"Television brought the brutality of war into the comfort of the living room. Vietnam was lost in the living rooms of America - not on the battlefields of Vietnam."
- Marshal McLuhan
The Lockheed F-104 Starfighter was a single-engined, high-performance, supersonic interceptor aircraft that served with the United States Air Force (USAF) from 1958 until 1967. It continued in service with the Air National Guard until it was phased out in 1975. Subsequently, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) continued to fly a small fleet. NASA F-104 aircraft flew in support of the X-15 and XB-70 projects. The F-104 continued to support the spaceflight programs until they were retired in 1995 and replaced by F/A-18 Hornets. The Starfighter was the first aircraft to hold simultaneous official world records for speed, altitude, and time-to-climb.
The F-104G version sold well amongst NATO air forces where these high-speed fighter-bomber variants continued in service with most operators until the late 1980s; the Italian Air Force examples being the last to be retired in 2004. Many air forces using F-104s eventually replaced them with the F-16 or Panavia Tornado.
Pictured here is a limited edition Lockheed CF-104 Starfighter Interceptor that was assigned to the Royal Canadian 702 Squadron. Comes in a special chrome finish. Limited edition production run of just 1,000 pieces. Sold Out!
Dimensions:
Wingspan: 4 inches
Length: 9 inches
Release Date: August 2008
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