The F-20 started development in 1975. The aircraft had a single engine. The aircraft would have been easier to maintain and cost less to run for the US client nations.
The origin of the Tigershark has its roots in the F-5 line with Northrop seeking to develop a replacement for the F-5E Tiger II under the FX program of the Carter administration. The FX program came about due to a decision that limited the sale of U.S. front-line equipment, so it could be perceived as a peace force and not an instigator of war. The aim of the program was to offer skilled but not state-of-the-art aircraft, and not give them the keys to the most sensitive U.S. technologies.
Tigershark featured a General Electric F404 powerplant, with a 60% boost in thrust over the previous generation. The end result was a jet that had an over 55,000-foot ceiling with a maximum speed of Mach 2.0, equipped with next-generation avionics such as the General Electric AN/APG-67 multi-mode radar and an upgraded cockpit design.
In spite of its high potential, the Tigershark was doomed when Reagan’s administration eased restrictions on selling F-16s, rendering an alternate export fighter unnecessary. Potential buyers that would have been best suited to purchase the F-20 were now permitted to buy the F-16A. As a result, the F-20, originally constructed to cater to a niche market, lost its market to serve.
The F-20’s quest for viability was also hindered by two fatal crashes during demonstration flights in Canada and South Korea, both caused by pilot G-LOC and not due to any malfunction in the plane. These mishaps tarnished the Tigershark’s safety record and contributed to the difficulties in selling the jet.
In spite of a glowing review by flying legend Chuck Yeager, who called the F-20 the “best fighter in the world at the time,”
Now, sole survivor F-20A Tigershark is on display at the California Science Center in Los Angeles, a reminder of an earlier era of fighter design, a testament to what might have been a cost-effective and powerful addition to U.S. allied air forces.
