Many aviation purist would probably complain about this but, in our book, this is cool. This would be the favorite ride for the kids of aviation enthusiasts.It would be for us for sure!
This USAF Lockheed T-33A “Shooting Star” ,Serial Number 53-5421,it is on loan to the Town of Los Gatos by the United States Air Force and it is located in the Oak Meadow Park. The aircraft has been in the playground area since July, 1974. It was manufactured by Lockheed Aircraft, Burbank, California and delivered to the USAF in December, 1954.The two-seat T-33 jet was designed for training pilots already qualified to fly propeller-driven aircraft. As one of the best-known aircraft world-wide, it has served with the armed forces of more than 20 different countries for almost 40 years. Production of T-33’s was from March 1948 through August 1959, about 5,691 T-33’s were built.
This T-33 has been on loan since 1974 and is a kid favorite. Concrete has been poured into the plane to prevent children crawling inside and becoming trapped (which used to happen.) You can also see the steps that allow even little kids to pretend they are jet pilots.
Numerous T-33s have been preserved as museum and commemorative displays , a pretty updated list can be found on Wikipedia . Some of the most popular T-33 “Shooting Star” still flying today are Doug Matthews ,the one of the “T-33 Heritage Foundation.”, the T-33 ACE Maker and CT-33 Golden Hawk. Based on a very rough estimate at less then 50 T-33s are still operated as privately-owned warbirds.
