Mitsubishi F-1

The Mitsubishi F-1 is a single-seat twin-engine supersonic strike aircraft designed and produced by the Japanese conglomerate Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. It was Japan's first domestically developed supersonic combat aircraft. Developed during the early 1970s, the F-1 is essentially a combat-orientated derivative of the Mitsubishi T-2 trainer aircraft, which was also procured for the Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF); accordingly, it was initially referred to as the FS-T2kai prior to being redesignated as F-1. Key modifications included the removal of the second seat in the cockpit for an avionics bay, airframe strengthening, and the installation of additional hardpoints. While the F-1 was not a highly manoeuvrable aircraft, it was intended for advanced avionics and intense training to be decisive factors in the event of live combat. The F-1 was primarily oriented towards the ground attack and anti-shipping missions, in which it was viewed as being a suitable counter to Soviet warships. Secondarily, it was also intended to function as an air defence fighter. The F-1 performed its maiden flight on 3 June 1975, and entered service with the JASDF just over two years later. No other operators emerged for the type; production was terminated in 1987 after 77 aircraft were completed. Despite its prospective replacement by a more capable aircraft being openly discussed by the mid-1980s, the majority of the fleet underwent a service life extension programme (SLEP) during the 1990s and remained in active service until 2006, at which point the last F-1s were withdrawn in favour of the more capable F-2.

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