F-5E Tiger II / USAF Airplane Model

F-5E Tiger II / USAF Airplane ModelThe Northrop F 5 is a lightweight, easy to fly, simple to maintain, and (relatively) cheap supersonic fighter. In configuration the F 5 is a low wing monoplane equipped with an all moving horizontal tall mounted in the low position, the fuselage is carefully contoured in accordance with the transonic area rule. Small side mounted inlets supply air for the two General Electric J85 afterburning turbojet engines. The 4. 8 percent thick wing has 24

The Northrop F-5 is a lightweight, easy-to-fly, simple-to-maintain, and (relatively) cheap supersonic fighter. In configuration the F-5 is a low-wing monoplane equipped with an all-moving horizontal tall mounted in the low position, the fuselage is carefully contoured in accordance with the transonic area rule. Small side-mounted inlets supply air for the two General Electric J85 afterburning turbojet engines. The 4.8-percent-thick wing has 24 sweepback at the quarter chord line. The wing trailing edge is nearly straight, giving a trapezoidal shape to the planform. Lateral control is provided by small ailerons located near midsemispan, single-slotted high-lift flaps extend from the inboard end of the ailerons to the sides of the fuselage. Leading-edge flaps are used to improve maneuvering performance. (These flaps are not incorporated in the wings of the T-38.) Speed brakes are mounted on the bottom of the fuselage. Turning performance is enhanced by an aileron-rudder interconnect system, and handling characteristics are improved by artificial damping about the pitch and yaw axes. The F-5 is reported to have good handling characteristics and, in contrast with the F-4, does not have a propensity for entering unintentional spins.

It was utilized by the USAF during the Vietnam War in a strike fighter role. It soon became very popular with other nations and still flies with many foriegn air arms.

Mahogany Wood. Scale: 1/40. Wingspan 8 1/4 inches, Length 14 1/2 inches.