The Spanish SRF-5A reconnaissance plane explained by one of its former pilots

The Spanish Air Force operated a total of 70 Northrop F-5 Freedom Fighter aircraft, with the first units arriving in 1969.

The F-86 Sabre, the first and most numerous jet fighter of the Spanish Air Force
The Spanish F-4 Phantom II fighters, their tanker aircraft and the sad end of many of them

These aircraft were license-built by Construcciones Aeronáuticas S.A. (CASA) in Spain at its factories in Madrid and Seville, except for the first eight (of the SF-5B variant), which were manufactured in the USA and shipped to Spain in parts, being assembled in Getafe. The aircraft were generically referred to as SF-5 (the S stands for Spain). Their purpose was to replace (along with the F-4C and the Mirage III) the F-86 Sabre fighters and the T-33 Shooting Star trainers.

The Spanish Air Force operated three versions of the SF-5: the SF-5A (18 units, now retired), manufactured between 1969 and 1971 (with construction numbers from 2035 to 2052), designated C.9 and later A.9, was a single-seat version dedicated to fighter and attack missions; the SF-5B (34 units, of which 19 are still active), manufactured between 1967 and 1969 (with construction numbers from 2001 to 2034), designated CE.9 and later AE.9, was a two-seat advanced training version, which is still active today, modernized and currently named F-5BM; and the SRF-5A, a single-seat reconnaissance variant.

The Spanish Air Force received 18 SRF-5As, which were initially designated CR.9 and later AR.9. They were manufactured between 1970 and 1972, with construction numbers from 2053 to 2070. The first SRF-5As arrived at the Spanish Air Force in September 1970, being assigned to the 204 Squadron based in Morón de la Frontera (Seville), along with some SF-5Bs (the 202 Squadron, at the same base, was equipped with SF-5As and SF-5Bs).

In 1971, the 21st Wing was formed at Morón, with the SRF-5As of the 205th Squadron being assigned to the 212th Squadron, with the radio callsign "Sisón". In February 1976, the 212th Squadron was disbanded and its aircraft were assigned to the 464th Squadron at Gando, Canary Islands, in 1976 due to the conflict that resulted in the loss of the Spanish Sahara. SF-5s of all three variants were at Gando until May 1981, when they returned to Morón, reactivating the 212th Squadron again. The SRF-5As remained active until October 1992.

Initially, these reconnaissance aircraft were equipped with four American Fairchild KS-92 cameras, mounted in the nose of the aircraft. In addition, these aircraft were equipped with two 20 mm M-39 cannons and seven gun mounts and external magazines in the wings and on the underside of the fuselage. The Fairchild cameras were later replaced by British Vinten Model 547 cameras, also used on the Canadian version of the SF-5A.

Today, two of the SRF-5As are in museums (one in the Cuatro Vientos Air Museum in Madrid, and another in the Elder Museum of Science and Technology in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria), while six are preserved as monuments. This Monday, the Friends of the Air Museum Association published an interesting video in which Colonel (R) José Terol Albert talks about the SRF-5A next to the aircraft he himself piloted, the AR.9-062 (23-62), exhibited in that museum (the video is in Spanish, you can activate automatic English subtitles in the bottom bar of the player):