• Did we "buy" this aircraft? - No. The aircraft is "on loan" from the National Museum of the USAF

• Description:
  • The two-place T-33 "Shooting Star" was designed for training pilots already qualified to fly propeller-driven aircraft.  It was developed from the single-seat F-80 fighter by lengthening the fuselage about three feet to accommodate a second cockpit.
    
    Originally designated the TF-80C, the T-33 made its first flight in 1948. Production continued until 1959 with 5,691 T-33s built in the United States. The US Navy also acquired the type and had it modified for blue-water operation as the TV-2 "Sea Star". The T-33 became the most widely used jet trainer in the world, and was soon dubbed the "T-Bird". In addition to its use as a trainer, the T-33 has been used for such tasks as drone director and target towing, and in some countries even as a combat aircraft. The RT-33A, a reconnaissance version made primarily for use by foreign countries, had a camera installed in the nose and additional equipment in the rear cockpit.
    
    Manufactured under license in both Japan (T-33 "Wakataka" or "Young Hawk") and Canada (CT-133 "Silver Star") total production of all types exceeded 6,500 aircraft, making the T-33  one of the world's best-known aircraft. It has served with the air forces of more than 30 different nations over several decades.
     
    The Shooting Star continued to be used by United States Air National Guard units until 1994. Versions of the T-33 are still in service with the armed forces of Bolivia, South Korea, Mexico, Paraguay, and Thailand. About 50 are in the hands of private operators, mostly in the United States.

   

  • For more history concerning the T-33 visit the Smithsonian Institution National Air & Space Museum site.

   

• Specifications:

Click here for Cockpit Photos in the T-33 Photo Gallery