In the 1980s, the German government, in cooperation with Italy and the United Kingdom, actively participated in the development of the future Eurofighter Typhoon. However, even then it was clear that the new aircraft would not appear soon, so the German Ministry of Defence decided to improve the existing F-4Fs in both air-to-ground and air-to-air roles as an interim solution. This improvement was called F-4F Kampfwertsteigerung (KWS), or the more commonly known Improved Combat Efficiency (ICE). It involved dividing the existing aircraft into two roles: Luftangriff (LA), attack aircraft; and Luftverteidigung (LV), air defence fighter.

Modernisation of 110 aircraft to the LV configuration began in 1986. The F-4F received a more powerful Hughes AN/APG-65G radar, the rear cockpit was modernised, the ability to carry AIM-120 AMRAAM missiles was added, and the aircraft's nose was modified to accommodate the new radar. In addition, all F-4F KWS-upgraded aircraft were repainted in Norm 90J grey camouflage and underwent a major overhaul to extend their service life. The F-4F KWS LV formed the fighter backbone of the Luftwaffe until 2000, when it was replaced by the Eurofighter Typhoon. The last aircraft was retired in 2014.

Introduced in Update "Seek & Destroy", the F-4F KWS LV represents the well-known F-4 to pilots, no longer distinguished by speed or manoeuvrability. The aircraft's poor flight performance is only compensated for by its good radar and active radar homing AIM-120 AMRAAM missiles.