F-104J Starfighter - Kinetic 1/48 - Showcase
There aren’t too many planes as iconic and recognisable as the Starfighter. It’s sleek, dart like shape just looks fast! As a modelling subject we are truly spoilt for choice when it comes time to paint our F104s. The aircraft saw service with numerous countries and wore so many interesting schemes, it can often be difficult to settle on the one you like the best.
I haven’t done a lot of aircraft modelling, and what I have built is generally WW2 subjects. As an armour modeller I have always been intimidated with painting a natural metal finish. Something about the unforgiving nature of that high sheen finish that made me quake in my boots. I’d dabbled with the dark art of Natural Metal Finish (NMF) on a couple of 1/72 subjects, but there was something a little more satisfying about the idea of working on a larger canvas. The metal finish was something I have always wanted to attempt at this scale, so with the release of the Kinetic F-104J, now seemed as good a time as ever to give it a go.
A Brief History
The F-104 Starfighter is a Cold War, single engine, supersonic interceptor aircraft developed by the Lockheed corporation through the late 50s early 60’s period. The aircraft was developed as an all-weather, multirole weapon and as was extensively deployed as a fighter-bomber during that period.
After lessons learnt from the War in Korea, aircraft designers were given the brief to design something simple and lightweight with the ability to climb fast and reach maximum altitudes. Early 1954 saw the initial test flight of the prototype and by 1958 the fighter was introduced into service by the USAF. The F-104’s greatest claim to fame was during the Vietnam War where it flew over 5000 combat sorties. The plane would soon be overlooked by the USAF in favour of other aircraft with greater ranges and payloads.
The Starfighter however found a little more notoriety with other NATO and allied nations. In late 1958, West Germany selected the F-104 as its primary fighter aircraft. Canada soon followed, along with Belgium, Japan, the Netherlands, and Italy. In all, the Starfighter would see service with fifteen air forces around the Globe. Unfortunately, its poor safety record, especially with the Luftwaffe, brought the Starfighters safety record into question and it gained the unenviable nickname of the ‘Widow maker”.
The iconic design of the Starfighter with its small wings set far back on the fuselage provided excellent supersonic and high-speed performance. The downside to that was its poor turning capability and the high speeds it required for landing.
The F-104 was the first production aircraft to achieve Mach 2, and the first aircraft to reach an altitude of 100,000 feet (30,000 m) after taking off under its own power. It also smashed records for airspeed, altitude, and time-to-climb. It became the first aircraft to hold all three records simultaneously.
The aircraft evolved to see a number of upgrades and modifications to suit each users needs. The Kinetic kit I am building represents the F-104J. The F-104J was a specialized interceptor version of the F-104G for the Japanese ASDF, built under license by Mitsubishi.
The 104J was built for the air-superiority role and was generally armed with cannon and four Sidewinders. A total of 210 F-104Js were built.
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