Temco TT Pinto
| TT Pinto | |
|---|---|
| 300px | |
| Temco TT-1 in testing | |
| Role | Jet Trainer |
| Manufacturer | Temco Aircraft |
| First flight | 26 March 1956 |
| Introduction | 1959 |
| Retired | 1960 |
| Primary user | United States Navy |
| Number built | 15 |
The Temco TT Pinto was a jet-powered, tandem two-place primary trainer aircraft built for the United States Navy by Temco Aircraft of Dallas, Texas.
Contents
Design and development
The Temco Model 51 had been initially proposed to the US Air Force in response to an Air Force competition for a jet-powered primary trainer, which was won by the Cessna T-37 Tweet. The concept behind the Model 51 was an attempt to provide primary training in a jet-powered aircraft. The official name for the Model 51 was the Pinto.
The Pinto was a mid-wing, tricycle landing gear trainer with an enclosed cockpit powered by a single Continental Motors J69-T-9 (license-built Turbomeca Marboré) jet engine. The aircraft carried no armament.
The TT-1s were equipped with many of the same features found in operational jets, including ejection seats, liquid oxygen equipment, speed brakes, along with typical flight controls and instrument panels. Although the flight characteristics were considered good, the "wave off" capability was rated marginal due to being slightly underpowered.
After its first flight in 1956, the prototype was sent to the Naval Air Test Center (NATC) Patuxent River to be evaluated alongside the Beech Model 73 Jet Mentor. Fourteen of the aircraft, designated TT-1, were produced between 1955 and 1957.
AJI T-610 Super Pinto
In 1968, American Jet Industries (AJI) (later to become Gulfstream Aerospace) re-engined a TT-1 Pinto, replacing the J69 with a 2,850 lbf (12.7 kN) General Electric CJ610 (the civil version of the J85), with the modified aircraft, the T-610 Super Pinto, flying on 28 June 1968.[1] The new engine significantly increased performance, with maximum speed reaching 450 kn (518 mph; 833 km/h), and AJI marketing the aircraft as a light attack aircraft.[1][2]
The prototype Super Pinto, together with drawings and production rights, were purchased by the Philippines Air Force, which planned to build the aircraft as the T-610 Cali.[3]
Operational history
In 1959, these aircraft served in the Air Training Command at Pensacola, Florida and used in a training program demonstration testing the feasibility of using a jet-powered trainer for primary flight training.
In March 1959, Aviation Cadet E. R. Clark soloed in a TT-1, the first student in naval aviation history to solo a jet without previous experience in propeller aircraft.[citation needed]
By the end of 1960, the TT-1s were phased out of operations in the Naval Air Training Command and sold as surplus.[why?]
Survivors
Seven of the TT Pinto series currently appear on the U.S. civil roster with four being Super Pintos.[4]
One T-610 prototype is preserved at the Philippine Air Force Museum.
Variants
- TT-1 Pinto
- Two-seat primary jet trainer aircraft.
- American Jet Industries T-610 Super Pinto
- Re-engined with 2,850 lbf (12.7 kN) General Electric CJ610-6 turbojet.[1]
Operators
Specifications (TT-1)
Data from Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1956–57[5]
General characteristics
- Crew: two
- Length: 30 ft 7 in (9.33 m)
- Wingspan: 29 ft 10 in (9.09 m)
- Height: 10 ft 10 in (3.30 m)
- Wing area: 150 sq ft (13.9 m2)
- Loaded weight: 4,440 lb (2,018 kg)
- Powerplant: 1 × Teledyne CAE YJ69-T-9 turbojet, 920 lbf (4.01 kN)
Performance
- Never exceed speed: 518 mph (450 knots, 834 km/h)
- Maximum speed: 345 mph (300 knots, 556 km/h) at 15,000 ft (4,600 m)
- Cruise speed: 247 mph (215 knots, 398 km/h) at 25,000 ft (7,600 m)
- Stall speed: 69 mph (60 knots, 111 km/hr)
- Endurance: 1.5 hr
- Service ceiling: 30,000 ft (9,145 m)
- Rate of climb: 1,900 ft/min (9.7 m/s)
See also
- Aircraft of comparable role, configuration and era
References
Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Taylor 1971, p. 223.
- ↑ Field Flight International 16 October 1976, p. 1185.
- ↑ Flight International 1 March 1980, p. 680.
- ↑ Murphy, Kevin. One of the seven is a Super Pinto kept flying by the World Heritage Air Museum at Detroit City Airport. "TT-1 Pinto." Warbird Alley. Retrieved: 8 November 2009.
- ↑ Bridgman 1956, p. 342.
Bibliography
- Bridgman, Leonard. Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1956–57. New York: The McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1956.
- Dillon, Mike. "Will lovely loser become super winner?" Air Progress, Vol. 24, no. 3, March 1969.
- Field, Hugh. "Launch Pad for Hustler." Flight International, 16 October 1976, pp. 1184–1185.
- "Military Aircraft of the World." Flight International, pp. 641–694.
- Taylor, John W. R. Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1971–72. London: Sampson Low, Marston & Co. Ltd, 1971. ISBN 0-354-00094-2.
- Taylor, Michael J.H. Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation (Vol. 5). Danbury, Connecticut: Grolier Educational Corporation, 1980. ISBN 0-7106-0710-5.
Further reading
- Frankel, Mark. Temco TT-1 Pinto (Naval Fighters Nº72). Simi Valley, California: Ginter Books, 2007. ISBN 0-942612-72-8.
External links
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