Editing Northrop F-5 (section)

===Into production===
{{Blockquote |quote=The F-5 earned a reputation for a jet that was hard to discern in the air and when one finally saw it, it was often after a missile or guns kill [by F-5] had already been called. |source=<small>—Singapore's former Chief of Air Force and F-5 pilot, Major General [[Ng Chee Khern]].<ref name="AFM275"/></small>}}

The N-156T was quickly selected by the [[United States Air Force]] as a replacement for the [[Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star|T-33]] in July 1956. On 12 June 1959, the first prototype aircraft, which was subsequently designated as [[Northrop T-38 Talon|YT-38 Talon]], performed its first flight. By the time production had ended in January 1972, a total of 1,189 Talons had been produced.<ref name="WAPJ 25 p50-1">Lake and Hewson 1996, pp. 50–51.</ref><ref name="Claws p114">{{harvnb|Braybrook|1982|p=114}}</ref> Development of the N-156F continued at a lower priority as a private venture by Northrop; on 25 February 1958, an order for three prototypes was issued for a prospective low-cost fighter that could be supplied under the [[Military Assistance Program]] for distribution to less-developed nations. The first N-156F flew at [[Edwards Air Force Base]] on 30 July 1959, exceeding the [[Supersonic#Supersonic flight|speed of sound]] on its first flight.<ref name="WAPJ 25 p51">{{harvnb|Lake|Hewson|1996|p=51}}</ref>

Although testing of the N-156F was successful, demonstrating unprecedented reliability and proving superior in the ground-attack role to the USAF's existing [[North American F-100 Super Sabre]]s, official interest in the Northrop type waned, and by 1960 it looked as if the program was a failure. Interest revived in 1961 when the [[United States Army]] tested it, (along with the [[Douglas A-4 Skyhawk]] and [[Fiat G.91]]) for reconnaissance and close-support. Although all three types proved capable during army testing, operating fixed-wing combat aircraft was legally the responsibility of the Air Force, which would not agree to allow the Army to operate fixed-wing combat aircraft, a situation repeated with the [[de Havilland Canada DHC-4 Caribou|C-7 Caribou]].<ref name="Harding army">{{harvnb|Harding|1990|pp=118–119, 122–123, 188–189}}.</ref>

In 1962, the [[Kennedy Administration]] revived the requirement for a low-cost export fighter, selecting the N-156F as winner of the F-X competition on 23 April 1962, subsequently becoming the "F-5A", and was ordered into production in October that year.<ref name="WAPJ 25 p52-3">{{harvnb|Lake|Hewson|1996|pp=52–53}}</ref> It was named under the [[1962 United States Tri-Service aircraft designation system]], which included a re-set of the fighter number series. Northrop manufactured a total of 624 F-5As, including three YF-5A prototypes,<ref name="nat_museum_F-5">{{cite web |title= Northrop YF-5A Freedom Fighter |website= National Museum of the US Air Force |publisher= US Air Force |url= https://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/Visit/Museum-Exhibits/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/196074/northrop-yf-5a-freedom-fighter/ |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20230113193331/https://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/Visit/Museum-Exhibits/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/196074/northrop-yf-5a-freedom-fighter/ |archive-date= 13 January 2023 |url-status= live |access-date= 28 February 2023}}</ref> before production ended in 1972. A further 200 F-5B two-seat trainer aircraft, lacking nose-mounted cannons but otherwise combat-capable, and 86 RF-5A reconnaissance aircraft, fitted with four-camera noses, were also built. In addition, [[Canadair]] built 240 first generation F-5s under license, [[Construcciones Aeronáuticas SA|CASA]] in Spain built 70 more aircraft.<ref name="WAPJ 25 p82-3">{{harvnb|Lake|Hewson|1996|pp=82–83}}</ref>

The [[Royal Norwegian Air Force]] placed the first international order on 28 February 1964.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |date=1987-01-16 |title=Era of the F-5 Ends After Three Decades |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-01-16-fi-3612-story.html |access-date=2025-02-08 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Northrop F-5A Freedom Fighter |url=https://www.joebaugher.com/usaf_fighters/f5_2.html |access-date=2025-02-08 |website=www.joebaugher.com}}</ref>