| F-20 Tigershark | |
|---|---|
| |
| Origin |  United States
|
| Role | Fighter aircraft |
| Manufacturer | Northrop Corporation |
| Primary user |  United States Air Force
|
| General characteristics | |
| Crew | 1 |
| Length | 47.4 ft (14.4 m) |
| Wingspan | 27.11 ft (8.53 m) |
| Height | 13.10 ft (4.20 m) |
| Loaded weight | 15,480 lb (7,021 kg) |
| Performance | |
| Maximum speed | 1,319 mph (2,123 km/h) |
| Range | 1715 mi (2,759 km) |
| Tom Clancy's H.A.W.X. series information | |
| Appearances | H.A.W.X. |
The Northrop F-20 Tigershark is a single-seat light fighter.
Real-world history[]
The Northrop F-20 Tigershark (initially F-5G) was a privately financed light fighter, designed and built by Northrop. Its development began in 1975 as a further evolution of Northrop's F-5E Tiger II, featuring a new engine that greatly improved overall performance, and a modern avionics suite including a powerful and flexible radar. Compared with the F-5E, the F-20 was much faster, gained beyond-visual-range air-to-air capability, and had a full suite of air-to-ground modes capable of firing most U.S. weapons. With these improved capabilities, the F-20 became competitive with contemporary fighter designs such as the General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon, but was much less expensive to purchase and operate.