The Lockheed F-104 Starfighter Collection
The Lockheed F-104 Starfighter was an American single-engined, high-performance, supersonic interceptor aircraft that served with the United States Air Force (USAF) from 1958 until 1967. Then continued in service with Air National Guard units until it was phased out in 1975. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) flew a small mixed fleet of F-104 types in supersonic flight tests and spaceflight programs until they were retired in 1994. Several two-seat trainer versions were produced, the most numerous being the TF-104G.
The F-104C was used in combat with the USAF during the Vietnam War, and F-104A aircraft were deployed by Pakistan during the Indo-Pakistani wars. Republic of China Air Force F-104s also engaged the People's Liberation Army Air Force over the disputed island of Kinmen.
The poor safety record of the Starfighter brought the aircraft into the public eye, especially in Luftwaffe service; (the cheapest way to own a Starfighter to buy a plot of land a wait) the subsequent Lockheed bribery scandals surrounding the original purchase contracts caused considerable political controversy in Europe and Japan. However, a USAF study of other Century Series fighters revealed that the F-100 Super Sabre had an accident rate far worse than the F-104's.
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. Lockheed developed the final and most advanced version, the F-104S, for use by the Italian Air Force which was designed to carry AIM-7 Sparrow missiles. the Italian Air Force was the last remaining Starfighter operator, retiring their fleet in 2004. Many F-104s were eventually replaced with F-16 or Panavia Tornado aircraft. A projected, highly-modified version of the F-104, known as the CL-1200 Lancer, did not proceed; the project was cancelled at the mock-up stage. A civilian demonstration team based in Florida operates the last 3 airworthy Starfighters 2 are in the collection
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F-104_Starfighter
Image from Richard Ferriere
2576 Manufactured
About 475 in the collection plus a look a like
Thanks to Carmedic for his assistance