1:72 Northrop F-5 Tiger II Worldwide Collection Pt2

A continuation of the worldwide collection of finishes

The second part of the selection of markings for the Northrop F-5 brings a further group of operators of the type to the fore. The machine was sold in two basic shapes. The single-seat F-5E was complemented by the combat-capable two-seat F-5F with a lengthened nose and a lowered spine ahead of the rear seat. Later production airframes were also given the drawn-out pointed nose for a larger radar, known in modeling slang as the shark nose, and enlarged leading edge root extensions.

The circle of users reached from South American and Asian air forces to European operators, and from the middle of the nineteen seventies Tigers also carried out the task of imitating Soviet equipment in air combat training. It was exactly this role that brought the most interesting finishes of all: mismatched camouflage schemes imitating foreign machines, from desert browns through blue-gray striping all the way to an entirely black finish.

Notes on building

• the following part of the collection of markings for the F-5 in 1:72 size
• it complements the first part, which came out under the neighboring number in the range
• it is advisable to check the differences between the early and the late nose beforehand
• a high proportion of colored badges and stencils on a small surface

Before you reach for the tweezers, compare the shape of the nose and of the root extensions on your kit with the shape of the machine you want to build. The difference between the early and the late production run seems slight on a model about twenty centimeters long, yet the position of the stencils and badges shifts with it and a deviation of one millimeter shows at first glance on a finished piece. With the striped finishes of the adversary machines it also pays to plan out in advance what is sprayed and what is stuck down.