F-5 Tiger II replica gifted to former airbase

A heritage centre has been gifted a replica of an F-5 Tiger II jet by the United States Air Force (USAF) after securing the funds it needed to transport the plane.

RAF Sculthorpe Heritage Centre, near Fakenham, Norfolk, said it had acquired the plane from RAF Alconbury, in Cambridgeshire, which is run by USAF, after finding out it could have been scrapped.

Ian Brown, the centre's founder and curator, said the fibreglass gate guard was a "one-to-one scale replica" and was "moulded on an original F-5 in the early 80s".

He said the heritage centre had been looking for something to put outside of its museum and the offer "ticked all of the boxes".

RAF Sculthorpe was one of the largest American airbases in the 50s and 60s and was used as a "drop bomb atomic base", said Brown.

It was used for training exercises, ground control and if other airfields had repairs on their runways.

Brown said the F-5s, when at RAF Sculthorpe, would travel from RAF Alconbury, near Huntingdon, and use the runway for "gas and go training".

The aircraft would land at the base, fuel, and then take off as quickly as possible, with about 12 minutes being the record, Brown added.

"We are very excited that we have got it to show our visitors and to a new generation of aviation enthusiasts," he said.

The heritage centre set up a GoFundMe to help cover the costs of the move from Cambridgeshire to Norfolk.

"Once we've moved it, we will go through it and make sure that it's structurally safe to use and to remount again."

He said repair works also needed to be undertaken, and once complete the aircraft would be mounted next door to the heritage centre.

Brown said the aircraft would be on site ready for visitors on Easter Sunday.

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