required 5 ° over the entire wingspan . The wings also received the distinctive " dogtooth " for improved control at high angles of attack . The all @-@ moving tailplane was given 23 ° of anhedral to improve control at high angles of attack while still keeping the tailplane clear of the engine exhaust . In addition , air intakes were equipped with variable geometry ramps to regulate airflow to the engines at supersonic speeds . All @-@ weather intercept capability was achieved thanks to the AN / APQ @-@ 50 radar . To accommodate carrier operations , the landing gear was designed to withstand landings with a sink rate of 23 ft / s ( 7 m / s ) , while the nose strut could extend by some 20 in ( 51 cm ) to increase angle of attack at takeoff . 
