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Description
| Notes: Upgraded T-2B. | |||
| Manufacturer: | North American (Rockwell) |
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| Base model: | T-2 | ||
| Designation: | T-2 | ||
| Version: | C | ||
| Nickname: | Buckeye | ||
| Designation System: | U.S. Tri-Service | ||
| Designation Period: | 1962-Present | ||
| Basic role: | Trainer | ||
| See Also: | |||
Specifications
| Length: | 38' 3" | 11.6 m | |
| Height: | 14' 9.5" | 4.5 m | |
| Wingspan: | 38' 1.5" | 11.6 m | |
| Wingarea: | 255.0 sq ft | 23.6 sq m | |
| Empty Weight: | 8,115 lb | 3,680 kg | |
| Gross Weight: | 13,177 lb | 5,975 kg | |
| Max Weight: | 13,190 lb | 5,981 kg | |
Propulsion
| No. of Engines: | 2 | ||
| Powerplant: | General Electric J85-GE-4 | ||
| Thrust (each): | 2,950 lb | 1,337 kg | |
Performance
| Max Speed: | 530 mph | 853 km/h | 461 kt |
| Climb: | 5,900 ft/min | 1,798 m/min | |
| Ceiling: | 45,500 ft | 13,868 m | |
Operators (Past and Present)
| USN | VF-43 | Oceana | VA |
| USN | VF-126 | Miramar | CA |
| USN | VT-4 | Pensacola | FL |
| USN | VT-10 | Pensacola | FL |
| USN | VT-19 | Meridian | MS |
| USN | VT-23 | Kingsville | TX |
Known serial numbers
Examples of this type may be found at
| Museum | City | State |
| Arkansas Air Museum | Fayetteville | Arkansas |
| Texas Air Museum | Slaton | Texas |
| USS Lexington Museum On The Bay | Corpus Christi | Texas |
T-2C on display
Texas Air Museum | USS Lexington Museum On The Bay |
Recent comments by our visitors
| David Oller Albuquerque, NM | I was in VT-9 at NAS Meridian when the first T2c's came in. That was between 1969 and 1970. I was fortunate to ride in all three T2's. My wife washed my ejection seat training card and the certification doesn't show on my DD214. I wonder if there is a way to get a replacement. I do have my flight logbook. 10/30/2009 @ 13:50 [ref: 25238] |
| Adam A. Novak Saint Peters, MO | I have always held a place in my fond memory bank for the Buckeye. I started with the Buckeye in Navy Memphis with BTG-7 when we took delivery of our first one. Very shortly after that BTG-7 moved to NAAS Kingsville, Texas to the old south side facility and became VT-7. I was a AMH2 in the Airframe shop and I was lucky enough to be chosen, along with 3 other enlisted personnel, to ride as an observer on any one of the aircraft that was released for flight following any heavy maintenance check. We usually ran 2 to 3 aircraft a week thru a heavy check so I got to fly quite often (and I received flight pay for having this fun). In 1961 VT-7 moved to Meridian Miss. and I stayed in Kingsville and went northside to VT-21. I still have my OMIAS (Order of Military Instantaneous Acceleration Society)card for having ridden the infamous ejection seat. 08/07/2009 @ 12:54 [ref: 24332] |
| Tom Uryga Portland, OR | I flew T2s as both a student and later as an IP (VT-19 1992-1995)at NAS Meridian.
Flying the T2-C was actually a better job in many ways than the TA4-J because of more and easier Cross Country flights. Unlike the A4, the T2 starts itself (No Huffer or Ground Power Unit) and could be flown to just about any airport with a control tower and 4000ft of runway. Having two engines also builds confidence. This jet could make it from KNMM to San Diego in 3 legs even in the winter, including the Student's required approaches, barely sipping fuel at FL390. If you landed at Holloman AFB, you could file to Phoenix at 4000ft and to the casual observer, it looked like a good flight plan, but it was actually a great low-level road-recce all the way. Really fun as a 2-plane, maybe 200ft AGL!!! The T2 was also a great spin trainer. Only jet you could spin inverted unless you were a test pilot. As a spin instructor, you got to do it a couple times a week and upright spin hops even more. T2 students had to spin before solo and A4 students had to spin upright and inverted before ACM solos. To go inverted, you requested a high block in the MOA (above 18000ft) and then climbed to 18k-20k and pulled into a loop. When inverted, full cross-control and hold it until the spin develops. Have your straps tight or your ass was on the canopy! Recovery? That was the cool part...the T2 would recover by using the recovery mode of ANY US aircraft. It was often used to teach recovery for other planes, including at Pax River (Test Pilot School). This was done because it was safer to spin in the T2 than most fleet aircraft, some of which departed violently, or like the A4, would fall from the sky at 30,000 ft per minute!!! You could use F14 inputs and it would recover. Or A4,A7,F18,F4,F8,A6,EA6B or whatever. It all worked. If in doubt, use the "Kuwaiti Method"...let go of all the controls, throw your hands in the air and yell "Inshallah!". Yes, the T2 would recover from any spin completely hands-off. No joke, far too many Kuwaiti students would frequently do exactly that during syllabus flights, confirming they were AFU as we thought they were. Most disconcertingly they would do it when rolling into the groove, completely oblivious that the rudder shakers had been buzzing all the way around the pattern. If they ever saw the ball in the first place, you can bet it wasn't centered or steady. Up high, they couldn't kill you as fast, but in the pattern, we never let them get low because we didn't ever want to risk meeting 72 Kuwaiti Virgins. So when they inevitably blew the ball out the top; they'd scream out "No Ball- Inshallah!!!" and actually let go of the stick, both hands flying up against the canopy as they called for divine intervention!!! One Kuwaiti, Nassar, had over 25 "Downs" before VT7 finally attrited him and, believe it or not, the Kuwait embassy sent him to Canada to learn to fly Hornets. 05/23/2009 @ 00:52 [ref: 24195] |
| J. Anderson Yankton, SD | I worked in Air Frames/Maintenance Dept., At VT-23 During the Late 70's & Early 80's. These pic's really bring back some fond memories of good times and friends at Kingsville, Tx. As A ground pounder I did get the rare oppurtunity to take a flight in a T-2 and was certainly a highlight of my time in the navy! 06/29/2008 @ 22:14 [ref: 21723] |
| Todd Sudick Priest River, ID | I flew brand new T2-Cs at VT-4 in Pensacola from April 1972 to August 1972. Fun times, especially in the gunnery pattern over the water. The "squirrel cage" around the banner got out of sequence once and awhile. 03/27/2008 @ 11:42 [ref: 20251] |
| lou castro wichita, KS | it was a sad day when we launched the last of our T2C thunder chickens from VT-26 at NAS CHASE FIELD,,I an AD AT AIMD THEN VT-26,,till we shut down ..i think it was late 91..wonderfull years 01/04/2008 @ 10:36 [ref: 19146] |
| pete allen reno, NV | Great pictures,
I flew T-2c's in kingsville (vt-23) from late 90 till 94,just over 1000 hrs. (Guns,CQ,OCF,form,NATOPS). It was a great airplane to instruct in! I also helped Rich with his Buckeye, it's a great airplane. It didn't have much flight time ,and wasn't bent (probably wasn't spun) They did a superb job restoring it! 12/13/2007 @ 22:48 [ref: 18910] |
| pete allen reno, NV | Great pictures,
I flew T-2c's in kingsville (vt-23) from late 90 till 94,just over 1000 hrs. (Guns,CQ,OCF,form,NATOPS). It was a great airplane to instruct in! I also helped Rich with his Buckeye, it's a great airplane. It didn't have much flight time ,and wasn't bent (probably wasn't spun) They did a superb job restoring it! 12/13/2007 @ 22:46 [ref: 18909] |
| Stan Meyer Waxhaw, NC | Congrats Rich S. on such a great performance at Reno!
In 1991, when I was assigned to help start an aircraft rebuild program at Nadep Jax, Fla., I thought I'd been relegated to aircraft hell. (I wanted to continue working with the Blue Angels and F18 conversions). Then it was confirmed, tired old Buckeyes and equipment, including wing rebuild fixtures last certified in 1956!! I thought my career was over. Then, when we handed the books over to the logroom and our first test flight was performed, it sent chills up and down! What a great little aircraft! Proud to have been associated with T2 Buckeyes and more proud that Rich Sugden pulled a 489.454 for the win!! 09/21/2007 @ 03:26 [ref: 17981] |
| Steve Chatfield San Diego, CA | What I remember most about this bird was what a quantum leap in performance it was over the single engine T2As we were flying in VT7 and 9 at NAS Meridian, MS. The "A" had a J34 that was supposed to have 4300 # of SL thrust at STP. On a summer day in Mississippi, in those old birds that was probably 3000# and the engine idle to full rpm runup was something like 15.5 sec! The standard "A" climb schedule was maybe six or seven minutes to 10,000 ft with airspeed progressively down from 250 to about 240 and had you over Philadelphia, MS about 20 miles away. The Charlie would accelerate to full MRT as fast as you could advance the throttles, you'd hold 250 all the way up, turn south at 10,000 and you'd still be over the field! That first transition flight was elbows and assholes for me as a student. I think the Charlie would outclimb a Phantom to 10,000 and at full thrust on the deck, it would start skidding forward even with the brakes locked up. 09/18/2007 @ 10:30 [ref: 17954] |
Recent photos uploaded by our visitors
