Lockheed T-33A "Shooting Star"

The Lockheed T-33A “Shooting Star,” based on the design of the P-80 “Shooting Star,” began training pilots as they transitioned from propeller-driven to jet aircraft at the end of World War II. Lockheed modified the design of a P-80C from one seat to two and added room for the trainer by slightly lengthening the fuselage. Originally designated the TP-80C, the T-33A made its first flight in May 1948. The old saying is, “every military jet pilot in the free world has spent time in a T-33.” It has flown with the air forces of more than twenty countries for over forty years.

The two “Shooting Stars,” the P-80 and its subsequent trainer the T-33, hold the title of being the only fighter jets designed with straight wings.

Originally delivered to the US Air Force in 1950 with serial #0-61767, our T-33 sports the livery of the last T-33 flown by the 48th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron at Langley Air Force Base in the late 1980s. Special thanks to Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation and Dallas Paint Shop for their support with this project. This Lockheed T-33A “Shooting Star” is on loan from the National Museum of the US Air Force.