The Northrop F-5A/B Freedom Fighter and F-5E/F Tiger II are part of a family of widely used light supersonic fighter aircraft, designed and built by Northrop in the United States, beginning in the 1960s. Hundreds remain in service in air forces around the world in the early 21st Century, and the type has also been the basis for a number of other aircraft.

The F-5 started life as a privately funded light fighter program by Northrop in the 1950s. The first generation F-5A Freedom Fighter entered service in the 1960s. Over 800 were produced through 1972 for U.S. allies during the Cold War. The USAF had no need for a light fighter, but it did specify a requirement for a supersonic trainer and procured about 1,200 of a derivative airframe for this purpose, the T-38 Talon.

The improved second-generation F-5E Tiger II was also primarily used by American Cold War allies and, in limited quantities, served in US military aviation as a training and aggressor aircraft; Tiger II production amounted to 1,400 of all versions, with production ending in 1987. Many F-5s continuing in service into the 1990s and 2000s have undergone a wide variety of upgrade programs to keep pace with the changing combat environment. The F-5 was also developed into a dedicated reconnaissance version, the RF-5 Tigereye.

The F-5 serves as a starting point for a series of design studies which resulted in the twin-tailed Northrop YF-17 and the F/A-18 series of carrier-based fighters. The F-20 Tigershark was an advanced version of the F-5E that did not find a market. The F-5N/F variants remain in service with the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps as an adversary trainer

Pictured here is a 1:72 scale rendition of a US Navy Northrop F-5E Tiger II fighter that was attached to the 527th Aggressor Squadron, then deployed to Alconbury AB, England, from 1976-1988. Sold Out!

Dimensions:
Wingspan: 7-3/4-inches
Length: 4-1/2-inches

Release Date: April 2020

Historical Account: "Dissimilar Air Combat Training" - In April 1976, the squadron was reactivated at RAF Alconbury, England, as the 527th Tactical Fighter Training and Aggressor Squadron, becoming the United States Air Forces in Europe's only aggressor squadron. The 527th began providing aggressor support to European-based combat units in September. Its mission was to train United States Air Forces Europe fighter pilots for air combat with Eastern bloc adversaries using "Dissimilar Air Combat Training" (DACT).

The squadron was equipped with the Northrop F-5E Tiger II, being originally part of an order of aircraft destined for South Vietnam. The first batch of eight aircraft were air-freighted into Alconbury on May 21st, 1976, on board a Lockheed C-5A Galaxy direct from the production facility at Palmdale, California. Eight more Tigers arrived on June 14th with the final batch of four following ten days later, on June 24th. These aircraft were also airfreighted on board a C-5A. The 527th was fully operational a few months later with the first DACT course commencing in October 1976.

The aggressor F-5Es were painted in a variety of colorful camouflage schemes designed to mimic those in use by Warsaw Pact aircraft. Two-digit Soviet-style nose codes were applied to most aggressor aircraft. These coincided with the last two digits of the serial number. When there was duplication, three digits were used.

International conventions made it necessary for military aircraft to carry their national insignia, but the star-and-bar national insignia was reduced in size and relocated to a less-conspicuous position on the rear fuselage. The 527th's Aggressor aircraft were among the first to apply the star and bar in toned-down or stencil form, now standard on USAF aircraft.

The 527th Aggressors flew their aircraft in intense turns and other maneuvers as their mission involved intense combat fighter training, often involving high-G turns at supersonic speeds. The Aggressors trained both United States Air Force squadrons in Soviet fighter tactics, but deployed frequently to other NATO airfields, training pilots from Norway to Greece and Turkey, France, West Germany and the Low Countries in combat tactics.

After 12 years of intense flying, in 1988 the fleet of aggressor F-5Es were getting rather worn out as a result of sustained exposure to the rigors of air combat maneuvering. There were restrictions placed on operations in which pilots were warned not to exceed a certain G-load. Some repair kits had to be devised to overcome these problems, and the estimated cost of repair of the entire fleet was beginning to exceed a billion dollars. In addition, with the appearance of a new generation of Soviet fighters, it became apparent that F-5Es could no longer adequately mimic Warsaw Pact threats.

It was decided to re-equip the squadron with General Dynamics F-16C Fighting Falcons and move the squadron to RAF Bentwaters. In return, the Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II's at Bentwaters would move to Alconbury and give the 10th Tactical Fighter Wing a new close air support mission.