Classic 60s-era Northrop F-5 Influenced F-15, F/A-18 & Even F-22

The Pentagon and Northrop Grumman upgraded a 1960s-era fighter to counter the Soviet MiG-21 in the early 70s, building a new variant of the Northrop F-5 with more powerful engines, a larger airframe, and increased wing area to enable more maneuverability.

Making the F-5 Fly

The F-5 began as a Northrop project in the 1950s to build a supersonic, light fighter platform designed to be high-thrust, small, highly aerodynamic, and lower cost than other platforms at the time such as the F-4 Phantom II.

A lower-cost aircraft, if produced in sufficient quantities, can significantly improve the value of exporting a platform. This was the case with the F-5, which began as an internal private Northrop venture and then evolved into a critical Pentagon program to provide fighters to critical U.S. allies.

The initial concept for the aircraft was to engineer a lightweight, high-speed air fighter, yet the aircraft also demonstrated the ability to operate against ground forces.

Following the initial development of the F-5, Northrop later won the International Fighter Aircraft contract to engineer a follow-on aircraft that would advance the capability into a new era with improved air-to-air performance.

The intent was to ensure the lightweight, high-speed fighter could compete with the evolving Soviet MiG-21, which at the time was increasingly exported around the world.

The result of the effort was what became the F-5E and upgraded F-5E Tiger II, aircraft with more fuel capacity, air-to-air refueling, air-to-air and air-to-ground ability, improved avionics, and air-to-air radar. The aircraft is still operated by U.S. allies and in service as a trainer with the U.S. military.