NASA’s (Private) F-5 Tiger Team

In a follow-up to the 250th Color Birds of NASA post on Monday, we would be remiss not to bring up the fact that the agency has a four-plane aerial demonstration team made up of privately owned (not a misprint) F-5 Tigers. Do what? Current NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, 45, is a tech billionaire entrepreneur, alum of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical, a noted private pilot with 7,000 hours in over a dozen types, a commercial astronaut (via SpaceX’s Inspiration4 and Polaris Dawn, which he funded), and co-founder of “red air” defense contractor Draken International (which owns 130 jets including A-4Ks, Mirage F1s, and MiG-21s). He’s also donated over $35 million to the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville and the National Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola to support youth programs. Talk about a flight nerd! Isaacman personally owns at least three 1970s vintage F-5s, which he recently had painted in a red-white-and-blue Freedom 250th anniversary NASA livery (with the classic NASA…