Northrop F5E Tiger II - What was it used for?

[Thisdale]

Hey guys,

 

been flying a lot of the F5 in recent weeks (since its release on DCS).

 

But, after watching multiple documentaries and reading lots of wiki... it seems the F5 wasn't really used in combat that much? I know many countries use or have used it (Canada included), but as for active theaters... not much?

 

Any good literature or documentaries or other sources that can tell tales of the F5 in action?

 

Cheers,

[razo+r]

Come to Switzerland, Tigers are here still in action for A-G training, "Air police" and aerobatic.

 

Otherwise it was used in Vietnam, F-5A mainly, our F-5E, idk

 

[ame]

[/ame]

[WinterH]

Out of my head, the places where F-5 saw action would be :

 

- Vietnam

- Somewhere over Africa I can't quite remember, against the MiG-21

- Iran-Iraq War

- Not sure, but I seem to recall the Saudi F-5s did see some air to ground action in Gulf War

[suzutsuki]

South Vietnamese pilot Nguyen Thanh Trung bombed the South Vietnam's president palace and then landed in the North Vietnam controlled area on 8 April 1975.

 

I think it is the most famous event about Tiger.

 

By the way, Taiwan(Nationalist China) have the largest Tiger team in Asia, I think Taiwan's skin is very beautiful.

Edited August 24, 2016 by suzutsuki

[Emu]

Hey guys,

 

been flying a lot of the F5 in recent weeks (since its release on DCS).

 

But, after watching multiple documentaries and reading lots of wiki... it seems the F5 wasn't really used in combat that much? I know many countries use or have used it (Canada included), but as for active theaters... not much?

 

Any good literature or documentaries or other sources that can tell tales of the F5 in action?

 

Cheers,

https://web.archive.org/web/20121031043534/http://www.militaryphotos.net/forums/showthread.php?180731-Modern-fighter-combat-records

 

[Name of aircraft] Air-to-air kills - Air-to-air losses - Losses to ground fire

 

F-5 Freedom Fighter/Tiger 25-23-30

Vietnam War (USA) 0-0-1

Vietnam War (South Vietnam) ?-?-?

Vietnamese-Cambodia War (Vietnam) ?-?-?

Ogaden War (Ethiopia) 7-0-2

Yom Kippur War (Morocco) 0-0-0

Iran-Iraq War (Iran) 18-23-12

Western Saharan War (Morocco) 0-0-14

Yemen Border Clashes 1979 (Taiwan) ?-?-?

Gulf War (Saudi Arabia) 0-0-1

[DaveRindner]

It was not used in combat by USAF. It was used by US NATO, Asian, and non-aligned nations.

Thailand used it in its Air Force, Singapore, Phillipines. Matter of fact many F-5's that appear in 1970's and 1980's Vietnam movies, like Apocalypse Now, were Philippine Air Force, and Royal Thai AF. USAF and Navy , obviously used it as an aggressor DACT aircraft, becouse it could mimic MIG-21.

Indonesia may have used it combat during their hostile takeover of East Timor.

Swiss used for a long time. As did Malaysia which replaced it with SU-30.

In early late 1970's and early '80's US offered it to then ally Pakistan, but Paks insisted on F-16A/B.

I heard a rumor even Russians used it, they reverse-engineered captured F-5 from S. Vietnam , and designated it MIG-28. They used it to drive off American F-14A's. That tidbit came last April 1.

[QuiGon]

The F-5 was pretty popular among smaller european countries during the Cold War and would have seen combat if it would have gone hot.