INTRODUCTION

The Lockheed F-104 Starfighter is one of those shapes—let alone airplanes—that you don’t soon forget. Part of the legendary “century series” of aircraft designed in the late 1950s and early 1960s and then fielded by the United States Air Force in the ensuing decades, it was initially produced to counter the fast and capable Soviet aircraft encountered during the Korean War. However, that goal changed, and the designers began to think of it as a high-speed interceptor aircraft tasked with destroying incoming Soviet nuclear-armed bombers in a “hot” nuclear war. In theory, once the U.S. military received word of an incoming Soviet attack, the Starfighters would be scrambled to intercept any nuclear bombers, a task that required maximum speed and climb performance. As such, it was extremely fast; in fact, it was the first Mach 2-capable production fighter in USAF service. But it was not exceptionally maneuverable, though some scholars today dispute that.

This extreme performance came at a price. The Germans called it “witwenmacher”—the widowmaker—or sometimes “fliegender sarg”—flying coffin. My personal favorite is “erdnagel”…essentially “tent peg.” The short, stubby wings that gave it such record-breaking speeds resulted in an unusually high landing speed, necessitating a drogue chute to slow the aircraft down on the landing rollout (Anyone familiar with small, nimble aircraft like the Cassutt Racer or Pitts Special knows the feeling of a fast approach speed). The T-tail was unusual for a jet aircraft and made operation at high angles-of-attack risky; the main wings could blank out the airflow over the horizontal stabilizer, effectively making the aircraft uncontrollable in pitch. American pilots called it simply “the missile with a man in it,” an unimaginative name, but undoubtedly the most technically correct. The jet was essentially built to be a missile sent to destroy incoming nuclear-armed bombers. It would undoubtedly have performed this task well.

Although the Starfighter’s USAF service was short-lived, it continued in service with several foreign air forces well into the 1980s, usually built under license. The most numerous version, the F-104G, was operated by Germany as late as the early 1990s in a test capacity. Other notable users included Italy and Canada.

The Starfighter’s engines make a remarkable howling sound that sticks with the hearer years later. I first saw a Starfighter at an airshow in the late 1990s. Two jets, owned by Starfighters, Inc., performed multiple passes for the crowd, and the howling jet engines captivated my young mind. Then, seeing Chuck Yeager’s NF-104A going vertical on the cover of an Air & Space Smithsonian magazine a few years later only cemented that fascination. To a little boy, the Starfighter is the perfect airplane. To many of its pilots, it still is.

REVIEW

This book is the 25th in the Duke Hawkins series of books published by HMH Publications.  At this point, Hawkins has issued books covering most well-known jet aircraft of the 20th century, such as the F-16 Fighting Falcon, F/A-18 Hornet, SU-35 Flanker, A-4 Skyhawk, MiG-31 Foxhound, MiG-29 Fulcrum, Dassault Mirage 2000, and Panavia Tornado. Owners of the previous books will be familiar with the layout of this book, which essentially examines the F-104 from nose to tail (with a few deviations). 

The book is a softcover with 178 full-color, satin pages of vintage and modern photographs. It is quite an impressive summary of the jet. The book does not have a table of contents, but the obvious section names and markings in the upper outside corners make up for that omission just fine. The cover features a beautiful shot of the restored Norwegian CF-104D owned and operated by the Friends of the Norwegian Starfighter Association. As Hawkins explains, the jet is unfortunately grounded indefinitely due to issues with servicing the Martin Baker ejection seats. Nevertheless, it was well-photographed during its brief return to the skies, and many of those pictures appear throughout the book.

Hawkins largely skips any kind of in-depth explanation of the history, development, and use of the Starfighter. That fact highlights the biggest takeaway from this book: it is an enthusiast’s reference, and not for the casual fan of early jet technology. After a short summary of the history, he jumps right into the excellent photographs and details.

If you’ve ever wondered what is inside the Electronic Load Center Bay panel,

or how many wing bolts hold the individual wings to the fuselage,

 or what it looks like under the hydraulic access panels,

then this is the book for you. For the detail photos, Hawkins and his crew focused mostly on a few restored jets located in Norway, the Netherlands, Germany, Japan, and Canada. All are very carefully preserved and provide the scale modeler with plenty of reference material. Some are flying examples and some are static. There are a few pictures of the striking all-black or blue-and-white jets operated by Starfighters, Inc. in the United States, but very few closeups. I would assume this is because they are operated for commercial and military testing, not for historicity, and because of the secretive nature of their work.

All the pictures are sharp, clear, well-lit, and from multiple angles. In some cases, this was no small feat given the Starfighter’s low-slung stance on the ground. Nearly every panel is opened and photographed, and there are multiple shots and angles showing the fuselage with the engine removed. Because the F-104 served for so long, there are a plethora of period photos that are nevertheless high enough quality to appear alongside the modern photography and not detract from the book. This makes the book a great weathering reference as well.

CONCLUSION

 If you’re a true fan of the F-104 Starfighter and are looking to superdetail your latest model, or just want to understand this remarkable jet better, this is the book for you.  Personally, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Even though I’ll probably never superdetail a Starfighter to the extent this book enables, it is always fascinating to see what humanity achieved so soon after the dawn of the jet age. The F-104 is a remarkable airplane, and if you’re ever given the opportunity to see one fly—take it. It’s a bucket list kind of thing. If you never get that opportunity, this book will at least bring you a bit closer to the airplane in a way other books don’t.

Now I’ve got the itch to build a Starfighter. Maybe an NF-104A conversion…

This book was kindly provided by Casemate Publishers.  Please remember to mention to Casemate and retailers that you saw this book here - on Aeroscale.