The Ronin Aerospace F-17 Skyshark is a series of late 1950s American supersonic multirole combat aircraft. The F-17 and its variants were primarily used by the United States Air Force and South Asian Air Force.

Ronin Aerospace F-17 Skyshark

The F-17 was initially conceived in 1954 by RAI designer Yokohiro Moon, a Japanese-American man who also penned aircraft for Curtiss and Midland Aerospace. The F-17 drew inspiration from Vought’s F7U Cutlass, including the idea of the tail fins being integrated with the main wings, though on the F-17 they were mounted at the wingtips. The first Skyshark models were made at quarter-scale out of clay on a wooden frame, and tested in the wind tunnel at RAIs Hampton, Virginia headquarters. It proved aerodynamic to an extent but suffered from severe instability at higher speeds. Yokohiro returned to the drawing board in October 1956, aiming to eliminate the instability concerns by adding dihedral to the stabilizers, which proved effective soon after. The first full-scale prototype, XF-17A-1, took flight in 1958 at Langley, and would later log 183 flight hours before being dismantled in 1959. After testing concluded, and additional redesigns, the Skyshark entered service with the United States Air Force in June 1960, eventually seeing the tail end of the Vietnam war. The F-17 later entered service with the Republic of South Asia Air Force in 1974, after their retirement of the F-106 Delta Dart. The Skyshark remained in service until 1996 with the USAF, And 2007 with the RSAAF. The model in this post, an F-17C, was purchased in 1976 by the RSAAF and later transferred to the Croatian Air Force in 1997 where it remains as one of just 27 Skysharks still in active service (all 27 being operated by Croatia.)

Top Speed -

Mach 1.68 (1,217mph) at 30,000 feet
• 897mph at Sea Level

Service Ceiling -

46,000 feet

Range -

1,037 miles

Number Built -

853 (including 3 Prototypes)

Produced -

1958-1983