Lockheed F-104 Starfighter

Updated: October 2026 – Hardly any aircraft has stirred up as many emotions in Germany as the Lockheed F-104 Starfighter. To some it was the fastest and most elegant thing the Cold War had to offer: a fuselage like an arrow, wings like razor blades, twice the speed of sound. To others it remains the “Widowmaker” (German: “Witwenmacher”), whose string of crashes shook the young Bundeswehr. You hardly see the Starfighter flying anymore, but all the more often in museums. This page explains how to identify it, which versions there were, what lies behind the Starfighter crisis and where you can still experience the aircraft.

What is the F-104 Starfighter?

The F-104 is a single-engine supersonic fighter from Lockheed’s legendary development division, the Skunk Works. Chief designer Clarence “Kelly” Johnson spoke in late 1951 with pilots who had flown against MiG-15s in the Korean War. Their wish was clear: a light, simple fighter with maximum speed and climb performance. Johnson delivered exactly that – an aircraft that essentially consists of one big engine with a slim fuselage around it.

The XF-104 prototype flew on March 4, 1954, at Edwards Air Force Base in California, with test pilot Tony LeVier at the controls. In February 1958 the US Air Force reported its first operational squadron. In the same year the Starfighter set world records for speed, altitude and time-to-climb, making it the first aircraft to hold all three at once.

Its career with the US Air Force remained modest nonetheless. Range was short, payload small, and the interceptor fit into planning only to a limited extent. The big breakthrough came only in Europe: with the F-104G, a strengthened multirole version emerged, which several NATO countries bought and built under license. In total 2,578 Starfighters of all versions were built.

The most important versions

The basic layout stayed the same across all series. For you as a spotter and museum-goer it is still worth telling the main versions apart – the placards in exhibitions almost always name them.

F-104A to F-104D (USA): The early American versions. The A was the pure interceptor, the C a fighter-bomber for Tactical Air Command, B and D the two-seaters. Early aircraft had a downward-firing ejection seat – a solution that could be fatal in emergencies at low altitude and was later replaced by upward-firing seats.

F-104G (“Super Starfighter”): The version for Europe. Strengthened airframe, new electronics, a navigation system for low-level flying and the ability to carry bombs, missiles and reconnaissance pods. It was built by Lockheed, Canadair and European consortia with companies such as Messerschmitt, Fiat, Fokker and SABCA. The engine, General Electric’s J79, was built under license for the German aircraft in Munich-Allach – at one of the predecessor companies of MTU Aero Engines.

RF-104G and TF-104G: The RF is the reconnaissance version with cameras, the TF the two-seat trainer with an extended cockpit under a large two-part canopy. The first German two-seaters were called F-104F.

CF-104 (Canada): Canadair built 200 aircraft for the Royal Canadian Air Force. The Canadians also flew them from bases in West Germany, such as Söllingen and Zweibrücken.

F-104J (Japan): Japan operated its own interceptor version, built under license by Mitsubishi.

F-104S (Italy): The last major development. More powerful engine, radar-guided missiles and two additional ventral fins under the rear. The Italian Air Force flew the F-104S as the last military operator until 2004.

Version	Role	Typical feature
F-104A / C	Interceptor / fighter-bomber (USA)	Early series, often in natural metal
F-104G	Multirole jet for Europe	Most common version in German museums
RF-104G	Reconnaissance	Camera windows in the underside of the fuselage
TF-104G / F-104F	Two-seater	Long tandem cockpit with a large canopy
CF-104	Canada	Canadair license-built, often in Canadian camouflage
F-104S	Interceptor (Italy)	Two additional ventral fins at the rear

How to identify the Starfighter

The Starfighter is actually one of the easiest jets of all to identify. Once you’ve looked at it deliberately, you’ll hardly mistake it again. Three looks are enough.

The cockpit usually reveals the version: a long tandem cockpit means TF-104G or F-104F, two additional ventral fins point to an Italian F-104S. The serial then provides the confirmation. German Starfighters carried serials in the format block number plus number, such as 22+35; the 29+ block belonged to the F-104F. How the Bundeswehr marking system works is explained in the guide to Bundeswehr aircraft serials.

Starfighter, Phantom or MiG-21?

In museums the Cold War combat jets often stand close together. The finder helps you tell the three most common candidates apart.

You’ll find more comparison aids for combat aircraft in the guide Identifying fighter jets in Europe, and general tips for older types in the article Identifying vintage aircraft in the sky.

The Starfighter in the Bundeswehr

In the late 1950s the young Bundeswehr was looking for a modern jet to replace the Republic F-84F and the Canadair Sabre. Under Defense Minister Franz Josef Strauß, the choice fell on the Starfighter – but not as a pure interceptor; rather in the multirole F-104G version. It was meant to cover air defense, fighter-bomber missions, reconnaissance and, for the Navy, attacks on sea targets. Under NATO’s nuclear sharing arrangement, German Starfighter wings were also earmarked to deliver US nuclear weapons.

From 1960 the first aircraft reached the force. In total the Luftwaffe and naval aviation received 916 Starfighters: 30 F-104Fs, 586 F-104Gs, 163 RF-104Gs and 137 TF-104Gs. They were based at numerous air bases, including Büchel, Erding, Manching, Memmingerberg, Jagel and Eggebek. Anyone who lands at Memmingen Airport today lands at a former Starfighter base.

The number of aircraft alone shows how central the type was to the Bundeswehr. And that is exactly why the series of accidents in the following years hit the whole country.

The Starfighter crisis

In the mid-1960s German Starfighters crashed in rapid succession; within a good year and a half several dozen losses were counted. Pictures of wrecks in fields and funerals for young pilots shaped the coverage. Terms such as “Widowmaker” and “Erdnagel” became fixed expressions.

The reasons cannot be reduced to a single fault. An interceptor designed for high altitude and high speed was repurposed as an all-weather low-level flyer for cloudy central Europe. The Luftwaffe was still being built up, many pilots had little experience, and maintenance staff and infrastructure had yet to grow. On top of that came technical problems and an aircraft that, at low speed and with its small wings, forgave few mistakes.

In 1966 the situation escalated politically. After the death of a pilot who drowned in the North Sea after ejecting, defects in the rescue equipment became public. A Bundestag committee of inquiry took up the matter. Defense Minister Kai-Uwe von Hassel dismissed the Luftwaffe chief of staff, Werner Panitzki. His successor was Johannes Steinhoff, who reorganized the Luftwaffe’s training, maintenance and structure.

Technically, a new ejection seat in particular brought improvements: from 1967 German Starfighters received the Martin-Baker GQ-7(A), which could also save pilots from an aircraft standing still. The accident rate fell markedly in the following years but never disappeared entirely. By the time of retirement, 269 German Starfighters had been lost and 116 pilots had died – 108 Germans and eight Americans. The last fatal accident occurred in 1984.

The procurement was additionally overshadowed by bribery allegations against Lockheed, which occupied several countries in the 1970s as the Lockheed scandal.

The end of an era

From the 1970s the F-4 Phantom II and later the Panavia Tornado took over the Starfighter’s tasks. The naval aviators handed over their last aircraft at Eggebek in 1986, and the Luftwaffe’s fighter-bomber wings followed by the end of the 1980s. On May 22, 1991, the Bundeswehr finally retired the Starfighter; its last base was Manching.

Internationally the type lasted longer. Turkey flew it until 1995, Taiwan until 1997. Italy set the final mark: the Aeronautica Militare retired its F-104Ss in 2004, ending the last military Starfighter era after around 50 years.

Country	End of service	Note
Germany (Navy)	1986	Eggebek as the last naval base
Germany (Luftwaffe)	May 22, 1991	Manching as the last base
Turkey	1995	Including F-104G and F-104S
Taiwan	1997	Several versions in service
Italy	2004	Last military operator, F-104S

Where you can see the Starfighter today

In museums

Because so many Starfighters were built, the type is one of the most common exhibits in European aviation museums. In Germany these addresses are worthwhile, among others:

• Berlin-Gatow: The Luftwaffe Museum of the Bundeswehr shows several Starfighters in different versions, from single-seaters to the early two-seat F-104F. More on the museum is on the page Military History Museum Berlin-Gatow.
• Hermeskeil: The Flugausstellung Hermeskeil has Bundeswehr Starfighters in its large military collection.
• Speyer and Sinsheim: Both the Technik Museum Speyer and the Technik Museum Sinsheim show former German Starfighters.
• Oberschleißheim: The Flugwerft Schleißheim has an F-104F, one of the early German two-seaters.
• Hanover: The Luftfahrtmuseum Laatzen is also among the museums with a German Starfighter.

The selection abroad is also large. At the Nationaal Militair Museum Soesterberg you find Dutch single-seaters and two-seaters, at the Aviodrome Lelystad another example. The Royal Army Museum in Brussels shows a Belgian Starfighter, the Norsk Luftfartsmuseum in Bodø a CF-104. In Italy there are especially many Starfighters, for example at the Museo Storico dell’Aeronautica Militare in Vigna di Valle and at Volandia near Milan. And if you are traveling in the US, you will find early American versions at the National Museum of the US Air Force in Dayton.

In the air

Experiencing a flying Starfighter is a real rarity today. In Bodø in northern Norway, a Canadian-built CF-104D with the civil registration LN-STF is kept airworthy; its operators describe it as Europe’s only airworthy Starfighter. In Florida, a private company operates several two-seat TF-104Gs with US civil registrations from Cape Canaveral, and more aircraft are being restored in the US.

Whether these jets appear at air shows in a given season is never guaranteed. Maintenance, spare parts and permits make operating a Mach 2 vintage aircraft costly. So keep an eye on the programs of the major events – the article Air shows in Europe for plane spotters gives an overview of worthwhile dates.

Photo tips for museum Starfighters

A Starfighter in a museum is a rewarding but tricky subject. The long, narrow fuselage and the tiny wings fit poorly into classic picture formats.

You’ll find more exotics for your list in the guide Spotting rare aircraft. If you want to lend a hand yourself, the article Volunteering in aviation museums shows ways to get started.

Common mix-ups and how to rule them out

If you are interested in more designs from the Skunk Works, take a look at the Lockheed U-2 and the SR-71 Blackbird. What became of the company is on the page for Lockheed Martin.

Conclusion

The Starfighter embodies the fascination and the harshness of the early jet era like hardly any other aircraft. Launched as a record-breaker from the Skunk Works, it became a multirole jet in Europe and, in Germany, the symbol of a crisis that fundamentally changed the Luftwaffe. Today you meet it mainly in museums – but so often there that you can compare the versions at leisure. And with luck, you will see one of the last airworthy Starfighters at an air show.