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T-33 Shooting Star
Type	Training aircraft
Manufacturer	Lockheed
Designed by	Clarence "Kelly" Johnson
Maiden flight	22 March 1948
Primary users	United States Air Force United States Navy Royal Thai Air Force
Produced	1948-1959
Number built	6,557
Developed from	P-80 Shooting Star
Variants	T2V/T-1A Seastar CT-133 Silver Star

The Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star is an American-built jet trainer. 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 USN as the initially as TO-2 then TV-2 and after 1962, T-33B. Despite its vintage, the venerable T-33 still remains in service worldwide.

Contents 1 Design and development 2 Operational service 3 Variants 3.1 USAF 3.2 US Navy 3.3 Canada 4 Operators 5 Survivors 6 Specifications (T-33A) 7 References 8 External links 9 Related content

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. ^[1]

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 US Army Air Force. 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.

The two-place T-33 proved to be a suitable advanced trainer and, in addition to its primary use as a trainer, 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.

• 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.

• 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.

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

Numerous T-33s have been preserved as museum and commemorative displays including:

• 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.
• The town of Othello, Washington in the United States has a decommissioned T-33 on display in a park near the City Hall.

General characteristics

• Crew: Two
• Length: 37 ft 9 in (11.2 m)
• Wingspan: 38 ft 10.5 in (11.5 m)
• Height: 11 ft 8 in (3.3 m)
• Empty weight: 8,300 lb (3,775 kg)
• Max takeoff weight: 15,100 lb (6,865 kg)
• Powerplant: 1× Allison J33-A-35 centrifugal compressor turbojet, 5,400 lbf (23 kN)

Performance

• Maximum speed: 600 mph (970 km/h)
• Range: 1,275 miles ferry (2,050 km)
• Service ceiling: 48,000 ft (14,600 m)

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.

Notes

Bibliography

• Warbird Alley: T-33 page
• Walkaround T-33 Shooting Star (Eskishehir, Turkey)

Related development

• P-80 Shooting Star
• CT-133 Silver Star
• T2V/T-1A Seastar

Comparable aircraft

• T-38 Talon
• T-2 Buckeye

Designation sequence

• Pre-1962 Navy : TV-1 - TV-2 - T2V
• Pre-1962 Navy : TE - TF - TT - TO - TV
• USAF: T-30 - T-31 - T-32 - T-33 - T-34 - T-35 - T-36 - T-37

Related lists

• List of Lockheed aircraft

v • d • e Lockheed aircraft models

Airliners and Civil Transports: Vega · Electra · Electra Junior · Super Electra · Lodestar · Constellation · Saturn · Electra · L-402 · JetStar · L-1011 Military Transports: C-64 · C-121 · R6V · C-130 · C-141 · C-5 Fighters: P-38 · P/F-80 · F-94 · F-104 · F-16  · F-117 · F-22 · F-35 Helicopters: XH-51 · AH-56 Patrol: Hudson · PV · P-2 · P-3 · S-3 · CP-140 Reconnaissance: U-2 · A-12 · SR-71 Trainers: T-33 · T2V/T-1

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