Philippines Air Force Northrop F-5A Freedom Fighter
I have always loved the lines of the Northrop F-5A. Sleek and elegant with that great area-ruled fuselage, it is a real classic. This model is the one that was built concurrent with my Iraqi MiG-21MF. The kit is the ancient Testors (ex-Hawk?) 1/48 F5-A. It's not much of a build but I've always loved the look of this series and all the variants. One of the nice pilots I met at the Rockdale airport told me he had trained in the T-38 and said how much he had enjoyed it...he said, "hey, they're still using it today so something must be right!" π
This model was built back about 1992 (back when I was working a kit almost everyday). I'd love to build at that pace again; perhaps the muse will strike again soon. Heaven knows I have a huge backlog to work with! The paint was Floquil Bright Silver and the decals came with the kit. I used the pilot figure to take up space in the oh-so sparse cockpit. It's another model that had never been photographed until I hauled it, along with five others, over to Rockdale back in August. It was a beautiful day, although the wind did get a bit gusty but that wasn't a problem with the amount of ballast stuck in the nose of this one! Oh, you might note that it is missing one of its 20mm nose cannons. Oh well. Que sera sera! Thanks for taking a look, comments are always welcome... but you all knew that. π
Gary
12 additional images. Click to enlarge.
That cranky old kit looks pretty darn nice with "some modeling skill" applied.
Once again, nicely photographed and presented. Nice work.
Very nice indeed. Also like that sleek profile. You did a good job on this one!
A nice build of an ancient kit, well done. The presentation of your build is
impressive, i hope your inspiration is back soon.
I am still waiting for another F-5 build here on iModeler and hope that the South African postal service will return to work in this century π
Haha Bernd. Not in this millenium. When it comes to striking South Africa surely beats the rest of the world hands down! π At least the strike is nearing an end after 3 months. Imagine where my F-5 is under all that pile of mail!
Yes a great looking model, well presented.
Fantastic Gary! Great photography once again! They look like they are the real thing!
what a beauty...love that national insignia
Great build Gary, nice pics too.
Well done sir.
Thanks to all of you! My dad used to have an expression, "even a blind hog finds an acorn now and then." Most of the time I feel like that "blind hog", lol. Sometimes though, I get lucky and do find an acorn. I appreciate the compliments of you wonderfully skilled modelers so much. It is great validation for me and really does inspire me to get off my butt and finish some more planes. I do have many other completed builds that haven't "seen the light of day". Hopefully, I will have some more trips to the airport soon. Sincere thanks again, Gary
Oh we're not done with you yet Gary! What a great looking aircraft. There is something about natural lighting and some very nice photos.
Really, Really, nice Gary.
California Steve
You're right Steve, there's nothing like natural light, and the "natural" surroundings of an airport! I've never been able to get any good pics inside. I'm fortunate to live just 4 or 5 minutes from our little airport here in Cameron; and they have finished a large new hangar out there that should make for a nice backdrop. Thanks for your wonderful comments!
Again, this model has held up well and stood the test of time, and the photography is outstanding.
Thank you George! I really appreciate that!
Gary
Great looking F-5 Gary, the Philippine Air Force markings really make it standout.
Thank you sir! Yeah, I liked the Philippines markings as soon as I saw them; I knew I wanted to use them for this plane. I don't think I've ever seen another model with them either.
Very convincing rendition of the F-5A ALAMID.. regards..
Many thanks Farouk! I appreciate the generous comment.:)
I saw your link to this in a post today, and had to take a look. You really made a nice model out of this old kit! Well done.
@gkittinger, Many thanks Greg! I appreciate your comments a lot! ?
Beautifully done surface finish, Gary, well assembled and photographed that does this aesthetically graceful little fighter proud. Hope this build still has a place of pride on your shelf of honor. Congratulations!
@brummbaer, Thanks so much Christopher! ? I really am glad to hear those kind comments, and yes sir, she's still holding in my display! It was great to read your comments Christopher. ?