The Lockheed F-104 also served with foreign air forces, such as the German Luftwaffe, the Japanese Air Self-Defence Force, and the Spanish Air Force. The last version of the F-104 was the F-104S all-weather interceptor designed by Aeritalia for the Italian Air Force, and equipped with radar-guided AIM-7 Sparrow missiles. The safety record of the F-104 Starfighter became high profile news especially in Germany in the mid-1960s, and lingered in the minds of the public for several years. Some operators lost a large proportion of their aircraft through accidents, although the accident rate varied widely depending on the user and operating conditions; the Luftwaffe lost about 30% of aircraft in accidents over its operating career, and Canada lost over 50% of its F-104s. The Spanish Air Force, however, lost none.

The F-104 featured very small, straight, mid-mounted, trapezoidal wings. The new wing design was extremely thin, with a thickness-to-chord ratio of only 3.36% and an aspect ratio of 2.45. The Starfighter’s fuselage had a high fineness ratio, as it was slender, tapering towards the sharp nose. The fuselage was tightly packed, containing the radar, cockpit, cannon, fuel, landing gear, and engine.

During the Vietnam War, the Starfighter was used both in the air-superiority role and in the air support mission. Although it saw little aerial combat and scored no air-to-air kills, Starfighters were successful in deterring MiG interceptors. Starfighter squadrons made two deployments to Vietnam, the first being from April 1965 to November 1965, flying 2,937 combat sorties. At the time, USAF doctrine placed little importance on air superiority (the "pure" fighter mission), and the Starfighter was deemed inadequate for either the interceptor or tactical fighter-bomber role, lacking both payload capability and endurance compared to other USAF aircraft. Its U.S. service was quickly wound down after 1965, and the last USAF Starfighters left active service in 1969. It continued in use with the Puerto Rico Air National Guard until 1975.

A Starfighter opinion from a retired German Luftwaffe pilot: "…I myself flew the F-104G in NAW2 for the German Navy as combat ready pilot for many years. Unfortunately there were a lot of technical problems within this outstanding airplane, which led to many fatal crashes. But also a lot of so called "pilot errors" led to the high number of accidents. There was simply no room for a mistake, the plane did not allow the slightest mistake by the pilot whatsoever. But for me? and all F-104 pilots: this was the best plane ever."

Specifications