North American T-28 Trojan Explained

The North American Aviation T-28 Trojan is a radial-engine military trainer aircraft manufactured by North American Aviation and used by the United States Air Force and United States Navy beginning in the 1950s. Besides its use as a trainer, the T-28 was successfully employed as a counter-insurgency aircraft, primarily during the Vietnam War. It has continued in civilian use as an aerobatics and warbird performer.

Design and development

On 24 September 1949, the XT-28 (company designation NA-159) was flown for the first time, designed to replace the T-6 Texan. The T-28A arrived at the Air Proving Ground, Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, in mid-June 1950, for suitability tests as an advanced trainer by the 3200th Fighter Test Squadron, with consideration given to its transition, instrument, and gunnery capabilities.[1] Found satisfactory, a contract was issued and between 1950 and 1957, a total of 1,948 were built.

Following the T-28's withdrawal from U.S. military service, a number were remanufactured by Hamilton Aircraft into two versions called the Nomair. The first refurbished machines, designated T-28R-1 were similar to the standard T-28s they were adapted from, and were supplied to the Brazilian Navy. Later, a more ambitious conversion was undertaken as the T-28R-2, which transformed the two-seat tandem aircraft into a five-seat cabin monoplane for general aviation use. Other civil conversions of ex-military T-28As were undertaken by PacAero as the Nomad Mark I and Nomad Mark II[2]

Operational history

After becoming adopted as a primary trainer by the USAF, the United States Navy and Marine Corps adopted it as well. Although the Air Force phased out the aircraft from primary pilot training by the early 1960s, continuing use only for limited training of special operations aircrews and for primary training of select foreign military personnel, the aircraft continued to be used as a primary trainer by the Navy (and by default, the Marine Corps and Coast Guard) well into the early 1980s.

The largest single concentration of this aircraft was employed by the U.S. Navy at Naval Air Station Whiting Field in Milton, Florida, in the training of student naval aviators. The T-28's service career in the U.S. military ended with the completion of the phase-in of the T-34C turboprop trainer. The last U.S. Navy training squadron to fly the T-28 was VT-27 "Boomers", based at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, Texas, flying the last T-28 training flight in early 1984. The last T-28 in the Training Command, BuNo 137796, departed for Naval District Washington on 14 March 1984 to be displayed permanently at Naval Support Facility Anacostia, D.C.[3]

Vietnam War combat

In 1963, a Royal Lao Air Force T-28 piloted by Lieutenant Chert Saibory, a Thai national, defected to North Vietnam. Saibory was immediately imprisoned and his aircraft was impounded. Within six months the T-28 was refurbished and commissioned into the North Vietnamese Air Force as its first fighter aircraft.[4] Lt. Saibory later trained NVAF pilot Nguyen Van Ba in the operation of the T-28, where Nguyen flew the T-28 in its first successful interception against an SVNAF C-123 Provider on 15 February, 1964, earning the NVAF its first-ever aerial victory.[5]

T-28s were supplied to the Republic of Vietnam Air Force (RVNAF) in support of ARVN ground operations, seeing extensive service during the Vietnam War in RVNAF hands, as well as the Secret War in Laos. A T-28 Trojan was the first US fixed wing attack aircraft (non-transport type) lost in South Vietnam, during the Vietnam War. Capt. Robert L. Simpson, USAF, Detachment 2A, 1st Air Commando Group, and Lt. Hoa, RVNAF, were shot down by ground fire on August 28, 1962 while flying close air support. Neither crewman survived. The USAF lost 23 T-28s to all causes during the war, with the last two losses occurring in 1968.[6]

Other combat uses

T-28s were used by the CIA in the former Belgian Congo during the 1960s.[7]

The T-28B and D were the primary ground attack aircraft of Khmer Air Force in Cambodia during the war there, largely provided from the U.S. Military Equipment Delivery Team and maintained by Air America.[8] On the night of 21 January 1971, PAVN sappers managed to get close enough to destroy the majority at Pochentong airbase. Replacements were quickly shipped in. On 17 March 1973 a pilot of a T-28, said to be Capt. So Petra, a common-law husband of one of the daughters of the overthrown Prince Norodom Sihanouk, machine gunned and bombed the palace of Lon Nol in an attempt to assassinate him, killing at least 20 and wounding 35, before defecting to Khmer Rouge held lands.[9]

France's Armée de l'Air used locally re-manufactured Trojans, T-28S Fennec, for close support missions in Algeria.

Nicaragua replaced its fleet of 30+ ex-Swedish P-51s with T-28s in the early 1960s,[10] with more aircraft acquired in the 1970s and 1980s.[11]

The Philippines utilized T-28s (colloquially known as "Tora-toras") during the 1989 Philippine coup attempt. The aircraft were often deployed as dive bombers by rebel forces.

Civilian use

AeroVironment modified and armored a T-28A to fly weather research for South Dakota School of Mines & Technology, funded by the National Science Foundation, and operated in this capacity from 1969 to 2005.[12] [13] SDSM&T was planning to replace it with another modified, but more modern, former military aircraft, specifically a Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II.[14] This plan was found to carry too many risks associated with the costly modifications required and the program was cancelled in 2018.[15]

Aerobatics and warbird display

Many retired T-28s were subsequently sold to private civil operators, and due to their reasonable operating costs are often found flying or displayed as warbirds today.

Variants

XT-28
  • Prototype; two built.
    T-28A
  • U.S. Air Force version with an 8000NaN0 Wright R-1300-1 radial engine driving a two-bladed propeller; 1,194 built.[16] [17]
    T-28B
  • U.S. Navy land-based trainer version with 1425hp Wright R-1820-86 radial engine driving a three-bladed propeller and fitted with a belly-mounted speed brake; 489 built from new and 17 converted from T-28.[18] [17]
    T-28C
  • U.S. Navy version, a T-28B with shortened propeller blades and tailhook for carrier-landing training; 299 built.[17] [19]
    T-28D Nomad
  • T-28Bs converted for the USAF in 1962 for the counter-insurgency, reconnaissance, search and rescue, and forward air controller roles in Vietnam. Fitted with two underwing hardpoints. The later T-28D-5 had ammo pans inside the wings that could be hooked up to hardpoint-mounted gun pods for a better center of gravity and aerodynamics; 321 converted by Pacific Airmotive (Pac-Aero).
  • T-28 Nomad Mark I - Wright R-1820-56S engine (1,300 hp).[20]
  • T-28 Nomad Mark II - Wright R-1820-76A (1,425 hp)
  • T-28 Nomad Mark III - Wright R-1820-80 (1,535 hp)[21]
    Fairchild AT-28D
  • Attack model of the T-28D used for Close Air Support (CAS) missions by the USAF and allied Air Forces in Southeast Asia, which were nicknamed "Tangos" by their pilots.[22] It was fitted with six underwing hardpoints and the rocket-powered Stanley Yankee ejection seat;[23] 72 converted by Fairchild Hiller.
    YAT-28E
  • Experimental development of the counter-insurgency T-28D. It was powered by a 2,445 hp (1,823 kW) Lycoming YT-55L-9 turboprop, and armed with two .50 in machine guns and up to 6,000 lb (2,730 kg) of weapons on 12 underwing hardpoints. Three prototypes were converted from T-28As by North American, with the first model flying on 15 February 1963. The project was canceled in 1965.[24]
    T-28S Fennec
  • Ex-USAF T-28As converted in 1959 for use by the French Armée de l'Air, replacing the Morane-Saulnier MS.733A. It was flown by their Escadrilles d'Aviation Légère d'Appui (EALA; "Light Aviation Support Squadrons") in the counterinsurgency role in North Africa from 1959 to 1962. Fitted with an electrically powered sliding canopy, side-armor, a 1,200 hp Wright R-1820-97 supercharged radial engine (the model used in the B-17 bomber),[25] and four underwing hardpoints.[26] It is referred to as the "S" variant because its engine had a supercharger on it; it has also been referred to as the T-28F variant – with the "F" standing for France.

    For fire support missions it usually carried two double-mount .50-caliber machine gun pods (with 100 rounds per gun) and two MATRA Type 122 6 x 68mm rocket pods.[26] It could also carry on paired hardpoints a 120 kg.[264 lb.] HE or GP "iron" bomb, a MATRA Type 361 36 x 37mm [1.45-inch] rocket pod, a SNEB 7 x 55mm [2.16-inch] rocket pod, or a MATRA Type 13 single-rail, MATRA Type 20 or Type 21 double-rail, MATRA Type 41 quadruple-rail (2 x 2), or MATRA Type 61 or Type 63 sextuple-rail (3 x 3) SERAM T10 heavy rocket launchers.[26] Improvised napalm bombs (called bidons spéciaux, or "special cans") were created by dropping gas tanks loaded with octagel-thickened fuel inside, then later igniting or detonating the spilled fuel with white phosphorus rockets.[26]

    Total 148 airframes bought from Pacific Airmotive (Pac Aero) and modified by Sud-Aviation in France. After the war the French government offered them for sale from 1964 to 1967.[27] They sold most of them to Morocco and Argentina.[27] Argentina later sold some to Uruguay and Honduras.[27]

    T-28P
  • T-28S Fennec aircraft sold to the Argentinian Navy as carrier-borne attack aircraft. They were given shortened propeller blades and a tailhook to allow carrier landings.[28]
    T-28R Nomair
  • An attempt by Hamilton Aircraft Company of Tucson, Arizona to make a civilianized Nomad III-equivalent out of refurbished ex-USAF T-28As. It had a Wright Cyclone R-1820-80 engine to make it fast and powerful, but had to lengthen the wingspan by seven feet to reduce the stall speed to below a "street-legal" 70 knots.[21] [29] The prototype flew for the first time in September, 1960, and the FAA Type Certificate was received on 15 February 1962.[29] At the time, the T-28-R2 was the fastest single-engined standard category aircraft available in the United States. It had been flown to a height of 38,700 ft. [11,800 m].
    T-28R-1 Nomair I
  • A military trainer that had a tandem cockpit, dual instrumentation and flying controls, and hydraulically-actuated rearward-sliding canopy.[21] [30] Six were sold in 1962 as carrier-landing trainers to the Brazilian Navy and were modified with a carrier arrestor hook. They were later transferred to the Brazilian Air Force.[29]
    T-28R-2 Nomair II
  • Modified to have a cramped five-seater cabin (one pilot and two rows of two passengers) that opened from the port side.[21] [30] Ten aircraft were modified in all; one was sold to a high-altitude photographic company.[29]
    RT-28
  • Photo reconnaissance conversion for counter-insurgency use with Royal Lao Air Force. Number of conversions unknown.[31] [32]
    AIDC T-CH-1
  • A derivative of the T-28 developed by AIDC in Taiwan, the AIDC T-CH-1 was powered by a 1,082 kW (1,451 hp) Avco Lycoming T53-L-701 turboprop engine. Fifty aircraft were produced for the Taiwanese Air Force between March 1976 and 1981. The type has since been retired.

    Operators

    Democratic Republic of the Congo

    Surviving aircraft

    Many T-28s are on display throughout the world. In addition, a considerable number of flyable examples exist in private ownership, as the aircraft is a popular sport plane and warbird.

    Argentina

    On display
    T-28A

    Australia

    On display
    T-28A

    T-28 TROJAN 50-221 "LITTL JUGGS". Toowoomba Australia

    https://www.gluseum.com/AU/Toowoomba/287406544649061/T-28-Trojan-50-221-%22Littl-Juggs%22

    T 28B Bu 140016, Located at Jandakot Airport in Western Australia. Owned by AOG Services and registered as VH-KAN. Imported from the USA in 2014 and formerly N46984.

    Philippines

    T-28A
    AT-28D

    Taiwan

    On display
    T-28A

    Thailand

    On display
    T-28A
    T-28B

    United Kingdom

    On display
    T-28C

    United States

    On display
    T-28A
    T-28B
    T-28C
    YAT-28E

    See also

    References

    Bibliography

    Further reading

    External links

    Notes and References

    1. Fort Walton, Florida, "T-28 Trainer Now at Eglin – Is Latest Word In Instructional Craft", Playground News, 22 June 1950, Vol. 5, No. 21, p. 10.
    2. The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft 1985, p. 2678.
    3. http://www.history.navy.mil/avh-1910/PART11.PDF "T-28."
    4. Toperczer 2001, pp. 8–9.
    5. Toperczer 2015, pp. 18–19.
    6. Hobson 2001, p. 12.
    7. Holm, Richard L. "A Plane Crash, Rescue, and Recovery - A Close Call in Africa". Center for the Study of Intelligence, Historical Perspectives, Washington, D.C., Winter 1999-2000.
    8. Leeker, Dr Joe F. "Khmer Air Force T-28s(maintained under the supervision of Air America’s LMAT, Phnom Penh)"
    9. New York Times. "20 DIE IN BOMBING AiMED AT LON NOL".
    10. Hagedorn 1993, p. 41
    11. Hagedorn 1993, pp. 42–43
    12. Godfrey, Joe. "Charlie Summers" AVweb, 16 April 2003. Retrieved: 22 July 2012.
    13. http://www.ias.sdsmt.edu/institute/t28/index.htm "T-28 Instrumented Research Aircraft"
    14. Web site: Next-generation Storm-penetrating Aircraft . South Dakota School of Mines and Technology . 14 December 2013 . 12 November 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20131112025601/http://www.ias.sdsmt.edu/institute/t28/Next-Generation_files/Next-Generation.pdf . dead .
    15. News: The Storm Chasing A-10 Thunderhog Program Is Officially Dead, Jet To Be Returned To USAF. Rogoway. Tyler. The Drive. 2018-10-13. en-US.
    16. Ginter 1981, p. 6
    17. Darke 2013, p. 147
    18. Ginter 1981, p. 27
    19. Ginter 1981, p. 53
    20. Sweeney, Richard L. "New Role for Nomad."Flying Magazine, December 1961.
    21. Concannon, Milt. "The Lost (and last) Nomad." courtesyaircraft.com. Retrieved: December 31, 2013.
    22. Web site: The Poor Man's P-51: The T-28 Trojan . Trichter . J. Gary . 12 August 2016 . 2019-07-12.
    23. Web site: The Ejection Site: Stanley YANKEE Extraction System. www.ejectionsite.com.
    24. Tate Air Enthusiast May/June 1999, pp. 58–59.
    25. https://www.angelfire.com/art2/dashvii/page4.htm "Warbirds of New Smyrna."
    26. Renaud, Patrick-Charles."Aerostories (Algérie (1954-1962): T-28 Fennec: des ailes pour un renard." aerostories, 2002. Retrieved: 31 December 2013.
    27. Ganivet, Jean-Luc. "T-28 Fennec History." fennec.pfiquet. Retrieved: 31 December 2013.
    28. http://www.amilarg.com.ar/north-american-t-28.html North American T-28 Trojan/Fennec in Argentina
    29. http://www.1000aircraftphotos.com/GeneralAv/1040.htm "Hamilton T-28-R2 Nomair (N9106Z)".
    30. Flying Magazine, April 1962, p. 3.
    31. Troung, Albert Grandolini and Tom Cooper. "Laos, 1948-1989; Part 1." Indochina Database, 13 November 2003. Retrieved: 17 April 2012.
    32. Troung, Albert Grandolini and Tom Cooper. "Laos, 1948-1989; Part 2." Indochina Database, 13 November 2003. Retrieved: 17 April 2012.
    33. Ay, Carlos. "The Illustrated Catalogue to Argentine Air Force Aircraft." Aeromilitaria, 15 August 2013. Retrieved: 31 December 2013.
    34. Taylor and Munson 1973, p. 179.
    35. Krivinyi 1977, p. 178.
    36. Air-Britain Aeromilitaria, March 2015
    37. Wieland, William A. "Memorandum From the Director of the Office of Middle American Affairs." latinamericanstudies.org, August 1958. Retrieved: 21 February 2010.
    38. Hagedorn 1993, pp. 22, 27
    39. Hagedorn 1993, p. 27
    40. Valero, Jose Ramon. "Picture of the North American T-28 Trojan aircraft." airliners.net, October 2003. Retrieved: 21 February 2010.
    41. Green 1956, p. 238.
    42. Thompson, Paul North American T-28D Trojan J-HangarSpace Retrieved August 18, 2017
    43. Fitzsimons 1988, p. 137.
    44. Pocock 1986, p. 115.
    45. "Talking Paper for Chief of Staff, U.S. Army: Guidance for T-28 Aircraft Operations." U.S. Army, 9 March 1964.
    46. Secrets of US Air Operations in North Vietnam (Bí mật các chiến dịch không kích của Mỹ vào Bắc Việt Nam). Hanoi: People's Police Publisher, p. 513.
    47. Ginter 1981, p. 22.
    48. http://amilarg.com.ar/t-28.html Aviacion Militar Argentina (Amilarg)- North American T-28A/F/P Trojan/Fennec (retrieved 2014-11-23)
    49. http://www.museoaeronaval.ara.mil.ar/ Museo de la Aviacion Naval - ARA 25 de MAYO - T-28 Fennec (retrieved 2014-08-19)
    50. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-491583.html "T-28 Trojan/49-1583."
    51. https://www.skippyscage.com/aviation/ph/philippine-air-force-museum-manila/index.php
    52. https://mondortiz.com/the-t-28-trojan-is-not-the-tora-tora-plane/
    53. https://www.jetphotos.com/photo/9045134
    54. https://www.flickr.com/photos/aeroprints/7838745960
    55. https://www.jetphotos.com/aircraft/manufacturer/North%20American/serial/114
    56. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-513664.html "T-28 Trojan/51-3664."
    57. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-491538.html "T-28 Trojan/49-1538."
    58. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-491601.html "T-28 Trojan/49-1601."
    59. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-491687.html "T-28 Trojan/49-1687."
    60. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-513480.html "T-28 Trojan/51-3480."
    61. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-513578.html "T-28 Trojan/51-3578."
    62. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-513740.html "T-28 Trojan/51-3740."
    63. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-153652.html "T-28 Trojan/153652"
    64. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-137661.html "T-28 Trojan/137661."
    65. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-138157.html "T-28 Trojan/138157."
    66. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-138284.html "T-28 Trojan/138284."
    67. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-138302.html "T-28 Trojan/138302."
    68. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-146289.html "T-28 Trojan/146289."
    69. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-491494.html "T-28 Trojan/49-1494."
    70. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-491663.html "T-28 Trojan/49-1663."
    71. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-491679.html "T-28 Trojan/49-1679."
    72. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-491682.html "T-28 Trojan/49-1682."
    73. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-491689.html "T-28 Trojan/49-1689."
    74. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-491695.html "T-28 Trojan/49-1695."
    75. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-500300.html "T-28 Trojan/50-0300."
    76. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-513612.html "T-28 Trojan/51-3612."
    77. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-517500.html "T-28 Trojan/51-7500."
    78. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-137702.html "T-28 Trojan/137702."
    79. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-137796.html "T-28 Trojan/137796."
    80. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-138144.html "T-28 Trojan/138144."
    81. Web site: Trojan Phlyer's T28s.
    82. Web site: US Navy and US Marine Corps BuNos--Third Series (135774 to 140052). www.joebaugher.com. 2017-05-15.
    83. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-138247.html "T-28 Trojan/138247."
    84. Web site: N63NA (1955 NORTH AMERICAN T-28B owned by URBAN SCOTT J) Aircraft Registration.
    85. https://airheritage.org/aircraft/north-american-t-28-trojan/ "NORTH AMERICAN T-28 TROJAN"
    86. http://www.navalaviationmuseum.org/explore/exhibits-and-collections/aircraft-on-display< "Aircraft on Display: T-28."
    87. http://www.trojanhorsemen.com "T-28 Trojan/138339."
    88. Web site: Aircraft on Display - USS Hornet Museum . 9 December 2015 .
    89. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-138353.html "T-28 Trojan/138353."
    90. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-140048.html "T-28 Trojan/140048."
    91. Web site: WarBird Museum of Virginia. warbirdmuseumva.org. 30 June 2015. 5 August 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200805192841/http://warbirdmuseumva.org/. dead.
    92. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-140454.html "T-28 Trojan/140454."
    93. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-140481.html "T-28 Trojan/140481."
    94. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-140557.html "T-28 Trojan/140557."
    95. http://www.warbirdregistry.org/t28registry/t28-140659.html "T-28 Trojan/140659."
    96. Web site: YAT-28E. Helen Murphy. 27 April 2017. 3 February 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200203163537/http://www.t28trojanfoundation.com/yat-28e.html. dead.

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