FREEDOM FIGHTER: The Original Northrop F-5 Was A US Fighter Build Like A Soviet One

The F-5 was a revolutionary fighter. As the Tiger II it was distributed to many nations around the world, besting the contemporary MiG-21 on numerous occasions. This has reasonably led to suggestions that it would have been the best USAF air-superiority option during Rolling Thunder.
What people forget, of course, is that the F-5E is a 1970s fighter. In the 1960s the F-5 was still the Freedom Fighter. The Freedom Fighter was a fascinating aircraft. It was in many ways an American version of a MiG: a small, tough and simple platform that could do many of them things that a Century Series could do, but with higher sortie rates and lower costs. And, as the F-5C, it saw service over South Vietnam in US and South Vietnamese Air Force service.
Because I feel that the Freedom Fighter isn't sufficiently well covered, this video looks in some detail at the story of the early F-5. It also goes into detail about Skoshi Tiger and analyses how the F-5 would have fared as an air superiority fighter against the MiG-21 and MiG-17 in Vietnamese conditions.
I hope you enjoy this one. I learned a great deal about the context for the F-5, its unique characteristics and its performance. As ever, your comments and thoughts are much appreciated!

Пікірлер: 538

  • @JTA1961
    @JTA19614 ай бұрын

    Periodically showing a car from that year would REALLY go a long way to show HOW ahead of the time these planes were.

  • @cdfe3388

    @cdfe3388

    4 ай бұрын

    Living in southwest Arizona means seeing the daily air show from MCAS Yuma, which these days is mostly F-35s, Yankee-model Hueys, and Ospreys. However, there’s also some DACT F-5s overhead on a semi-regular basis. It’s still incredible seeing one of those little beauties streak through the sky!

  • @HennyvilleX

    @HennyvilleX

    4 ай бұрын

    You nailed it, that's a big part of my fascination for military aircraft in general😉

  • @yakacm

    @yakacm

    3 ай бұрын

    I think the illustration @4:47 does this admirably, the helicopter in the background looks so old fashioned and last century, whereas the aircraft in the foreground looks bang up to date and modern.

  • @fulcrum2168

    @fulcrum2168

    3 ай бұрын

    Search Lola T70

  • @daszieher

    @daszieher

    3 ай бұрын

    ​@@fulcrum2168 nah, still.

  • @jimk8520
    @jimk85204 ай бұрын

    I’ve always felt that the F5 was, aesthetically speaking, one of the most elegant fighters we ever made.

  • @markymarknj

    @markymarknj

    3 ай бұрын

    YES! I always thought that it was a beautiful plane.

  • @flavortown3781

    @flavortown3781

    3 ай бұрын

    quite literally a rapier, small quick, precise, multi-talented,

  • @MrOtistetrax

    @MrOtistetrax

    2 ай бұрын

    @@flavortown3781Very apt analogy. The Rapier to the F4’s Claymore. Or the Thunderchief’s battleaxe.

  • @Tango4N

    @Tango4N

    Ай бұрын

    Agreed. This and the F-16.

  • @markymarknj

    @markymarknj

    Ай бұрын

    @@Tango4N the F-16 looks good too, especially clean or with just the two Sidewinders on the wings.

  • @wayausofbounds9255
    @wayausofbounds92554 ай бұрын

    That video of the F-5 with the sledder is perfect. Such a happy little fighter.

  • @kiereluurs1243

    @kiereluurs1243

    4 ай бұрын

    Crazy scene. Which commander would allow this? So what happened?

  • @ATrainGames

    @ATrainGames

    3 ай бұрын

    Leave it to a crew chief... Question is, who is in the cockpit? :O

  • @audunberntsen5963

    @audunberntsen5963

    2 ай бұрын

    @@kiereluurs1243I think it’s filmed in Norway.. Just a bit of fun..

  • @jona.scholt4362
    @jona.scholt43624 ай бұрын

    I hope we get an F-101 Voodoo video. She's the "forgotten" century series fighter and deserves a greater spotlight. Edit: I'm glad so many people have "Liked" this comment. My hope is that "Not a Pound" notices; so far the comment has the most "Likes" on this video. Let's hope that gets his attention! Then us F-101 Voodoo enthusiasts can see our favorite aviation creator give the Voodoo the treatment she deserves but has for so long been denied.

  • @minera7595

    @minera7595

    4 ай бұрын

    True, Especially the reconnaissance variants (RF-101) which participated in important events like Second Taiwan Strait and Cuban Missile crisis

  • @stinkyfungus

    @stinkyfungus

    4 ай бұрын

    +1

  • @phillipmorel5116

    @phillipmorel5116

    4 ай бұрын

    Agreed

  • @Bruvva_Wu

    @Bruvva_Wu

    4 ай бұрын

    ​@@minera7595and the 2nd hand Canadian flown, until the early 80's. Carrying the American AIR-2 Genie nuclear rocket.

  • @sergioleone3583

    @sergioleone3583

    4 ай бұрын

    I'd be interested for sure! Built a model of the RF-101 as a kid and thought it was a cool looking bird. I'd be interested in hearing some background to General Robin Olds briefly referencing the Voodoo in one of his talks I've seen online in a manner that wasn't praising it, to use so many words. I have my ideas why, but would love seeing hearing Not a Pound's analysis on the plane and hopefully touch on that at some point.

  • @CoconutCrabGaming
    @CoconutCrabGaming4 ай бұрын

    The F-5 is such a cool aircraft. Wish they produced the F-20 Tigershark!

  • @exidy-yt

    @exidy-yt

    4 ай бұрын

    Me too. The Tigershark could easily compete with the Viper today had it gone to production.

  • @ReviveHF

    @ReviveHF

    4 ай бұрын

    F-20 Tigershark with F-414 Turbo fan engine, AMRAAM missiles and AESA radar is a force to be recon with.

  • @Clean97gti

    @Clean97gti

    3 ай бұрын

    There is a book about the F-20 written by test pilot Paul Metz. It details a bunch of important things about the future F-20 including an uprated F404 engine that would have produced as much thrust as the current Block 50 and up F-16s. It also shows off F-20's with larger wings and larger conformal fuel tanks to increase its range. Northrop had already designed a new nose cone to fit the AN/APG-67 radar and processors AND its twin 20mm guns, or a single gun with more ammo. The book seems to indicate that with the modularity of the aircraft and the additional real estate provided by the bigger wings (and thus lower wing loading) future F-20s would have been a little behind in the dogfighting role the F-16 was built for, but even more capable and longer lived than the F-16 in the SEAD missions and ground support roles the Viper has found itself thrust into. Even today, old F-16s are getting beat up having to lug that much heavy ordnance and fuel under the wings. They simply weren't meant to do it. The F-20, being a larger aircraft would be better today at filling the SEAD role. Northrop even had a CAS/BFI mission package for the F-20 to turn it into a grunt support machine. Really a missed opportunity. Even today, with some updates to the shape of the thing for stealth, I'll bet it would be a first rate option for whats going in in Ukraine.forum.warthunder.com/t/f-20-the-best-plane-that-never-entered-production/32563/7?page=2

  • @DefaultProphet

    @DefaultProphet

    3 ай бұрын

    @@exidy-ytnot even but it is cool

  • @sparrowlt

    @sparrowlt

    3 ай бұрын

    @@exidy-yt it could compete but only to a point.. the point being a cheaper and easier to maintain fighter.. otherwise the problem of the Tigershark was that in the end was still a F-5 wich means limited size for everything.. no room for grouth (tought the F-20 started with allready better avionics than the F-16A) less weapons capability.. no room in the nose for a big radar antenna meaning the radar could never match the Viper radar.. Thats why northrop decided to also make a new plane based on the F-5 design bigger wich resulted in the YF-17 wich was then enlarged into the F-18 rather than navalize a F-5

  • @manuelkatsos5104
    @manuelkatsos51044 ай бұрын

    The F5E was a BEAST of an opponent when flown by the USAF Agressors as a mig 21 simulator. Its small wingspan enabled it to outroll and outmanoeuvre F15s and F14s in the 1977-78 AIMVAL ACEVAL tests.

  • @riograndedosulball248

    @riograndedosulball248

    4 ай бұрын

    Brazilian F-5s have consistently defeated American F-16's during conjunct military exercises in the late 90's to early 2000's (!) This isn't of course "simple plane good" bs, but goes to show that a well piloted F-5 could still bite, at a time in which it was already ancient

  • @ReviveHF

    @ReviveHF

    4 ай бұрын

    Agree, however, the F-5 was plagued by 1950s and 1960s tech which resulted in lack luster engine thrust and lack the ability to fire AIM-7 Sparrows. An updated F-5 with a modern multi-mode radar and a weapons computer is far more capable now than it was then. The JF-17, Legacy Hornets and Indigenous Defense Fighter( Fighter Ching Kuo/F-CK 1) were what F-5 supposed to be.

  • @cab6273

    @cab6273

    4 ай бұрын

    That's not necessarily accurate to call the F-5E a beast. It was a challenging oppenent because of the highly trained pilots flying it and it's small size.

  • @gotanon9659

    @gotanon9659

    4 ай бұрын

    ​@@riograndedosulball248 Hint hint the brazillians are only going to talk about there wins no matter how many or few or in the most likely case very heavily handicapped as is often the case in international excercises

  • @Gerhardium

    @Gerhardium

    4 ай бұрын

    @@gotanon9659 so they're just like the Americans.

  • @josephnason8770
    @josephnason87704 ай бұрын

    Was buzzed by an F5 in Big Smoke Valley Nevada. A comoflaged one from NAS Fallon. I was doing 50 mph heading west on a dirt road leaving a huge dust plume. Out of nowhere from the right this thing blasts into view and literally filled the windshield. For a millisecond l saw the red star on the tail. The next second it was a dot to the left still low on the desert floor heading south. That guy saw my dust from who knows where and from what altitude and decided to have a little fun. He did and man oh man so did we!

  • @Tango4N

    @Tango4N

    Ай бұрын

    Sure it wasn't a Mig-28? ;)

  • @johnwalters1341

    @johnwalters1341

    Ай бұрын

    I had a rather similar experience many years ago, driving south in the Panamint Valley west of Death Valley, CA, along a two-lane paved road that was straight as a string for 10 miles or so--not a soul for miles. Suddenly I glance to my left, and here is an apparition passing me about 10 feet off the deck, then moving back to continue down the road. I later decided it was an A-10, who had come up behind me following the road without my noticing it, and then just pulled over to pass me. I'm just glad he didn't fly over me--would have needed a change of wardrobe!

  • @jedibusiness789

    @jedibusiness789

    25 күн бұрын

    Same here. Driving to my duty station on I-10 westbound in a Honda Accord. Step it up to 100 mph. Three minutes later my radar detector went off. Reduced speed and thought I was going to meet a trooper. Nothing…and no one was on the road east or westbound except me. Stepped it up to 90 mph and again the radar went off again. Backed off again, sun going down and off to my right traversing to my left, was a F14 and about at 200 feet flashed his nav lights. Blew my mind.

  • @alancranford3398
    @alancranford33984 ай бұрын

    'They survived the most hostile of environments--the Pentagon in the Sixties." Thanks--I learned a lot from this video I had regarded the F-5 to be little more than a T-38 with cannon. I didn't read the specs closely enough to learn that the T-38 was substantially lighter. There was a lot more in this video.

  • @sparrowlt

    @sparrowlt

    3 ай бұрын

    The F-5 is much more powerfull than the Talon (a Talon has barelly 3000lb thrust.. the 5E has 5000).. has bigger wings, leading edge extentions, much more fuel capacity, better performance .. and also way heavier but still way lighter than everything else

  • @wrong4538
    @wrong45384 ай бұрын

    I was in the USAF in the late 70's and early 80's when the promotional material for the F-20 Tiger Shark started making the rounds in the squadron day room. The performance specs for this aircraft were fantastic and the cost was around 3 F-20's for 1 F-16. I keep thinking "So when are we going to see these planes show up on the flight line?". What a terrible mistake not acquiring this great aircraft that could climb from 0 to 50,000 feet in one minute and was being fitted for latest radar and weapons system. I always thought the airframe was way ahead of its time and we wasted this opportunity.

  • @thomassuit7450

    @thomassuit7450

    4 ай бұрын

    IIRC, the F-20 had the fastest cold start to intercept time of any fighter/interceptor out there. But General Dynamics was lobbying (bribing) hard to not have any competition for the F16. They offered it to some country in South America, and got blocked by the US govt with the excuse that it was too good, and would lead to an arms race in the region. A few years later, there were no such objections when F16s were sold to that same country.

  • @BigDaddy-yp4mi

    @BigDaddy-yp4mi

    3 ай бұрын

    The F-20 was Chuck Yeager's favorite plane to fly. He lamented that had politics stayed out and performance and price where what mattered, then tons of mid to small countries could have afforded it, no ladders or special equipment was needed to do maintenance, and could be reloaded, refueled and re-racked with bombs in under 8 minutes. The world missed out on the Tiger.

  • @ninjabearpress2574

    @ninjabearpress2574

    2 ай бұрын

    Ah, the Pentagon, as the fictional Colonel Potter called it, "The five-sided monument to Murphy's Law."

  • @keithdurose7057

    @keithdurose7057

    13 күн бұрын

    Perhaps the resurrection of this aircraft could fill the emense void that the RAF have in their inventory. On paper, at least. It performs like a BAC Lightning in air superiority and can move mud like an F4. Great range and CHEAP! Perhaps it could also compliment the super expensive F35's on the aircraft carriers?

  • @richardbennett1856

    @richardbennett1856

    6 күн бұрын

    I also saw that. It also was remarkable that they never got on the flight line.

  • @mathewcaldwell4108
    @mathewcaldwell41084 ай бұрын

    My dad was a weights and balance engineer on the F-5A,B,C, and the talon he loved working on it. He had been working on the XB-70 prototype #2 around the same time which was a nightmare for the engineers having to deal with the heat expansion and contractions on every flight.

  • @erikbendtsen5353
    @erikbendtsen53534 ай бұрын

    I was told this by an Norwegian pilot who flew the F5, it was used as a electronic warfare plane with jammers and flew with the F16s well into the 1980s. He told me it was a wery good airplane, not a pushover

  • @MutheiM_Marz
    @MutheiM_Marz4 ай бұрын

    F-5 is so good it's still serve in my country today...many were replaced by Grippen tho.

  • @lil__boi3027

    @lil__boi3027

    4 ай бұрын

    brasil número uno🇧🇷🇧🇷 ‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️🐒🐒🐒🐒🐒

  • @shaider1982

    @shaider1982

    4 ай бұрын

    Interesting. The F5A was replaced here in my country with the FA50 as an interim before we bought a multirole fighter (either the Gripen or F16).

  • @minera7595

    @minera7595

    4 ай бұрын

    The situation sound quite similar to my country's air force (Thailand)

  • @copter2000

    @copter2000

    4 ай бұрын

    @@minera7595 Thailand mentioned 🥳🥳🥳🇹🇭 🇹🇭 🇹🇭 🇹🇭 🇹🇭

  • @PraecipeWrit

    @PraecipeWrit

    4 ай бұрын

    F-5 is ideal variant for the third world country not going to actually fight anyone.

  • @bmouch1018
    @bmouch10184 ай бұрын

    I *fucking love* the F-5. Something about its looks and its balance of affordability, versatility, and capability just makes me love it.

  • @johnnyallred3753
    @johnnyallred37533 ай бұрын

    If I was buying fighter for any country. The f-5 would be the fighter I would buy and lots of them. Dan Padrrsen in his book Top Gun an american story said on page 283". Give me a few hundred planes like the F-5N, with a reliable gun, a lead computing gunsight 4 Sindwinders, electronic countermeasure support, and pilots who get forty to fifty flight hours a month, and we’ll beat any air force that's bankrupting its nation with fifth-generation stealthy penguins". Great book by the founder of the Top Gun program.I found your video on the F-5 very enjoyable.Thank you.

  • @markymarknj

    @markymarknj

    3 ай бұрын

    That's an INTERESTING find! Thanks for sharing. However, if I were buying fighters for a country, I'd go for the F-20 Tigershark; it has all of the F-5's virtues, but only more so; i.e. it's the F-5 perfected.

  • @johnnyallred3753

    @johnnyallred3753

    3 ай бұрын

    @@markymarknj Yes the F-20 Tigershark !.

  • @martentrudeau6948

    @martentrudeau6948

    Ай бұрын

    @@markymarknj ~ Chuck Yeager liked the F-20, and that's a good endorsement.

  • @markymarknj

    @markymarknj

    Ай бұрын

    @@martentrudeau6948 you got THAT right!

  • @rhadooxxl

    @rhadooxxl

    Ай бұрын

    Cool quote. Completely wrong, you would just have a few hundred corpses if you fly those against 5th generation fighters. But if you need a fighter on the cheap, and if you are not threatened by, say, the whole Soviet Airforce, the F5 is a good choice.

  • @bombfog1
    @bombfog14 ай бұрын

    I love the T-38/F-5/F-20/Mig-28. A great series.

  • @SoloRenegade

    @SoloRenegade

    4 ай бұрын

    X-29, shaped sonic boom F-5E

  • @VikingTeddy

    @VikingTeddy

    4 ай бұрын

    I've always loved it too. One of the last that had that early jet personality. Imo the best looking jets are from early cold war when manufacturers were still figuring things out.

  • @bombfog1

    @bombfog1

    4 ай бұрын

    @@VikingTeddywell said

  • @RCAvhstape

    @RCAvhstape

    4 ай бұрын

    Ah yes, the infamous MiG-28, almost took out the Iceman's Tomcat back in the 80s!

  • @weldonwin

    @weldonwin

    4 ай бұрын

    @@RCAvhstape Flown exclusively in the Soviet Union's little known All-Black livery, with only a big red star on them and flown exclusively by mute pilots, likewise all in black with big red stars on their helmets

  • @davidangel-blair9358
    @davidangel-blair93584 ай бұрын

    Thank you for the deep dive into the original F-5!. Living in Canada, I can remember seeing CF-5s flying in the 1970s.

  • @Tango4N

    @Tango4N

    Ай бұрын

    I saw them at the Toronto Air Show when I was a kid. Still have the booklet from that somewhere.

  • @raymondyee2008
    @raymondyee20084 ай бұрын

    Glad my country’s Air Force (RSAF) used the F-5Es and used them well until they got replaced by F-15s.

  • @wkelly3053
    @wkelly30534 ай бұрын

    There is an excellent case study in aircraft design for the F-5 available through the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA). It was originally published in 1978 as a presentation by the Northrop Manager of F-5 Systems Integration. The hard copy is about 200 pages, or you can download it. Other aircraft design studies are available there too. Your video is excellent. You should follow this with a piece on the F-5E/F. Thoroughly enjoyed.

  • @sergioleone3583
    @sergioleone35834 ай бұрын

    The F-5 has been a favorite of mine since I was a kid and had a toy of it. Just a beautiful plane. As a grown up and also car guy (all my life gearhead) and owner of a Mazda Miata (first gen), I thought of the F-5 when I also had an Cadillac XLR for a few years. The XLR was also a great car (Vette with a Caddy engine and body) and handled really well, but the Miata was so precise, lightweight, and low cost of maintenance that I mentioned to a friend that the Miata to the XLR was like the F-5 to the F-15. Even found a great picture online of the F-5 and F-15 together from a USAF Red Flag operation (I think it was from one of those, not 100% sure). As always, THANK YOU for such an entertainingly informative video. Along with so many other planes I hope to see you cover some day (you've given some great attention to some long ignored but well deserving planes already), this one made me hope you may cover the A-37 Dragonfly some day. Cheers mate!

  • @BigDaddy-yp4mi

    @BigDaddy-yp4mi

    3 ай бұрын

    Your analogy on how civilian passenger vehicles handling compares to the handling of F-5 and an F-15. Except most dudes make analogies of stuff people have actually used or been through in order to come up with a universal standard. Nobody here has flown F-15's man. Neither have you. You're talking out your a$$

  • @stevenscoggins170
    @stevenscoggins1704 ай бұрын

    Maybe it has something to do with the T-38/F-5 siblings being my favorite aircraft, but thoroughly enjoyed this episode. After the Vietnam War, the Soviets tested the F-5 a d found it to be generally superior to the MiG-21 in most aspects other than top speed, of course.

  • @VikingTeddy

    @VikingTeddy

    4 ай бұрын

    I always thought that the Talon was just a modified F-5, and it seems to be a relatively common misconception. I was surprised to learn that it came first, and is a completely different aircraft.

  • @andrewhoffman8427
    @andrewhoffman84274 ай бұрын

    This is a top quality production and narration. After suffering through a dreadful Dark Skies segment with editing, identification, and factual mistakes, your channel is a welcome find.

  • @petesheppard1709
    @petesheppard17094 ай бұрын

    When I saw those N-105 'Fang' drawings, my first thought was 'FOD Hog'...

  • @geodkyt
    @geodkyt4 ай бұрын

    One of the primary reasons (albeit not one acknowledged officially) for the Skoshi Tiger program was to drive international sales. The thought was that export customers would think, "Why should we trust an American fighter that the Americans don't think is good enough to use?" This (along with massive subsidies for the F-16 export program) is also frequently mentioned as a major cause for the commercial failure of the F-5's intended successor - the F-20 Tigershark (which should have been a natural follow-on for F-5 operators looking to upgrade in the 1980s).

  • @gotanon9659

    @gotanon9659

    4 ай бұрын

    Except in reality one of the bigger main reason is its inferior performance compared to the F-16A as well as kinematically speaking it only exceeded to Viper in a very small part of the envelope

  • @RCAvhstape

    @RCAvhstape

    4 ай бұрын

    I remember clearly Chuck Yeager was employed by Northrop back then to sell the F-20, I think he was even on a magazine cover, or maybe a full page ad. He stated he didn't trust a naturally unstable aircraft that needed a computer fly-by-wire system like the F-16. While I love Maj Gen Yeager and he was certainly old school, that sounds like Northrop sales copy lol.

  • @Primus54
    @Primus543 ай бұрын

    The F-5 was a victim of Lockheed’s reputation and political influence. The F-104 was an amazing aircraft for setting performance records, time and cost to market, and very advanced features for the era. It also was difficult to fly, killed a lot of pilots, and never really lived up to the hype. One thing it did do, it shared many parts with the excellent U-2, which still flies today. It’s too bad the USAF Thunderbirds never transitioned to the F-5 from the F-100 instead of its very short-lived flirtation with the F-105 and the too big, heavy, and expensive F-4. The F-5 could have been the Thunderbirds’ version of the Blue Angels A-4s during the ‘70s and early ‘80s. While the T-38s were capable, they were smaller and less audibly thrilling than the F-5 would have been. Finally, the excellent F/A-18 Hornet owes much to the F-5’s development.

  • @ReviveHF
    @ReviveHF4 ай бұрын

    F-5 was the one that inspired many later designs such as F/A-18 and F-CK 1 Ching Kuo. The F-CK 1 Ching Kuo or Indeginous Defense Fighter is considered as F-16 derivative but it shared many features of the F-5 due to it's low fly away cost, high sortie rates, twin engine configuration, trapezoidal wings, huge LERX, upright canopy layout and excellent maneuverability. The F-CK1 project start out as Republic of China's attempt to redesign the F-5, after the procurement of F-16, F/A18 and F-5G(later renamed as F-20 Tigershark) was not approved by the US. As the F-CK1 project goes on, General Dynamics step in to assist, thus the subsequent prototype designs borrowed more elements from the F-16.

  • @minera7595

    @minera7595

    4 ай бұрын

    Today I learn that ROC made their own jet as well, thanks for sharing this insight

  • @stickiedmin6508

    @stickiedmin6508

    4 ай бұрын

    I've _always_ thought that the F-CK 1 looked *_exactly_* like an F-16 and an F-5 had a kid together...

  • @Menaceblue3

    @Menaceblue3

    4 ай бұрын

    *F-CK 1* sounds like a plane that tried to yell verbal obscenities towards you on the internet but was censored by Google

  • @RCAvhstape

    @RCAvhstape

    4 ай бұрын

    If you look closely at an F/A-18, especially the A-D versions, you can see the F-5 DNA in there. There's definitely a family resemblance.

  • @stickiedmin6508

    @stickiedmin6508

    4 ай бұрын

    ​@@Menaceblue3 It would be a *_really GREAT_* way of winning an argument, wouldn't it? Heroic aviator: "F-CK 1 you!" [whoosh!] [dakka-dakka-dakka!] [Kaboom!] Anonymous enemy "Oh noes! We were F-CK 1ed!"

  • @billycarpenter4740
    @billycarpenter47404 ай бұрын

    In 1968 dad was stationed at Chandler AFB (Phoenix, Arizona) as a jet engine mechanic on the T-38 ( F-5 two seater trainer). Most all were painted white, ocassionally we saw those painted in camoflauge. Always the best looking jet to me. Many pilots trained on these and then advanced on to F-4 Fantoms, and then on to Vietnam.

  • @ThePhoenix198

    @ThePhoenix198

    4 ай бұрын

    The video explains (at length) that the T-38 was NOT a two-seater derivative of the F-5, the latter of which weighed about twice as much and had a very different wing, to name but two differences.

  • @TSmith-ns45

    @TSmith-ns45

    3 ай бұрын

    As a T-38 instrument navigation instructor in 1968 (1963-1975) I can tell you that the avionics are vastly different. Later T-38 mods gave it a HUD, but still not a heavier F-5.

  • @MrHeuvaladao
    @MrHeuvaladao3 ай бұрын

    Although we have made use of aircrafts like AMX, A4, Mirage III and 2000-5, the F-5 has been the backbone of Brazil's Air Force for decades; went through lots of modernizations. Only now they are slowly being replaced by a large batch of Jas-39 Gripen NG. The Freedom Fighter really delivered what it promised: a capable low cost platform. Such a good jet.

  • @jona.scholt4362
    @jona.scholt43624 ай бұрын

    @1:00 Awesome footage flying between those mountains!

  • @WAL_DC-6B
    @WAL_DC-6B4 ай бұрын

    As a kid back in the 1960s I built the 1/48th scale, F-5 "Freedom Fighter," plastic model produced by the Hawk Model Co. It was a pretty good kit for its time.

  • @sorryociffer
    @sorryociffer4 ай бұрын

    The F-5E is still of the most beautiful aircraft ever made. So sleek and lean…Looks like it’s going Mach 2 standing still…

  • @EGLately
    @EGLately4 ай бұрын

    One of my favorite planes ever! Would've love to see the f20 get a chance but unfortunately that's like to never happen.

  • @BigDaddy-yp4mi

    @BigDaddy-yp4mi

    3 ай бұрын

    The F-20 was Chuck Yeager's favorite plane to fly. He lamented that had politics stayed out and performance and price where what mattered, then tons of mid to small countries could have afforded it, no ladders or special equipment was needed to do maintenance, and could be reloaded, refueled and re-racked with bombs in under 8 minutes. The world missed out on the Tiger.

  • @EGLately

    @EGLately

    3 ай бұрын

    @BigDaddy-yp4mi well said! I saw that it performed so well that veteran pilots where g locking which is what caused a lot of the accidents that got the program shut down.

  • @karlchilders5420
    @karlchilders54203 ай бұрын

    For everyone's knowledge - the EXPORT version was the "Freedom Fighter", the US military version was the "Tiger II".

  • @shaider1982

    @shaider1982

    7 күн бұрын

    Freedom fighter is the A version. E is the Tiger II

  • @RobertWilliams-us4kw
    @RobertWilliams-us4kw4 ай бұрын

    To the individual who is behind this fantastic and informative series 'Not A Pound For Air To Ground', I sincerely thank you for your time and effort. Like yourself, I too am an amateur aircraft historian and your 'Not A Pound For Air To Ground' series has brang me such pleasure and new and relevant information I was oblivious to!! Respect

  • @NoelCraigNI
    @NoelCraigNI4 ай бұрын

    I love that little aircraft but it grinds my gears the F-20 was cancelled. I'm sure there are good reasons why it was cancelled but even in 2024 I still manage to feel triggered over it.

  • @epichistorymaker1888
    @epichistorymaker18884 ай бұрын

    Fascinating seeing the lineage of the Hornet being carried by the F-5

  • @guaporeturns9472
    @guaporeturns94724 ай бұрын

    One of the best looking jet fighters ever.

  • @nateweter4012
    @nateweter40123 ай бұрын

    This was just flat out, an amazing video. Keep making videos.

  • @remylopez4821
    @remylopez48214 ай бұрын

    LOL At 23:58 when you mentioned more landing lights it reminded me of a story I was told when I was a crewchief in the USAF. The story goes a Canadian Air Force pilot was flying over the prairies when he looked down and saw a train so to have some fun he flew ahead a couple of miles then he reversed his course and descended to above the tracks and lowered his landing gear and turned on his landing light. Needless to say the train went into emergency, and as the pilot flew past, he caught a glimpse of one of the crewman, running down the side of the locomotive with a fist, and not all five fingers waving at him. the pilot that told me this story knew I was a train nut and a plain nut hope people get a kick out of this story I will not mention any names and that was way back in the 70s

  • @thekinginyellow1744

    @thekinginyellow1744

    7 сағат бұрын

    That was a total a-hole maneuver by the Canadian pilot. They should have made him pay for every wheel on the train that had to be replaced or reground due to flat spotting during the emergency braking.

  • @johnmarley6695
    @johnmarley66954 ай бұрын

    What a fantastic narrative. I’m in awe of your research: first into the Avon Sabre, and now this. Well played, that man!

  • @hckyplyr9285
    @hckyplyr92854 ай бұрын

    I may have picked a nit regarding the video title earlier but this is the best Cold War Era air combat channel on KZread. You do marvelous work thank you.

  • @RCAvhstape
    @RCAvhstape4 ай бұрын

    I am loving this channel more each week. I have long been a fan of 1960s era Cold War fighter jets.

  • @AndrewGivens
    @AndrewGivens4 ай бұрын

    This script's callback at the end was lovely. Take a bow. Thank you so much for another quality production.

  • @Jimmystyles936
    @Jimmystyles9364 ай бұрын

    I love your content. The way you present it sets you apart from others. So good. Also, the F5 looks like a real fighter jet, the way a kid would see one. Sharpe and pointy and meaning business.

  • @ceremyjlarkson9475
    @ceremyjlarkson94754 ай бұрын

    Very excellent video. I've spent a lot of time learning about the little tigers, and this video did a great job on the early variants. I would certainly enjoy a video on the later models and even the F-20.

  • @louisgiokas2206
    @louisgiokas22063 ай бұрын

    I first saw a F-5 in person as a kid in 1965. It was at Westover AFB in Massachusetts which was near to where my father grew up. We would go to the Springfield area often from our home in the Washington, DC area. The event where we saw the F-5 at was an open house, and an example of just about everything the USAF had, from the F-5 to the B-52 (which my father did some design work on in his work at an Army weapons lab). It was cool. We were also given a slick publication with a description of the entire USAF inventory. I believe I still have it somewhere.

  • @skykeg4978
    @skykeg49784 ай бұрын

    Just when one might believe that there is little room for improvement from this channel, it does with even better content and subject matter from the previous episode. With the world seemingly in turmoil, it`s a welcomed change to sit back and enjoy another brilliant presentation from Not a Pound for Air to Ground!!!!! Many thanks to everyone involved!!!!

  • @theafro
    @theafro4 ай бұрын

    The F5 is a favourite of mine, Far less flashy than her contemporaries, but still excelling at the job. And a looker too!

  • @mikerodriquez2348
    @mikerodriquez23484 ай бұрын

    Killing it bro. Thank you for the great content

  • @leroyabernathy9934
    @leroyabernathy99343 ай бұрын

    These are simply the best aircraft video presentations on aircraft available, being much like an overall briefing on the given aircraft and both its friendly and enemy competitors.The narrators' scope of knowledge, voice, style and subdued humor make them superior to that of other presenters. - Bravo

  • @davidryall-flanders6353
    @davidryall-flanders63534 ай бұрын

    Thanks for the video. Great motivation for getting the AFV F-5E out of the stash and onto the model bench.😊

  • @callenclarke371
    @callenclarke3714 ай бұрын

    This is the best piece I've found on the F-5 on KZread. Great last line.

  • @morganevans3770
    @morganevans37704 ай бұрын

    So glad I found your channel. Your voice is awesome and I like your commentary too follow some facts. Thanks for making videos that are longer than the "optimized" length for revenue.

  • @FirstDagger
    @FirstDagger4 ай бұрын

    Awesome work. Can't wait for the eventual F-5E and F-20 (aka F-5G) videos, and the eventual comparison to F-16.

  • @malcolmlewis5860
    @malcolmlewis58604 ай бұрын

    You so great content. I always learn something important and new to me from you.

  • @erictaylor5462
    @erictaylor54624 ай бұрын

    The F-5 looked like a 1970's or 1980's fighter plane. It was sleek and clean and as a kid I didn't know it existed before model kits for the F-20 came out. I thought the F-20 was an really beautiful airplane and I was shocked it was based on a much older design. I think I had 3 or 4 model kits of this plane. I just loved it.

  • @whos1st
    @whos1st4 ай бұрын

    Love the work you do on your channel.

  • @notapound

    @notapound

    4 ай бұрын

    Thank you! Really appreciate the kind words!

  • @IsaacKuo
    @IsaacKuo4 ай бұрын

    Thanks so much for this cool documentary! The F-5 is so interesting and distinctive.

  • @majorbloodnok6659
    @majorbloodnok66594 ай бұрын

    Thank you, I thoroughly enjoyed this video.

  • @jaimenavarro2198
    @jaimenavarro21984 ай бұрын

    Back in the mid 80´s the Fuerza Aérea Mexicana FAM (Mexican Air Force) recived 12 F-5 (Two of those two seater trainers). Atrittion and tear and wear took its toll and only two or three are still in flying conditiion and are seen on the Mexico City sky as part of the traditional air parade on Independance Day (Sep 16th)

  • @scootergeorge7089
    @scootergeorge70894 ай бұрын

    The USN reserves still fly the F-5. VFC-13 at NAS Fallon NV. I left "Saint Adversary" in 1991 when the squadron was still at NAS Miramar flying the A-4F and TA-4J.

  • @Godvana_
    @Godvana_4 ай бұрын

    There's a typo in your title, should be built instead of build

  • @ahuels67

    @ahuels67

    4 ай бұрын

    Maybe not tho???

  • @ahuels67

    @ahuels67

    4 ай бұрын

    Ok ya nevermind, it is wrong

  • @albow4oops5

    @albow4oops5

    4 ай бұрын

    Sorry, mom.😁

  • @crispay8304

    @crispay8304

    4 ай бұрын

    🤓🤓🤓🤓

  • @stickiedmin6508

    @stickiedmin6508

    4 ай бұрын

    ​@@albow4oops5 You don't think professionalism is important?

  • @lynx-alpha2073
    @lynx-alpha20734 ай бұрын

    damn i love this channel, such good content on such underrated topics

  • @jonathanhudak2059
    @jonathanhudak20594 ай бұрын

    Always have been a fan of the F-5 after them in a book I had on military airplanes as a kid in the early 1980s. Thank you so much for this video!

  • @brealistic3542
    @brealistic3542Күн бұрын

    Very good video. Very detailed, thanks for making it.

  • @richardmartin8998
    @richardmartin89984 ай бұрын

    The F-5 was woefully under developed. It needed a radar and a BVR missile. Unfortunately this was the 1960s, and the only BVR missile was the AIM-7 and the radars needed to fire it really required a second crewman. It really was the F-18 and F-16 prototype minus the true multirole capability. As a result the Mirage III was probably the west's best fighter of the period after the F-4.

  • @SoloRenegade

    @SoloRenegade

    4 ай бұрын

    F-20 with AESA...

  • @gotanon9659

    @gotanon9659

    4 ай бұрын

    ​@@SoloRenegade Woefully short detection range due to its small size and wouldnt have appeared until the early 2000's

  • @SoloRenegade

    @SoloRenegade

    4 ай бұрын

    @@gotanon9659 just like the F-16 then. What's your point?

  • @xmeda
    @xmeda4 ай бұрын

    This plane is perfect plane for most countries that only need few planes for performing airpolicing over civillian air transport and doing regular patrols over border. It just needs avionics upgrade to current standards and it can serve for many decades to come. Not everybody needs heavy expensive things like F16, F35 or Eurofighter.

  • @minera7595

    @minera7595

    4 ай бұрын

    This is just an educated guess, but one of the problems holding us from using them instead of more recent airframes is probably the lack of spare parts, I could be wrong though

  • @alexturnbackthearmy1907

    @alexturnbackthearmy1907

    4 ай бұрын

    @@minera7595 And also presence of more affordable options (resurrecting their production will not be cheap), like good`ol migs (21 and 23), mirages or whatever is still left from 70`s.

  • @exidy-yt

    @exidy-yt

    4 ай бұрын

    One word. Tigershark.

  • @gerhardris
    @gerhardris4 ай бұрын

    Excellent video thanks! The Dutch was the NF5a and b two seater. It was deemed that pilots needed much more training before transferring to F104G Starfighters. Indeed, as you correctly state imo NATO could use much more little Tigers as the war in Ukraine again proves. The Fiat G95 was also one to put on the list for cheap well built with a high sortie rate. Fokker devised the chines BTW. The Duth also wanted a much stronger front window against bird strike. And fitted chaff dispersors to the rear. 43:28

  • @g.h.9117
    @g.h.91174 ай бұрын

    Fantastic airplane! As a T38 guy I always wanted to take that bird up! I wished the Tigershark F20 would have been developed too. Beautiful aerodynamic aircraft. They just didn't have long legs or extra hard points for hanging more weapons compared with tge newer F16 and F15s..

  • @jpk112
    @jpk1123 ай бұрын

    Excellent video, well done.

  • @michaelhilborn4204
    @michaelhilborn42044 ай бұрын

    The F-5 ultimately morphed into the F-18 Hornet, an underrated airplane that is still capable and relevant today.

  • @seumasnatuaighe
    @seumasnatuaigheАй бұрын

    An exceptionally good video. Well worth the time. I like aircraft like the F5, the OV10 and the Hughes 500D helicopter. They are rugged, multi-role platforms which performed as advertised

  • @ianboys1000
    @ianboys10004 ай бұрын

    Excellent video

  • @angelrr3201
    @angelrr32014 ай бұрын

    Great video, as always. Im waiting for the Misteré aircraft series

  • @SimonWallwork
    @SimonWallwork4 ай бұрын

    Saw eight Canadian CF-116s at Prestwick, back in 1985. Wish I'd had a camera.

  • @halldak1119
    @halldak11194 ай бұрын

    My favorite fighter jet! I'm excited to see what you have to say about it.

  • @aaronsanborn4291
    @aaronsanborn42914 ай бұрын

    The next step after the F-5E was the F-20 Tigershark which was basically sabotaged by bribes so never went into production even though it was a fraction of the cost of the F-16s

  • @Favk21
    @Favk213 ай бұрын

    This is one them fighters whose reason for existence I never quite understood. This video gave all the answers. Thanks!

  • @RCAvhstape
    @RCAvhstape4 ай бұрын

    14:47 My dad served aboard USS Shangri-La and always talked about the Skyhawks. No way to tell, but possibly he was aboard the ship when this photo was taken.

  • @kevincaselle3174
    @kevincaselle31744 ай бұрын

    great stuff here, well done!

  • @therocinante3443
    @therocinante34434 ай бұрын

    I've always thought the F-5 was one of the sexiest jets ever made. I really wish the F-20 Tigershark came to be, just to look at it.

  • @jb6027
    @jb60274 ай бұрын

    A most excellent video! I hope that there's a similar F-80 Shooting Star video. No one has done a decent P-80/F-80 yet, and those few F-80 videos out there spend most of their time on the T-33.

  • @chally2mbt12
    @chally2mbt124 ай бұрын

    please do a video on the F-14 and its entry to service

  • @RyeOnHam
    @RyeOnHam4 ай бұрын

    Was hoping for a bit on the F-5E and F-20. Maybe the YF-17 as well. My father was a huge proponent of the F-20 having worked on the radar? IIRC. The F-16 is a passable aircraft, especially the F-16XL, but in my opinion, the F-20 would have been, by far, the better choice for an air defense fighter.

  • @infernosgaming8942
    @infernosgaming89422 ай бұрын

    F-5 is such a beautifully-simple aircraft. Small, nimble, and its got those old crispy 50s-era cuts and welds. I had the pleasure of working right next to an airbase that sortied them a lot, even had one buzz me as I was driving a truck in front of the landing strip. You can always tell them apart from F-16s when they're front on and then passing by the electric buzzing sound in the turbines I think.

  • @user-je5do6jn2f
    @user-je5do6jn2f4 ай бұрын

    I like the F-20 Tigershark because I loved Area 88/U.N. Squadron as a kid.

  • @gregshell9273
    @gregshell92734 ай бұрын

    Best video yet!

  • @jspriver
    @jspriver4 ай бұрын

    Can’t wait to watch this installment

  • @terryboehler5752
    @terryboehler57524 ай бұрын

    Really Great presentation

  • @AT-ni4sf
    @AT-ni4sf4 ай бұрын

    Always loved the F 5 and really enjoyed this episode👍I am danish and when our air force in late 60s where looking for an F- 100 replacement, the contenders were the Mirage 3, SAAB Draken and the F 5. My country choose the Draken ( Sweden promised to let us win in football if we bought their Drakens --- they lied😄) but I think the F 5 would have been a better choice. And speaking of Draken....why not not do an episode about this double delta?

  • @xxGravyBabyxx
    @xxGravyBabyxx4 ай бұрын

    I discovered the SU-15 yesterday and my first thought was how striking similar the SU-15 looks like the F-5 tiger.

  • @patrickunderwood5662

    @patrickunderwood5662

    4 ай бұрын

    Su-15 is HUGE compared to the F-5 but yes, there is a resemblance. Same thing with the Su-9 and MiG-21-they look very similar but the Su-9 is much larger than the MiG. What struck me was how the N-102 concept looked like a combination of MiG-21 and F-16.

  • @johncook3265
    @johncook32654 ай бұрын

    Love your videos

  • @ThePhoenix198
    @ThePhoenix1984 ай бұрын

    Brave use of the NATO reporting name for the MiG-15 at around 0:20 ! To me as a Brit it simply means a meat-ball, usually served with a rich, thick gravy. But to others ...

  • @MatthewDoye
    @MatthewDoye4 ай бұрын

    Re F-5 in south east Asia it was clearly respected enough by its opponents that they chose to keep clear. The only way I could see it operating in the air superiority role would be as part of a 2+2 package with Phantoms. Yes, we could do with a bit of Tiger however western style air forces hate buying other than the shiniest, most expensive combat aircraft except for the CAS role where they propose bolting guns and bombs to either Mach 2 fighters or crop dusters. In a sensible world we'd all be buying Gripen to supplement our headline aircraft.

  • @GrizzAxxemann
    @GrizzAxxemannАй бұрын

    A friend of mine was was an Ordie on the CF-116 when he was in the military. He even worked briefly as a contractor to teach the Botswanans how to load CRV-7s on the planes they bought after the CF retired them.

  • @f87max30
    @f87max304 ай бұрын

    Working as a consultant on the N 156 program was Edgar Schmued, the famous P 51 Mustang designer.

  • @maciek_k.cichon
    @maciek_k.cichon4 ай бұрын

    For those wondering about sledge at 19:09 look up "F-5 towing a sledge funny scene video 336 sqn RNoAF". It's just a taxing precedure gone fun.

  • @tomdis8637
    @tomdis86374 ай бұрын

    F-5 - one of four great fighters our Air Force geniuses passed on. The other three? F-20 Tigershark, F-16XL, YF-23. Am I right, or what? 😂

  • @peteranson1327
    @peteranson13274 ай бұрын

    Would the title make more sense if 'build' was changed to 'built'? Love your videos btw

  • @amdg2023
    @amdg20236 күн бұрын

    Best looking fighter from an art standpoint, great lines, a classic.

  • @ElGringo21
    @ElGringo214 ай бұрын

    Great video, Another video idea could be the 1982 Bekaa Valley air war.

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