F-104 (Family)
Description
The Lockheed F-104 Starfighter is an American single-engined, supersonic interceptor aircraft which became widely used as a fighter-bomber during the Cold War. It was originally developed by Lockheed for the United States Air Force (USAF), but was later sold to and produced by several other nations, seeing widespread service outside the United States.
Nicknames
| F-104 Nicknames | |
|---|---|
| ▃ Lockheed | missile with a man in it |
| ▃ Official | Starfighter |
| ▅ Official | Eiko (栄光, Glory) |
| ▃ Pilots | Oh-Four · Zip-Four · Zipper / Zip |
| ▀ Pilots | Zipper · Gustav (◄F-104G) |
| ▅ Pilots | Mitubishi Pencil |
| ▄ Pilots | Spillone (Hatpin) |
| ▃ Public | Widowmaker |
| ▀ Public | Witwenmacher (Widowmaker) · Fliegender Sarg (Flying coffin) · Erdnagel (Ground nail) · ... |
Vehicles
Rank VI
- ▃F-104A- Initial US variant
- ␗F-104A- Identical to US F-104A
- ▃F-104C- Improved US variant with improved engine, RWR, and ground attack ordinance compared to the F-104A
- ▅F-104J- Export F-104G to Japan, comes with 4 AIM-9P sidewinders
- ▄F-104G- Export F-104G to Italy, comes with 60 countermeasures and 2x AIM-9J sidewinders
- ▄F-104S- Italian variant, improved F-104G with a stronger engine, improved ground attack ordinance, 6x AIM-9J sidewinders or 2x AIM-7E Sparrow SARH missiles
Rank VII
- ▀◄F-104G- Export F-104G to Germany, comes with 60 countermeasures, a large array of ground attack ordinance, and 4x AIM-9J sidewinders
- ␗F-104G- Very similar to German F-104G
- ▄F-104S.ASA - Italian F-104S upgrade; ASA stands for Aggiornamento Sistemi d’Arma (Weapon Systems Update). Equipped with a stronger engine, 60 countermeasures, AIM-9L sidewinders, a look-down/shoot-down radar, and Aspide-1A SARH missiles.
History
Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the vehicle family in more detail than in the introduction. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <ref></ref>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <references />. This section may also include the family's dev blog entries (if applicable).
Media
The Shooting Range #211 - Pages of History section at 04:15 discusses the Starfighter.
