The F-104C entered service with USAF Tactical Air Command (TAC) as a multi-role fighter and fighter-bomber. The 479th Tactical Fighter Wing (TFW) at George AFB, California, was the first unit to be equipped with the type, in September 1958.Bowman 2000, p. 49. Commencing with Operation Rolling Thunder, the Starfighter was used both in the air-superiority and air-support roles. On 19 April 1965 the 476th Tactical Fighter Squadron (TFS) of the 479th TFW arrived at Da Nang AB to help protect US F-105 Thunderchief fighter-bombers against MiG-17s and especially MiG-21s that were beginning to be flown by the Vietnamese People's Air Force (VPAF). The F-104 was also deployed extensively as a barrier combat air patrol (BARCAP) protector for the EC-121D Warning Star airborne early warning aircraft patrolling off the North Vietnamese coast.Davies 2014, p. 41. The F-104s were successful in deterring MiG interceptors and performed well as close support aircraft, though they were largely uninvolved in aerial combat and recorded no air-to-air kills during the conflict.Dobrzyński 2015, p. 62.Thompson 2004, p. 155. The North Vietnamese were well aware of the F-104's performance, and the 479th TFW's pilots felt that the MiGs deliberately avoided engaging them. Twenty-five MiG kills were scored by fighters controlled by EC-121 Big Eye missions, and their Starfighter escorts played a vital role in ensuring their safety.Davies 2014, p. 43.
