Thanks folks!
It reminds me of the Lockheed CL-1200 Lancer proposal to replace the F-104 Starfighter in some ways, the larger tail not so much but the high-mounted wing definitely.
Spot on, Jeff. Although the actual prompt was Robin's F-8 wing swap suggestion for the
Lightning, the
Lancer was definitely an influence on this
Starfighter adaptation.
One feature of the CL-1200 that I didn't care for was the slight hunchback effect from the new wing centre section. I was guessing that the less severe dihedral of the Vought wings would allow me to reduce that effect ... although I have no idea whether RW F-104 top longerons would really permit that. (BTW, I'd imaged that production
Starfire IIs had fixed (non-folding) outer wing panels. Later F-112 variants would likely have had added pylons and, possibly, wingtip rails as well.)
That vertical tail was based more on the U-2 ... but more swept-back for much higher speeds. The horizontal tails could have been low-set like the
Lancer but I placed them more centrally on the jet pipe. That was more by instinct than by planning - it just looked better to my eye.
