I’ve always liked the F-104, my first exposure was as a small boy hearing the sonic booms of the F-104’s flying out of Hamilton AFB CA and seeing them fly over our house. The F-104 was designed by Clarence “Kelly” Johnson of the Skunk Works after input he received from pilots during the Korean War. The F-104 entered USAF service in 1957 with Air Defense Command, was surprisingly used in Vietnam and was finally retired from service with the Puerto Rico ANG in 1975. While the Starfighter was never very popular with the USAF it saw extensive service with many allied nations, to include Canada, Belgium, Netherlands, Greece, Pakistan, Turkey, Germany, Denmark, Greece, Japan, Taiwan and of course Italy.
I saved Italy for last since the Italian Air Force only retired the last of their F-104ASA aircraft in 2004 after over 40 years of service. The S stood for Sparrow was a modification to allow the Starfighter to carry the Aim-7 air-to-air radar guided missile. In the mid 80's the Italians upgraded some of their S models to the F-104ASA standard which was an avionics modification to achieve look down and shoot capability, these were the aircraft I would see periodically parked at transient alert when I was stationed at RAF Lakenheath in the late 90’s.
I saved Italy for last since the Italian Air Force only retired the last of their F-104ASA aircraft in 2004 after over 40 years of service. The S stood for Sparrow was a modification to allow the Starfighter to carry the Aim-7 air-to-air radar guided missile. In the mid 80's the Italians upgraded some of their S models to the F-104ASA standard which was an avionics modification to achieve look down and shoot capability, these were the aircraft I would see periodically parked at transient alert when I was stationed at RAF Lakenheath in the late 90’s.
Specs
Length 54 Ft 8inches
Height 13 ft 6 inches
Wingspan 21 Ft 9 inches
Max Takeoff weight 29,027 pounds
Engine, General Electric J-79 afterburning turbojet, 15,600 pounds of thrust in burner
Max Speed 1328 mph
Service ceiling 50,000 Ft
Armament, 1 20mm M-61 Vulcan, 4 sidewinders (2 Sparrow F-104S) and up to 4000 pounds of other stores.
Length 54 Ft 8inches
Height 13 ft 6 inches
Wingspan 21 Ft 9 inches
Max Takeoff weight 29,027 pounds
Engine, General Electric J-79 afterburning turbojet, 15,600 pounds of thrust in burner
Max Speed 1328 mph
Service ceiling 50,000 Ft
Armament, 1 20mm M-61 Vulcan, 4 sidewinders (2 Sparrow F-104S) and up to 4000 pounds of other stores.
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