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Lockheed F-104 Starfighter
Variants
A total of 2,578 F-104s were produced by Lockheed and under license by various foreign manufacturers. Principal variants included:
XF-104 - Two prototype aircraft equipped with Wright J65 engines (the J79 was not yet ready); one aircraft equipped with the M61 cannon as an armament test bed. Both aircraft were destroyed in crashes.
Lockheed XF-104 (S/N 53-7786) in flight. (U.S. Air Force photo)
YF-104A - 17 pre-production aircraft used for engine, equipment, and flight testing. Most were later converted to F-104A standard.
Lockheed YF-104 (S/N 55-2961), to NASA in 1956 as NASA 818. (U.S. Air Force photo)
F-104A - A total of 153 initial production versions were built. In USAF service from 1958 through 1960, then transferred to ANG until 1963 when they were recalled by the USAF Air Defense Command for the 319th and 331st Fighter Interceptor Squadrons. Some were released for export to Jordan, Pakistan, and Taiwan, each of whom used it in combat. In 1967 the 319th F-104As and Bs were re-engined with the J79-GE-19 engines with 17,900 lb (79.6 kN) of thrust in afterburner; service ceiling with this engine was in excess of 73,000 ft (22,250 m). In 1969 all the F-104A/Bs in ADC service were retired. On 18 May 1958, an F-104A set a world speed record of 1,404.19 mph (2,259.82 km/h).
F-104A-1-LO Starfighter (S/N 56-0734) (U.S. Air Force photo)
NF-104A - Three demilitarized versions with an additional 6,000 lbf (27 kN) Rocketdyne LR121/AR-2-NA-1 rocket engine, used for astronaut training at altitudes up to 120,800 ft (36,830 m). An accident on 10 December 1963 involving Chuck Yeager was depicted in the motion picture The Right Stuff, although the aircraft in the film was not an actual NF-104A.
F-104A-10-LO Starfighter (S/N 56-0756) converted to NF-104A in 1963.
(U.S. Air Force photo)
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Sources:
Wikipedia: F-104 Starfighter
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