SNJ-5 Airbase Arizona
Description:
Base:
Mesa, AZ
Website:
| SNJ-5 Specs | |
|---|---|
| Role | Trainer |
| Manufacturer | North American Aviation |
| Introduced | 1935 |
| Power | 1 × Pratt & Whitney R-1340-AN-1 Wasp radial engine, 600 hp |
| Length | 29 ft |
| Height | 11 ft 8 in |
| Wingspan | 42 ft |
| Range | 730 miles |
Wartime Mission: Trained several hundred thousand pilots in 34 countries. Named “the pilot maker” by its crews, it was a trainer aircraft with all the characteristics of a high-speed fighter with more maneuverability and easier handling. It was designed to give the best possible training in all types of tactics, from ground strafing to bombardment and aerial dog-fighting, and contained such versatile equipment as bomb racks, blind-flying instrumentation, gun and standard cameras, fixed and flexible guns, and just about every other device that military pilots had to operate.
Today, the SNJ-T6 Texan established a unique racing class at the Reno National Air Races and is a regular participant at air shows. It’s made many movie appearances including Tora, Tora, Tora; A Bridge Too Far, and many more.
