T-33 Shooting Star

T-33 Shooting Star

infobox Aircraft
name = T-33 Shooting Star
type = Training aircraft
manufacturer = Lockheed




caption = Two T-33s in flight. The farther aircraft has been repainted and renumbered in anticipation of its delivery to the Mexican air force.
designer = Clarence "Kelly" Johnson
first flight = 22 March avyear|1948
introduced =
retired =
status =
primary user = United States Air Force
more users = United States Navy Royal Thai Air Force
produced = 1948-1959
number built = 6,557
unit cost =
developed from = P-80 Shooting Star
variants with their own articles = T2V/T-1A Seastar Canadair T-33

The Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star is an American-built jet trainer aircraft. It was produced by Lockheed and made its first flight in 1948, piloted by Tony LeVier. The T-33 was developed from the Lockheed P-80/F-80 starting as TP-80C/TF-80C in development, then designated T-33A. It was used by the U.S. Navy initially as TO-2 then TV-2, and after 1962, T-33B. Despite its vintage, the venerable T-33 still remains in service worldwide.

Design and development

The T-33 was developed from the Lockheed P-80/F-80 by lengthening the fuselage by slightly over three feet and adding a second seat, instrumentation and flight controls. It was initially designated as a variant of the P-80/F-80, the TP-80C/TF-80C. [ [http://home.att.net/~jbaugher1/p80.html Lockheed P-80/F-80] ]

Design work for the Lockheed P-80 began in 1943 with the first flight on 8 January 1944. Following on the Bell P-59, the P-80 became the first jet fighter to enter full squadron service in the United States Army Air Forces. As more advanced jets entered service, the F-80 took on another role - training jet pilots. The two-place T-33 jet was designed for training pilots already qualified to fly propeller-driven aircraft.

Originally designated the TF-80C, the T-33 made its first flight on 22 March 1948 with US production taking place from 1948 to 1959. The US Navy used the T-33 as a land-based trainer starting in 1949. It was designated the TV-2, but was redesignated the T-33B in 1962. The Navy operated some ex-USAF P-80Cs as the TO-1, changed to the TV-1 about a year later. A carrier-capable version of the P-80/T-33 family was subsequently developed by Lockheed, eventually leading to the late 1950s to 1970s T2V-1/T-1A SeaStar. A total of 6,557 Shooting Stars were produced, 5,691 by Lockheed.

Operational service

The two-place T-33 proved to be a suitable advanced trainer, and it has been used for such tasks as drone director and target towing, and some T-33s retained two machine guns for gunnery training. In some countries, the T-33 was even employed as a combat aircraft. The RT-33A version, reconnaissance aircraft produced primarily for use by foreign countries, had a camera installed in the nose and additional equipment in the rear cockpit. T-33s continued to fly as currency trainers, drone towing, combat and tactical simulation training, "hack" aircraft, electronic countermeasures and warfare training and test platforms right into the 1980s.

The T-33 has served with over 30 nations, and continues to operate as a trainer in smaller air forces. Canadair built 656 T-33s on licence for service in the Canadian Forces as the CT-133 Silver Star while Kawasaki manufactured 210 in Japan. Other operators included Brazil, Turkey and Thailand which used the T-33 extensively.

In the 1980s, an attempt was made to modify and modernize the T-33 as the Boeing Skyfox, but a lack of orders led to the cancellation of the project. About 70% of the T-33s airframe was retained in the Skyfox, but it was powered by two Garrett TFE731-3A turbofan engines.

A limited number of T-33s have found their way into private hands; Michael Dorn of "Star Trek: The Next Generation" fame also owns a Canadair T-33. On 6 September 2006, Imperial War Museum Duxford's Canadair T-33 ("G-TBRD"), owned by the Golden Apple Trust, was destroyed in a takeoff accident; the crew survived. "G-TBRD" was the first jet warbird to be operated from Duxford, arriving in 1975 and originally registered as "G-OAHB".

Variants

USAF

* T-33A: Two-seat jet trainer aircraft.
* AT-33A: Two-seat attack version of the T-33A.
* DT-33A: This designation was given to a number of T-33As converted into drone directors.
* NT-33A: This designation was given to a number of T-33As converted into special test aircraft.
* QT-33A: This designation was given to number of T-33As converted into target drones.
* RT-33A: Two-seat reconnaissance version of the AT-33A.

US Navy

* TO-1/TV-1: U.S. Navy designation of P-80C, 50 transferred to USN in 1949 as jet trainers (not technically T-33 Shooting Star)
* TO-2: Two-seat land-based jet training aircraft for the US Navy. It was the US Navy's version of the T-33A. Later redesignated TV-2.
* TV-2KD: This designation was given to number of TV-2s converted into drone directors.
*T-33B redesignation of Navy's TV-2 in 1962.
*DT-33B redesignation of Navy's TV-2KD.

Canada

* CT-133 Silver Star : Two-seat jet trainer for the RCAF/ Canadian Forces (also communications, target towing and electronic warfare duties).

Operators

;BEL
*Belgian Air Force (38 x T-33A, 1 x RT-33A operated from 1952);BOL;BRA;BIR;CHI;ROC;COL;CUB;DNK;ECU;SLV;FRA;GER;GRE;GUA;IDN;IRN;ITA;JPN
*Japan Air Self Defense Force manufactured by Kawasaki Heavy Industries Aerospace Company;LBA;MEX : T-33s recently retired;NLD;NIC;NOR;PAK;PAR;PER;PHI
*Philippine Air Force;POR;SAU;SIN
*Republic of Singapore Air Force: ex-French Air Force (Armée de l'Air) machines, all retired in 1984.;KOR;ESP;THA
* Royal Thai Air Force;TUR;USA
* United States Air Force
* United States Navy;URU;VEN;YUG

urvivors

Numerous T-33s have been preserved as museum and commemorative displays including:
* Lockheed T-33A-1-LO ,580-8189 is in "Museum of Aviation" in Belgrade , Serbia.
* T-33A-1-LO, 51-4419 and 17473: On loan from the USAF Museum at the Midland Air Museum, Coventry, England.
* T-33A-1-LO, 51-4301 is on static display at Vance AFB, OK.
* T-33A-1-LO, 58-0629 is on display at Castle Air Museum, Atwater, CA
* The town of Othello, Washington in the United States has a decommissioned T-33 on display in a park near the City Hall.
* T-33A-1-LO, 58-0616 is on display at McChord Air Museum, McChord Air Force Base, Washington.
* T-33A-1-LO, 51-2129? is in display at the Collings Foundation in Stow, MA.
*T-33A-1-LO, 52-9958 Yugoslav 10024 (serial number: 580-8189) is on display at Yugoslav Aeronautical Museum, Nikola Tesla Airport, Belgrade, Serbia.
* Unknown T-33, is under restoration to flying condition with the Collings Foundation out of their Houston, Texas facility

pecifications (T-33A)

aircraft specifications

plane or copter?=plane
jet or prop?=jet
crew=Two
span main=38 ft 10.5 in
span alt=11.5 m
length main=37 ft 9 in
length alt=11.2 m
height main=11 ft 8 in
height alt=3.3 m
area main=
area alt=
airfoil=
empty weight main=8,300 lb
empty weight alt=3,775 kg
loaded weight main=
loaded weight alt=
useful load main=
useful load alt=
max takeoff weight main=15,100 lb
max takeoff weight alt=6,865 kg
engine (jet)=Allison J33-A-35
type of jet=centrifugal compressor turbojet
number of jets=1
thrust main=5,400 lbf
thrust alt=23 kN
max speed main=600 mph
max speed alt=970 km/h
cruise speed main=
cruise speed alt=
never exceed speed main=
never exceed speed alt=
stall speed main=
stall speed alt=
range main=1,275 miles ferry
range alt=2,050 km
ceiling main=48,000 ft
ceiling alt=14,600 m
climb rate main=
climb rate alt=
loading main=
loading alt=
thrust/weight=
armament=
*(AT-33) 2x 0.50 in (12.7 mm) Browning M3 machine guns with 350 rounds per gun
* Up to 2,000 lb (907 kg) of ordnance on two underwing hardpoints. Weapons carried include bombs and rocket pods.

ee also

aircontent
related=
* P-80 Shooting Star
* Canadair T-33
* T2V/T-1A Seastar
similar aircraft=
* T-38 Talon
* T-2 Buckeye
sequence=
see also=
lists=
* List of Lockheed aircraft

References

Notes

Bibliography

* Baugher, Joe. "Lockheed P-80/F-80". [http://home.att.net/~jbaugher1/p80.html Lockheed P-80/F-80] Access date: 21 December 2006.
* Davis, Larry. "P-80 Shooting Star. T-33/F-94 in action." Carrollton, Texas: Squadron/Signal Publications, 1980. ISBN 0-89747-099-0.
* Dorr, Robert F. "P-80 Shooting Star Variants". "Wings of Fame" Vol. 11. London: Aerospace Publishing Ltd., 1998. ISBN 1-86184-017-9.
* Pace, Steve. "Lockheed Skunk Works". St. Paul, Minnesota: Motorbooks International, 1992. ISBN 0-87938-632-0.

External links

* [http://www.aero-web.org/locator/manufact/lockheed/t-33.htm AeroWeb: "T-33s on display list"]
* [http://www.warbirdalley.com/tbird.htm Warbird Alley: T-33 page]
* [http://scalemodels.ru/modules/photo/viewcat_cid_181.html Walkaround T-33 Shooting Star (Eskishehir, Turkey)]


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