Starfighters Inc


Starfighters Inc is a civilian organization that uses F-104 for contract testing and flight simulations.

History

Starfighters Inc, based in Clearwater, Florida, began as a private venture to restore and fly three former Canadair CF-104 Starfighters at air shows across the United States and Canada. Initially their CF-104s consisted of a two-seat CF-104D Serial#:104632, and two single-seat CF-104s Serial#s: 104850 and 104759. The aircraft were originally operated with the Royal Canadian Air Force and all later served with the Royal Norwegian Air Force before being imported into the U.S. in the early 1990s. In recent years the company has cut back on air show appearances as they have transitioned to using their aircraft for government and private contract work, providing high-performance photo chase planes on flight tests, simulating enemy aircraft in military defense exercises, and modelling ballistic missiles for detection system evaluation.
In summer 2011 the company acquired five additional aircraft. All are F-104S versions built by Fiat for the Italian Air Force in the late 1970s. The estimated cost of restoration of each of the five aircraft is $1 million.