Lockheed T2V SeaStar

Starting in 1949, the U.S. Navy used the Lockheed T-33 for land-based jet aircraft training. The T-33 was a derivative of the Lockheed P-80/F-80 fighter and was first named TO-2, then TV-2 in Navy service. However, the TV-2 was not suitable for operation from aircraft carriers. The persisting need for a carrier-compatible trainer led to a further, more advanced design development of the P-80/T-33 family, which came into being with the Lockheed designation L-245 and USN designation T2V. Lockheed's demonstrator L-245 first flew on 16 December 1953 and production deliveries to the US Navy began in 1956.[1]

Compared to the T-33/TV-2, the T2V was almost totally re-engineered for carrier landings and at-sea operations with a redesigned tail, naval standard avionics, a strengthened undercarriage (with catapult fittings) and lower fuselage (with a retractable arrestor hook), power-operated leading-edge flaps (to increase lift at low speeds) to allow carrier launches and recoveries, and an elevated rear (instructor's) seat for improved instructor vision, among other changes. Unlike other P-80 derivatives, the T2V could withstand the shock of landing on a pitching carrier deck and had a much higher ability to withstand sea water-related aircraft wear from higher humidity and salt exposure.

The only version of the T2V was initially designated T2V-1 when it entered service, but was redesignated T-1A SeaStar under the 1962 United States Tri-Service aircraft designation system, the designation under which it would spend the majority of its career.

The T-1A was replaced by the North American T-2 Buckeye but remained in service into the 1970s.

T-1 Seastar in airworthy condition at Salt Lake City Airport in 1994. Still operational in 2011.

 United States

• United States Navy
• United States Marine Corps

As of 2017, one T2V-1A airworthy, based at Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport (former Williams Air Force Base) in Mesa, Arizona,[2] and being flown for experimental and display purposes. Two examples are preserved on public display in Tucson, Arizona.[3]

3-view line drawing of the Lockheed T2V-1 Seastar

Data from Lockheed Aircraft since 1913[4]

General characteristics

• Crew: Two (student & instructor)
• Length: 38 ft 6.5 in (11.75 m)
• Wingspan: 42 ft 10 in (13.06 m)
• Height: 13 ft 4 in (4.06 m)
• Wing area: 240 sq ft (22.3 m²)
• Empty weight: 11,965 lb (5,427 kg)
• Gross weight: 15,500 lb (7,031 kg)
• Max takeoff weight: 16,800 lb (7,636 kg)
• Powerplant: 1 × Allison J33-A-24/24A turbojet, 6,100 lbf (27 kN) thrust

Performance

• Maximum speed: 580 mph (933 km/h, 504 kn) at 35,000 ft (10,670 m)
• Range: 970 mi (1,560 km, 843 nmi)
• Service ceiling: 40,000 ft (12,190 m)
• Rate of climb: 6,330 ft/min (32 m/s)

Related development

• Lockheed T-33
• Lockheed P-80 Shooting Star

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era

• Douglas TA-4 Skyhawk
• Fouga CM.175 Zéphyr
• Grumman F9F-8T Cougar
• North American T-2 Buckeye

Notes

Bibliography

• Francillon, René J. Lockheed Aircraft since 1913. London:Putnam, 1982. ISBN 0-370-30329-6.
• Ginter, Steve. Lockheed T2V-1/T-1A Seastar. Naval Fighters #42. Simi Valley, California: Ginter Books, 1999. ISBN 978-0-942612-42-4.
• Ogden, Bob. Aviation Museums and Collections of North America. 2007. Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd. ISBN 0-85130-385-4.
• Swanborough, Gordon, with Bowers, Peter M. United States Navy Aircraft since 1911. 1990. Putnam Aeronautical Books. ISBN 0-87021-792-5.
• Green, William, with Gerald Pollinger. The Aircraft of the World. New York; Doubleday & Co., 1965. P. 255.
• Green, William, with Dennis Punett. MacDonald World Air Power Guide. London; Purnell & Sons, Ltd. (reprinted by Doubleday), 1963. P. 28.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Lockheed T2V SeaStar.

• Naval Aviation Chronology 1954–1959 chapter from United States Naval Aviation 1910–1995 book. Archived 14 March 2007 at the Wayback Machine