Last days of F-104 Starfighter - Italian Air Force

[LimboBeaver]

This is my religion !

[mytmousemalibu]

Fantastic video!

[fastwallypower]

people this plane was made during the cold war.its main fuction was to intersept russan bomber and shoot them down.this plane time to climb rate was sea level to 48.000 feet in one minute and it was fast.but when the wisdom of our military put bombs on it and told our pilots to do low level bombing runs.thats when lives were lost. most poeple incharge are ASSHOLES!!

[justforever96]

2:07....now, that's a pretty cool shot! One thing no one can deny about the Starfighter...it's one HELL of a good lookin' plane! I did always think it looked a bit odd without the wingtip tanks installed (like the black-and-yellow machine at 2:30), although it's not so bad if the Sidewinders are in place. When the wings are bare, they just look odd...way too small for the fuselage. I notice that that plane has a greyhound on the intake...that's "Veltro", right? Like the WWII Macchi C.205?

[harrytheduck]

5 stormo-23 gruppo kicked ass...I had a base-visit at Rimini AB in 1992 and in 1994...in 1992 Majore Bianci (ret) showed me proudly his F104ASA ( MM6722) ...Greetings to you Majore!

[tonpao104]

vedere il " 104" in queste ultime immagini che se ne va per sempre mi da molta tristezza , credo sia stato l' aereo più amato da tutti , piloti e appassionati , di tutti i tempi addio purosangue sei stato il più grande

[Daytonaman675]

The 104 was a rocket not a glider. Look at those wings man!

[TakumiFujiwara80]

As an acrobatic airplane the f104 doesn't need smoke generator ...The J79 make a lot of smoke :D

[Januacaeli]

Che aerei...l'immagine stessa dell'operatività, della guerra fredda, board patrolling, del widow maker...insomma un aereoplanone che rimane fisso nella memoria...l'immgine stessa dell' AM.

[CapKorzeniowski]

Wow! that 'last day' was not a day too soon. RDAF retired their F-104s in 1986!

[f15junkie1]

wow thats the most ive ever seen at once

[Hvnscent]

In service all this time, the log books must outweigh the planes.

[justforever96]

@Hvnscent Maybe so, but there are older planes still in service out there! Mig-15's and -17's are still being used in China, last I knew...although I think some of them are newer-built ones. I guess the thing is that many of the countries flying planes that old probably aren't all that good at keeping logbooks! In any case, I never cease to be amazed at how long an airplane can be made to last....a lot longer than the average car, but that's probably because they get much better maintanence!

[NickB1967]

Was it finally retired from service in 2005?

[cyberarmy007]

The Italian Air Force was the last remaining Starfighter operator, retiring the last of its fleet in 2004.

[squadman33]

A rocket with a seat...

[blackadderthe4]

was this not named the "Widow maker" because of all the crashes it had?

[DumpBeezz]

Yes.  A big part that had more to do with the role it was used in. It went from being a very fast high altitude interceptor to a very fast low altitude strike/recon fighter. In the weather conditions and built up areas of Northern Europe you didn't get a second chance if you screwed up.

[stuvucsiz]

l' F-104 avrà sicuramente un gran fascino, è un aereo interessante senza dubbio, ma diciamolo, hanno messo un motore, un seggiolino e una cloche in fila e li hanno rivestiti... Resta comunque il mio aereo preferito

[pliedas]

bravo...well done...excellent video and great music

[colnerone]

sono il nipote del Tenente Pilota Claudio Bernardini del 102 gruppo - 5 Stormo

( deceduto ) in volo mentre era in formzione per la festa della Repubblica. "Lo Spillone" come era chiamato dai piloti, mi rimarrà sempre nel CUORE, ma soprattutto mi rimarrà il secondo suo nome( più appropriato):

la bara Volante!

Per tutti i caduti : ......LEVAI IN ALTO LA MANO E SENTII IL VOLTO DI DIO.

Ciao Zio! Ale.

[moonrecal]

ho conosciuto un pilota di 104 che poi ha volato nel 339 e ora è nel civile e a sentirlo parlare del 104 sembrava parlasse di una persona.appunto le emozioni che dava il 104 penso poche macchine le abbiano date.un velivolo da mach 2.2 con elettronica nulla se non inesistente (eccezione per l'asa M)in cui tutto era gestito meccanicamente e voi lo chiamate "ferro" gente di poco conto siete

[steliobruno]

Certo ha il suo fascino, mio padre ci ha lavorato per anni su quella macchina e lo adorava... obiettivamente dal punto di vista militare è obsoleto da decenni, in parole povere non serviva più ad un gran chè, ma noi italiani siamo romantici.

Peccato che non si possa creare un piccolo display team da far esibire nelle manifestazioni come in america...

[THEOBAMASTORE]

F15E

[gsrkn]

it's coffin aircraft :)))

[NanoSbarellato]

F 104,la bara volante...quanti ne sono caduti!

Solo l'italia poteva farne il suo aereo di riferimento...

[gianpaolo77]

anche i tedeschi lo hanno usato per molti anni insieme al phantom come caccia di riferimento....in germania lo chiamavono il "witwenmacher" ...che significa nientaltro che il creatore di vedove.....

[h4ppyb0y74]

Oddio......era ora che le forze armate di un paese europeo che ha ambizione di contare qualcosa nella scena internazionale, si dotassero di macchine un attimino più performanti (Tipo F 16, che ad oggi non è proprio una novità!) di un ferro concepito nel '57!

[ItaliaUnita]

orgoglio dell´aeronautica militare italiana! Un pilastro nella nostra storia tanto quanto i panavia tornado!da cui fra poco purtroppo dovro separarmi per passare al typhoon eurofighter!

[ABTUB]

Why is that Starfighter have short wing?

[superlukko]

Mi viene da piangere.......... W l'F104!!!!!!!!

[hefalump11]

Nice video. I think Mig-21 is more beautiful.

[usm7j]

Fantastic Video & Music. My dad was a Zipper Pilot in the 60's. Absolutely loved that plane. It was the type of A/C that demanded total concentration but would reward the pilot (not driver) with some outrageous performance. Dad told me the story about how he and another 104 waxed 4 F-4's over the Arizona Desert. Knowing the old man, he probably understated the whole story.

[globenavigator]

Probably the most beautiful designed jet...

[Z12IT]

Grazie Spillone! Continua a proteggere i nostri cieli per sempre!

Per Aspera ad Astram!

[TRASUPO]

One of the best clips of a star fighter To bad Lockheed never had a predasesor it was desighned for high speed high altitude interceptor during the cold war.

[jurgenmanfred]

pure trust

[jurgenmanfred]

let me touch one

[wpsracing108]

poetry in motion - theres just something so captivating about early jet fighters...so much cooler than the new ones.

[viperBSG]

What did the Italian Air Force replace them with?

[TheAviator48151623]

With the Eurofighter Typhoon

[viperBSG]

WOW! What a replacement!!Not the F/A-22 Raptor.But a heck of an awesome plane.I'll mis the Century fighters.they where magnificent.

[hammer910]

veramente bello (il video), veramente toccante il contesto, l'aereo, tutto ciò che ha rappresentato

[skinbackyourpeel]

Beautiful Plane, 'missile with a man in it', nice music too!

[nickfastswim]

one of the most beautiful airplanes!!

[selby06]

yeah, but too bad it didn't handle as well as it looked. very demanding, unforgiving plane, and not very maneuverable. fast, though, around mach 2

[texasfathead]

selby06 A USAF study of the accident rate of all the Century Series fighters over 750,000 flying hours showed that the F-100 Super Sabre led the table with an accident rate over double that of the F-104,the F-104 was about the same as the F-102 Delta Dagger.Also the F-104 was not that fast. And it was a good handling plane.

[miciovi]

quanta nostalgia, ero a Pratica a Salutarlo, piansi........ ci ho volato tanto... quanto tempo ...

[albythebest87]

chi sei in particolare? io sono figlio di un pilota di f 104 villafranca 28 le streghe

[jollyrogers5]

ora guida gli efa?? dev'essere proprio bello è ??...

[albythebest87]

non ancora gli efa...forse tra qualche anno

[TIXIVS]

Gli EFA sono in servizio da quattro anni.....

[StealthCloudNinja]

Such a beautiful video of this aircraft. What an awsome feeling it must have to fly one of these birds.

[Folgore1960]

3° Stormo di Villafranca... 1983...Quanta nostalgia....mi sembra di sentire ancora il sibilo dei decolli in coppia.....

[brunez90]

The F104 is a legend in italian military aviation

[eternal4ever]

beautiful jet.

it's one of my favorites.

[RubenCraninx]

Why do they call it an aircraft More like a controled missle

[Chuckjagermeister]

I think the tales of the '104 being a "widow maker" are a bit exagerated. I have heard and seen that it is a stable and powerful and SAFE airplane as long as the speed was kept up (^250 knots clean and ^200 knots with flaps and gear). This was a plane that did not like to go slow. Especially at low altitude. Actually, with its small wing area it liked flying at low level and high speed and it's low profile and stubby wings made for a rather smooth ride even in hot, wet bumpy air.

[cmtecarvalho]

You told everything! :)

[justforever96]

@Chuckjagermeister All true. The F-104 wasn't a "Widow maker" because it was a bad plane, it was just absolutely unforgiving while taking off and landing, and the high speeds made it essential to pay attention out the window while at low level. Most of the Luftwaffes losses were from pilots getting distracted and flying into the ground, or on takeoff/landing. They went from subsonic jets to THIS...a pretty big jump. So it WAS a dangerous plane, but only if the pilot couldn't "hack it".

[justforever96]

@Chuckjagermeister Which was faster at low level? The F-104 or the F-101? The F-101 was faster than an F-4 Phantom at low level, even though the F-4 had far more thrust and was faster at altitude...I guess because the F-4 was a big and draggy plane. But it seems like an F-104 would be at least competitive with the F-101, even though it only has a single engine. Like the F-4, it's Mach 2+ at high level while the F-101 is Mach 1.7, yet the F-104 is also far sleeker than the F-4.

[Chuckjagermeister]

@justforever96 I'd think the F-104 because of it's slickness and smaller wing area.. ? Generally, the more the wing area the rougher the ride and harder to control at low level high speed. For example the F-102/106 would be a wild and bumpy ride at low level high speed.

[justforever96]

@Chuckjagermeister Oh, I know how the wing area affects the ride at low level, I just thought maybe you had an exact number. Both the F-101 and the F-104 are damn cool planes, anyway. Well...most of the "Century Series" were, to be honest. But somehow the F-104 is the one I'd like to fly in the most, personally.

[rarebear14]

I remember when I saw the first F104 in 1960 on the afb Soesterberg Netherlands, amazing that the 104 soldiered on till the nineties ! absolutely a thouroughbred plane, really hot and dangerous, the 104 did not allow for any pilot error. Even now it can outclimb the F16 and F18 !!! it could go up to mach 2.2... killed many of its pilots though.. mainly because NATO used it for low flying missions for which it was not designed !

[backtothegrave]

the "spillone"...

really an osolete fighter... glad regia aeronautica sobstituded it...

alas they chose third-hand F-16... really worn-out planes, maybe they'd better waited till EFA was ready! at least F-104 had a real short scramble time and a good climb rate. a good interceptor if it wasn't for its obsolete electronics (and the fact the F-104 was developed in mid '50s!!!)

[AndrejTupolev]

please do not call it "Regia Aeronautica", after the war we voted for the republic and the "king" ran away (as he had already done before...). From 1946 it's called the "Aeronautica Militare Italiana" (AMI). thanx

[buzzardbx]

Great video of an awesome aircraft - thanks!!

[center4ants]

missile with a man in it...the USAF sadly didn't really appreciate this plane

[dguy812]

This video emphasizes the eligance of the F104. Even though it had its problems its still one of the best in my opinion.

[floris80]

beautiful

[sardosfishh]

i live near this airport,in Latina(pratica di mare airport),30 miles from Rome.There are many f 104 for sale(without engine)in my country for monument for example.3 or 4 f 104 are flying for airshows,the aeronautica militare italiana use f 104 made under licence by fiat (1970 on)

[kittytech]

Hello there,

I am looking for an F-104 for display. Do you have any contact information where to get a fuselage ?

thanks in advance and ciao

Carsten

[j33716]

Rick Svetkoff has 3 or 4 of these. At least 2 running in shows but more in the shop. Fuselage, engines, etc.

Clearwater, FL (PIE)

[backtothegrave]

well... now i see why in my region (romagna) are appering several aviation monuments made up of old planes... i've seen a couple of macchi, and they told me of a couple of F-104 too... lol

[planeguy51]

Was there ever a jet with such breathtaking performance?

Mama Mia, what a fighter!!!!

[tambarum]

Excellent Vid.I didn't work with Italian 104's but did work many times with The German version.I think The Italian version was the 's' and probably the last Squadrons flying them.

There is a Movie with some brill shots of The Starfighter-not a brill movie but if you like The 104 it is worth a watch.BLUE TORNADO starring Dirk Benedict.

Thankyou for the Vid!!

[schaffy349]

The most beautiful fighter jet ever,I had a backseat flight in 1977, unforgettable!!!

[cmtecarvalho]

WOW, please, could you describe your flight for us???

[macacaraca]

I can't get enough of this plane... It's always been a favourite of mine. Hope a couple of rich enthusiasts can keep em flying for air shows and whatnot.

[tyskii]

neat

[PAINTANK]

What a sexy jet. Holy shit man I want one. Very nice video. mI love the F-104.

[cmtecarvalho]

Please, anyone who know details about the video soundtrack (even a single music only) please post it here! And no, i'm not talking about the General Electric J79 turbojet engine that "kicks the pilot's ass"...