Free Republic

Video of an unusual/experimental method of launching the Lockheed F-104 Starfighter. Click HereRunway? RUNWAY??? We don't need no stinkin' runway!

On July 13, 1984, the young stars of The Last Starfighter saw their careers blast off into outer space, as a friendship was born that carries on three decades later. Today marks the 29th anniversary of the original theatrical release of the groundbreaking sci-fi classic The Last Starfighter, so we figured it’s a perfect time to take a fun look back at the film through the eyes of its stars, Lance Guest and Catherine Mary Stewart, both of whom attended a Q&A panel at the second Blood at the Beach Convention in Virginia Beach in 2012. Guest plays Alex Rogan,...

PALMDALE - An F-104 jet fighter that once served flight test duty at Edwards Air Force Base is coming home, but with a much different purpose. The North American Eagle, built from the F-104 fuselage, is a jet-engine-powered car intended to break the world's land speed record. The vehicle will be on display Saturday at the Plant 42 Heritage Airpark before the team sets out for test runs at El Mirage Dry Lake next week. The free viewing is from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the airpark on Avenue P just east of 20th Street East. Members of the...

Beginning this weekend, aircraft buffs will be able to stroll up to and touch about half dozen historic aircraft at the city's newest public facility, the Heritage Airpark. The airpark, at 25th Street East and Avenue P, is a memorial to the aircraft designed, built and tested at U.S. Air Force Plant 42 since the facility was established in 1951. The airpark is open from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays beginning Jan. 17. A formal ceremony marking the opening of the facility will be held in March, noted Mayor Jim Ledford. Meanwhile, volunteers will continue to prepare...