F-104C

This page is about the jet fighter F-104C. For other versions, see F-104 (Family).

F-104C

F-104A

F-5E

F-104C

F-104A

F-5E

USA

VI Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
9.7	9.3	9.7

Class:

Fighter

Jet fighter

Research:94 000

Purchase:520 000

Description

The F-104C Starfighter is a rank VI American jet fighter with a battle rating of 9.7 (AB/SB) and 9.3 (RB). It was introduced in Update "Starfighters".

General info

Flight performance

Arrestor gear

Accelerates braking by grabbing the brake cable on the deck of the aircraft carrier

Air brakes

Allows you to dramatically reduce the flight speed by releasing special flaps

Drogue parachute

Reduces braking distance when landing on any runway

Max speed

at 10 668 m2 142 km/h

Turn time34 s

Max altitude17 678 m

EngineGeneral Electric J79-GE-7a

Type

Cooling systemAir

Take-off weight24 t

Describe how the aircraft behaves in the air. Speed, manoeuvrability, acceleration and allowable loads - these are the most important characteristics of the vehicle.

Characteristics	Max Speed (km/h at 10,668 m)		Max altitude (metres)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (metres/second)		Take-off run (metres)
	AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
Stock	2,098	2,073	17678	34.5	35.0	204.5	196.2	1,200
Upgraded	___	___		__._	__._	__._	__._

Details

Features
Combat flaps	Take-off flaps	Landing flaps	Air brakes	Arrestor gear	Drogue chute
X	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓

Limits
Wings (km/h)	Gear (km/h)	Flaps (km/h)			Max Static G
		Combat	Take-off	Landing	+	-
0	546	N/A	833	444	~13	~5

Optimal velocities (km/h)
Ailerons	Rudder	Elevators	Radiator
< 720	< 950	< 800	N/A

Engine performance

Engine			Aircraft mass
Engine name		Number	Basic Mass		Wing loading (full fuel)
General Electric J79-GE-7a		1	6,330 kg		519 kg/m2
Engine characteristics			Mass with fuel (no weapons load)				Max Takeoff Weight
Weight (each)	Type		10m fuel	20m fuel	30m fuel	33m fuel
1,540 kg	Afterburning axial-flow turbojet		7,130 kg	7,929 kg	8,729 kg	8,969 kg	24,000 kg
Maximum engine thrust @ 0 m (RB / SB)			Thrust to weight ratio @ 0 m (WEP)
Condition	100%	WEP	10m fuel	20m fuel	30m fuel	33m fuel	MTOW
Stationary	4,128 kgf	6,357 kgf	0.89	0.80	0.73	0.71	0.26
Optimal	4,128 kgf (0 km/h)	8,391 kgf (1,200 km/h)	1.18	1.06	0.96	0.94	0.35

Survivability and armour

Crew1 person

Speed of destruction

Structural0 km/h

Gear546 km/h

In terms of armour, there is no armour on the F-104A. Since the F-104A relies on high speed, it wouldn't need armour as that would reduce the speed and manoeuvrability of the plane. The F-104A is a very long plane and it is not very manoeuvrable, making it a large, easy target for enemy guns. As such, the only characteristic that should be relied upon for survivability is the plane's speed. It is very quick, and as such is hard to catch. Of course, it's not quicker than a missile!

• No armour
• Self-sealing fuel tanks

Modifications and economy

Repair costBasic → Reference

AB3 138 → 4 160

RB10 323 → 13 688

SB10 098 → 13 389

Total cost of modifications167 000

261 000

Talisman cost2 600

Crew training150 000

Experts520 000

Aces2 400

Research Aces950 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

120 / 380 / 600 %

220 / 220 / 220 %

Modifications

Flight performance	Survivability	Weaponry
Fuselage repair Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 350 Compressor Research: 9 500 Cost: 15 000 300 Wings repair Research: 14 000 Cost: 22 000 440 Engine Research: 14 000 Cost: 22 000 440 G-suit Research: 18 000 Cost: 28 000 570	Airframe Research: 9 500 Cost: 15 000 300 Cover Research: 18 000 Cost: 28 000 570	M60_belt_pack Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 350 BLU-1 Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 350 M117 Research: 9 500 Cost: 15 000 300 AIM-9B Research: 9 500 Cost: 15 000 300 M60_new_gun Research: 14 000 Cost: 22 000 440 LAU-3/A Research: 18 000 Cost: 28 000 570

Armaments

Offensive armament

The F-104C is armed with:

• 1 x 20 mm M61 cannon, chin-mounted (750 rpg)

Suspended armament

The F-104C can be outfitted with the following ordnance:

• Without load
• 3 x 750 lb M117 cone 45 bombs (2,250 lb total)
• 38 x FFAR Mighty Mouse rockets
• 2 x AIM-9B Sidewinder missiles
• 2 x AIM-9B Sidewinder missiles + 3 x 750 lb M117 cone 45 bombs (2,250 lb total)
• 2 x AIM-9B Sidewinder missiles + 38 x FFAR Mighty Mouse rockets

Usage in battles

Describe the tactics of playing in the aircraft, the features of using aircraft in a team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view, but instead, give the reader food for thought. Examine the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Good top speed, on par with the highest-tier aircraft
• Great rate of climb; even the F-4 Phantom may struggle to match it
• Good roll rate for a jet with tiny wings
• Decent high-speed manoeuvrability
• Powerful M61 Vulcan cannon can rip enemy aircraft to shreds
• Much-improved selection of secondary ordinance over the F-104A

Cons:

• Lousy low-speed manoeuvrability
• Bleeds energy easily in sustained turn fights
• Limited afterburner in Arcade Battles
• Only 750 rounds of cannon ammo; with such a high rate of fire, trigger discipline is a must

History

Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the aircraft in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the vehicle and adding a block "/History" (example: https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Vehicle-name)/History) and add a link to it here using the main template. 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 vehicle's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under === In-game description ===, also if applicable).

Media

Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.

See also

Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:

• reference to the series of the aircraft;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

External links

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

• topic on the official game forum;
• encyclopedia page on the aircraft;
• other literature.

Lockheed Corporation
Fighters	XP-38G · P-38E · P-38G-1 · P-38J-15 · Bong's P-38J-15 · P-38K · P-38L-5-LO · YP-38
Bombers	B-34 · PV-2D
Jet Fighters	F-80A-5 · F-80C-10
	F-104A · F-104C
Strike Aircraft	F-117
Export / License	A-29 · ▄Hudson Mk V
	␗P-38L-1
	␗F-104A · ▀F-104G · ␗F-104G · ▄F-104G · ▅F-104J · ▄F-104S
	The Lockheed Corporation merged with Martin Marietta Corporation in 1995 to form Lockheed Martin Corporation.
See Also	SABCA · Mitsubishi Heavy Industries · Fiat Aviation