Northrop F-5A / F-5B Freedom Fighter
The light, affordable supersonic fighter built for America's allies · First flight 1959 · In service 1964
Northrop developed the N-156F as a private venture: a small, simple supersonic fighter that smaller allied air forces could afford to buy and maintain. The prototype first flew on 30 July 1959 at Edwards Air Force Base and went supersonic on that first flight. On 23 April 1962 the design won the US F-X competition for a fighter to supply to allies, and production was ordered that October. Training of allied pilots began at Williams AFB on 30 April 1964.
The single-seat F-5A carried two 20 mm M39 cannon in the nose, wingtip Sidewinders and a wide range of bombs and rockets, but had no radar. The two-seat F-5B kept the combat capability but dropped the nose guns. Northrop built 624 F-5As (including three YF-5A prototypes) and 200 F-5Bs, while Canadair built 240 under licence for Canada and the Netherlands and CASA built 70 in Spain.
In October 1965 the USAF sent twelve F-5As to Vietnam for a five-month combat evaluation, 'Skoshi Tiger'; redesignated F-5C, they flew more than 2,600 sorties. The F-5A/B went on to serve with many air forces around the world, and Turkey's Turkish Stars aerobatic team still flies upgraded NF-5A-2000s and NF-5B-2000s.
