The Republic F-84 Thunderjet was an American turbojet fighter-bomber aircraft. Originating as a 1944 United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) proposal for a "day fighter", the F-84 flew in 1946. Although it entered service in 1947, the Thunderjet was plagued by many problems. These were not solved until 1950. The definitive version was the F-84G introduced in 1951.

The Thunderjet became the Air Force's primary strike aircraft during the Korean War. Over half of the 7,524 F-84s produced served with NATO nations, and it was the first aircraft to fly with the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds demonstration team. The USAF Strategic Air Command had F-84 Thunderjets in service from 1948 through 1957. NATO countries used the Thunderjet for many years.

F-84G KLu  (Royal Netherlands Air Force / Koninklijke Luchtmacht) 

The type was also used by the Dutch Air Force in the fifties and early sixties. This plane has KLu code K-171 , serial 51-10806, and is a Republic F-84G-21-RE Thunderjet, here painted as "K-40/DU-24". This plane was phographed at the Dutch AF MLM museum at Soesterberg.

Photographed September 2011 by Cees Hendriks (C) Copyright IPMS Nederland

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