North American T-2 Buckeye

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T-2 Buckeye
US Navy 040303 VT-9 (Buckeye).jpg
A T-2C Buckeye from VT-9
Role Jet trainer
National origin United States
Manufacturer North American Aviation
North American Rockwell
First flight 31 January 1958[1]
Introduction November 1959[2]
Retired United States Navy 2008[2]
Status Active service with Hellenic Air Force
Primary users United States Navy (historical)
Hellenic Air Force
Venezuelan Air Force (historical)
Produced 1958�1970
Number built 529
The North American T-2 Buckeye was the United States Navy's intermediate training
aircraft, intended to introduce U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps student naval
aviators and student naval flight officers to jets.[1] It entered service in 1959,
and was replaced by the McDonnell Douglas T-45 Goshawk in 2008.[2]

Contents
1 Design and development
2 Variants
3 Operators
4 Specifications (T-2C Buckeye)
5 See also
6 References
7 External links
Design and development
The first version of the aircraft entered service in 1959 as the T2J-1. It was
redesignated the T-2A in 1962 under the joint aircraft designation system. The two-
seat trainer was powered by one Westinghouse J34-WE-46/48 turbojet. The aircraft
was subsequently redesigned, and the single engine was replaced with two 3,000 lbf
(13,000 N) Pratt & Whitney J60-P-6 turbojets in the T-2B. The T-2C was fitted with
two 2,950 lbf (13,100 N) thrust General Electric J85-GE-4 turbojets. The T-2D and
T-2E were export versions for the Venezuelan Air Force and Hellenic Air Force,
respectively. The T-2 Buckeye (along with the TF-9J) replaced the T2V-1/T-1A
SeaStar, though the T-1 continued in some uses into the 1970s.

A T-2C being parked at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida, on August 30, 2005
The Buckeye was designed as a low-cost, multistage trainer. Its straight wing was
similar to that used on the FJ-1 Fury and its cockpit controls were similar to the
propeller-driven T-28C Trojan. The T-2's performance was between that of the U.S.
Air Force's Cessna T-37 Tweet and the U.S. Navy's TA-4J Skyhawk. While it had no
built-in armament, the T-2 could accommodate two .50-inch gun pods, 100 lb (45 kg)
practice bombs, or 2.75-inch rockets beneath the wings.

All T-2 Buckeyes were manufactured by North American at Air Force Plant 85, located
just south of Port Columbus Airport in Columbus, Ohio. A total of 609 aircraft were
built during the production run. The name Buckeye refers to the state tree of Ohio,
as well as the mascot of The Ohio State University.

Every jet-qualified Naval Aviator and virtually every Naval Flight Officer from the
late 1950s until 2004 received training in the T-2 Buckeye, a length of service
spanning four decades. The aircraft first exited the Naval Aviator strike pipeline
(where it saw its final carrier landings) in 2004,[3] and the Naval Flight Officer
tactical jet pipeline in 2008. In the Naval Aviator strike pipeline syllabus and
the Naval Flight Officer strike and strike fighter pipeline syllabi, the T-2 has
been replaced by the near-sonic McDonnell Douglas T-45 Goshawk (the U.S. Navy
version of the BAE Systems Hawk), which is more comparable to other high-
performance, subsonic trainers, or the supersonic U.S. Air Force Northrop T-38
Talon.[4] More recently, the T-2 has been used as a director aircraft for aerial
drones. Several T-2 Buckeyes, although still retaining their USN markings, are now
registered as civilian-owned aircraft with FAA "N" numbers; they regularly appear
at airshows.

Variants

A T-2A of VT-7 on USS Antietam in the early 1960s

T-2A
Two-seat intermediate jet training aircraft, powered by a 3,400-lb (1542-kg) thrust
Westinghouse J34-WE-46/48 turbojet, original designation T2J-1 Buckeye, 217 built
YT-2B
Two T-2As were converted into T-2B prototype aircraft.
T-2B
Improved version, it was powered by two 3,000-lb (1360-kg) thrust Pratt & Whitney
J60-P-6 turbojets; 97 were built.
YT-2C
One T-2B was converted into a T-2C prototype aircraft.
T-2C
Final production version for the U.S. Navy, it was powered by two 2,950-lbf thrust
General Electric J85-GE-4 turbojets; 231 were built.
DT-2B and DT-2C
Small numbers of T-2Bs and T-2Cs were converted into drone directors.
T-2D
Export version for Venezuela, 12 built
T-2E
Export version for Greece, 40 built
Operators

A T-2E Buckeye of the Hellenic Air force.

A civilian-operated T-2B Buckeye[5] painted in United States Navy colors

CAPT Dan Ouimette, Commodore of TRAWING ONE, and CDR Paul Shankland, CO of VT-9,
present the last T-2C to make a carrier arrested landing to the National Naval
Aviation Museum at NAS Pensacola.
Greece
Hellenic Air Force
United States
United States Navy
Venezuela
Venezuelan Air Force
Specifications (T-2C Buckeye)
Data from Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1976�77.[6]

General characteristics

Crew: 2
Length: 38 ft 3 1/2 in (11.671 m)
Wingspan: 38 ft 1 1/2 in (11.621 m) (over tip tanks)
Height: 14 ft 9 1/2 in (4.509 m)
Wing area: 255 sq ft (23.7 m2)
Airfoil: NACA 64A212
Empty weight: 8,115 lb (3,681 kg)
Max takeoff weight: 13,179 lb (5,978 kg)
Fuel capacity: 691 US gal (575 imp gal; 2,620 L) total
Powerplant: 2 � General Electric J85-GE-4 turbojets, 2,950 lbf (13.1 kN) thrust
each
Performance

Maximum speed: 453 kn (521 mph, 839 km/h) at 25,000 ft (7,600 m)

Stall speed: 86.6 kn (99.7 mph, 160.4 km/h)
Range: 909 nmi (1,046 mi, 1,683 km)
Service ceiling: 40,400 ft (12,300 m)
Rate of climb: 6,200 ft/min (31 m/s)
See also
Related development

North American FJ-1 Fury

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration and era

Douglas TA-4J Skyhawk

Fouga CM.175 Z�phyr
Lockheed T2V SeaStar
McDonnell Douglas T-45 Goshawk
References
"T-2 Buckeye". Boeing. Retrieved 16 March 2013.
"Farewell, Buckeye!". defensetech.org. Archived from the original on August 14,
2008. Retrieved August 13, 2008.
Gunsallus, U. S. Navy photo by Ens April (4 April 2004). "English: Naval Air
Station Meridian, Miss. (Apr. 4, 2004) - Capt. Daniel Ouimette, Commodore, Training
Air Wing One (TW-1), left, and Cmdr. Paul Shankland, Commanding Officer, Training
Squadron Nine (VT-9), inspect the last T-2C Buckeye training jet to make an
arrested landing aboard an aircraft carrier. The aircraft has been transferred to
the National Museum of Naval Aviation aboard Naval Air Station Pensacola, Fla., for
display. The T-2C Buckeye is being retired as newer, more modern training aircraft
come in service. U.S. Navy photo by Ens. April Gunsallus. (RELEASED)" � via
Wikimedia Commons.
[1][dead link]
FAA Record for N27WS Archived 2012-02-17 at the Wayback Machine
Taylor 1976, pp. 368�369.
Taylor, John W. R. Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1976�77. London: Jane's
Yearbooks, 1976. ISBN 0-354-00538-3.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to North American T-2 Buckeye.
T-2 Buckeye page on U.S. Navy History site
T2J-l / T-2 Buckeye on GlobalSecurity.org
Boeing T-2 History Page