Boeing

The T-45 Goshawk fleet at Naval Air Station Kingsville has logged its 200,000th flight hour.

U.S. Navy Capt. Scott W. Vance, Commander, Training Air Wing Two, was at the controls of the T-45 during the flight on March 5. Capt. Vance, who has flown more than 3,800 flight hours -- including 355 in the Goshawk -- was on a training flight when he reached the 200,000 flight hour mark.

T-45s have made more than 12,000 arrested landings aboard aircraft carriers since entering service at Naval Air Station Kingsville in 1992. More than 760 aviators have earned their wings in the T-45.

The T-45 is the heart of the first totally integrated naval aviator training system developed for and used by the U.S. Navy. Undergraduate jet pilot training first began at Naval Air Station Kingsville in January 1994. In December 1997, Naval Air Station Meridian, Miss., took delivery of the first T-45C -- the new digital cockpit-equipped T-45. Since arriving on station, the T-45C has logged more than 6,800 flight hours.

Ultimately, the T-45 trainer will replace the remaining T-2C Buckeyes and TA-4J Skyhawks in service with the U.S. Navy.

"Today there are T-2, TA-4 and T-45 jet trainers on the flight line at Naval Air Station Meridian," said Rear Admiral Michael T. Bucchi. "By the end of September 1999, there will be no more TA-4s on that line. And if you walk that flight line in 2003, the only jet trainer on the ramp will be T-45s."

But the T-45 Training System is about more than just the airplane. The system encompasses the complete training system package -- including a support package, advanced flight simulators, computer-assisted instructional programs and a computer-based training integration system.

The 100th T-45 Goshawk, a "C" model, was delivered to the U.S. Navy Jan. 20. Plans call for Naval Air Station Meridian to have a full complement of 90 T-45Cs by 2003. The T-45A fleet at Naval Air Station Kingsville will be upgraded to the T-45C configuration beginning in 2004. Current plans call for the U.S. Navy to purchase 234 T-45s.

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