Fly-by-Wired: T-38

Fly by Wired is primarily a story of people shaped by their experiences growing up trying to find their places in the world, only to find themselves caught up in a plot to "tear down the whole system." But the characters are not only shaped by their experiences with each other, but with the aircraft in their histories. One of those that impacted two of the characters is the Northrop T-38 "Talon."

— James Albright

Updated:

2023-12-15

Though no longer used by the U.S. Air Force as a jet trainer, for my time in the Air Force it was the airplane used to qualify for Air Force pilot wings. It was a fine airplane but not forgiving of mistakes. Between 1960 and 2007, 195 were destroyed wth 81 fatalities. During my year of pilot training (1979) we lost four aircraft but everyone survived.

One of the more notable claims to fame is that it was used by the Air Force aerial demonstration team, The Thunderbirds, from 1974 to 1983. Another notable fact is that the aircraft set several world time-to-climb records in 1962, such as from sea level to 30,000 feet in just 60 seconds. In Fly by Wired, Fiona Lawless flew the T-38 during Undergraduate Pilot Training (UPT) and Introduction to Fighter Fundamentals (IFF). John Praeger also flew the T-38 during UPT.