F-5A Freedom Fighter

The F5 was a lightweight, twinengine tactical fighter developed by Northrop. It was based on the T38 and was deployed in 1959. To match the MiG17 and MiG21 fighter planes operated by the North Korean Air Force, the US provided the Korean Air Force with three F5B fighters on April 15, 1965, and 20 F5A fighters on April 22 of the same year. A total of 128 planes were adopted until 1976 to substitute the F86 fighters. The F5A/B was the Korean Air Force’s first supersonic fighter plane and was a mainstay in the defense of Korean airspace for 40 years. F5A/B fighters sank North Korean spy ships off Soheuksando Island in Jeollanamdo in 1969 and off Yeongdeok, Gyeongsangbukdo, in 1970, and intercepted a Soviet TU16 over the East Sea in 1983. All F5A/B fighters were retired from service by October 31, 2005.