This 1970s color film about pilots assessing if they are able to safely fly F-104s each time was directed by Alan J. Levi and produced by WASP test pilot Betty Jane Williams, LORI Productions, for Lockheed California Company. This film opens with a gramophone, 1960s clock radio, and a “Notice to Airmen” bulletin board (:10-:26). The frosted “F-104 Flight Safety” door is shown and a pilot in an orange jumpsuit enters and joins men in suits around a conference table. The men introduce themselves; their goal is to identify if there’s a common denominator in pilot caused accidents (1:28-3:20). The lights are turned off and the film projector shows an animation of the first accident. The pilot stretches and yawns. In wing formation, he suddenly dives and crashes (3:21-4:24). The men discuss the possible cause as vertigo from tiredness (4:34-5:42). The lights are turned off and the film projector shows an animation of the second accident. An actual air speed indicator and nozzle position indicator are shown. The animated pilot ejects, lands using a parachute, and the plane hits the ground nose first (5:43-6:35). The men discuss the possible cause as not enough simulator time addressing emergency procedures (6:36-8:24). The lights are turned off and the film projector shows an animation of the third accident. The pilot gets in the plane without doing a pre-flight but the mechanic says everything is okay. Before the plane leaves the runway, it experiences a flat tire. The men discuss the possible cause as a combination of maintenance and pilot error (8:26-11:19). The lights are turned off and the film projector shows an animation of the fourth accident. The pilot takes cough medicine, flies, encounters headwinds, runs out of fuel, and ejects. The plane crashes. The men discuss the possible cause as using drugs that impair judgement (11:20-13:22). The lights are turned off and the film projector shows an animation of the fifth accident. Two F-104s collide in formation flying at night. The lead pilot ejects and the other crashes with the plane. The men discuss the possible cause as being night and pilot fatigue (13:24-15:44). The five animated accidents are quickly reviewed (15:45-16:48). The discussion turns to finding a common cause. The pilot in the orange jumpsuit writes factors on the chalkboard for pilots to ask themselves before flying (16:49-22:50). The 60-second solution is to ask themselves the four “SAFE” flying questions: Stick time, Alcohol and drugs, Fatigue, and Examine the aircraft (22:51-24:14).
The Lockheed F-104 Starfighter is a single-engine, supersonic interceptor aircraft which later became widely used as an attack aircraft. It was originally developed by Lockheed for the United States Air Force (USAF), but was later produced by several other nations, seeing widespread service outside the United States. One of the Century Series of fighter aircraft, it was operated by the air forces of more than a dozen nations from 1958 to 2004. Its design team was led by Kelly Johnson, who contributed to the development of the Lockheed P-38 Lightning, Lockheed U-2, Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird and other Lockheed aircraft.
The F-104 set numerous world records, including both airspeed and altitude records. Its success was marred by the Lockheed bribery scandals, in which Lockheed had given bribes to a considerable number of political and military figures in various nations to influence their judgment and secure several purchase contracts; this caused considerable political controversy in Europe and Japan.
The poor safety record of the Starfighter also brought the aircraft into the public eye, especially in German Air Force service. Fighter ace Erich Hartmann was forced to retire from the Luftwaffe due to his outspoken opposition to selection of the F-104.
The final production version of the fighter model was the F-104S, an all-weather interceptor designed by Aeritalia for the Italian Air Force, and equipped with radar-guided AIM-7 Sparrow missiles. An advanced F-104 with a high-mounted wing, known as the CL-1200 Lancer, was considered, but did not proceed past the mock-up stage.
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