The Glenn L. Martin
Maryland Aviation Museum
The Museum is closed at Martin State Airport and will reopen at the Maryland Aerospace Heritage Center, 2323 Eastern Blvd, in the Spring. Private Tours and School Workshops will continue to be available.
Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star
Developed from Lockheed’s P/F-80 Shooting Star, the first operational jet aircraft in the U.S. Air Force, it was used to train pilots already qualified to fly propeller-driven aircraft. First flown in 1948 and in production until 1959, it became the most widely used advanced jet trainer in the world. The Museum’s T-33 was flown by helicopter to Martin State Airport in 1994.
T-33 Shooting Star ….. Fast Facts
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This 2 place jet aircraft was designed for training pilots already qualified to fly propeller-driven aircraft. It was developed from the single-seat F-80 fighter.
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Originally designated the TF-80C, the T-33 made its first flight on 22 March 1948.
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A total of 6,557 Shooting Stars were produced between 1948 and 1959. Lockheed made 5,691, Kawasaki made 210 and Canadair made 656.
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The T-33 was the only jet trainer in the USAir Force inventory from 1948 to the advent of the Cessna T-37 in 1957 and the Northrop T-38 in 1961. It also served as a utility aircraft as well as a test aircraft and was retired from service in the early 1980s.
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The T-33 was also used as a trainer by the US Navy and the air forces of more than 38 other countries.
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A limited number of T-33s have found their way into private hands. They have been used by Boeing as a chase aircraft. In 2010, one of two T-33 Shooting Stars owned by Boeing was used as a chase aircraft during the maiden flight of the Boeing 787.
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The Museum’s T-33 (Serial No. 53-5854) was last flown by the New York Air National Guard. It was acquired from Aberdeen Proving Grounds and airlifted to the Museum site by a Chinook helicopter in the mid-1990s. It was repainted to represent a T-33 flown by the Maryland Air National Guard and given a fictitious tail number.