T-28B-144scale-02-InFlight-Wing-Left

The North American Aviation T-28 Trojan is a piston-engined military trainer aircraft used by the United States Air Force and United States Navy beginning in the 1950s. The Navy acquired the T-28, manufactured by North American Aviation, to use as a basic trainer from 1952-1984, replacing the venerable SNJ. Navy T-28s were derived from an Air Force trainer design, the T-28A, with one very notable exception in that they had twice as much horsepower.

The T-28 had the look, feel, sound, and power of early World War II fighters, something the Navy desired it to have when it entered training service mid-century. Powerful but predictable, the aircraft was an ideal trainer, although it was not pressurized and lacked ejection seats. Cockpit instrumentation, although adequate for instrument flight, would be considered primitive by today's standards. There were two naval variants, the T-28B, of which 489 were produced, and the T-28C, equipped with arresting gear for carrier training, of which 299 were made. The prop on the T-28C described an arc nine inches shorter than the T-28B and was flat on the ends of the blades. Together with the tailhook, the aircraft could be readily distinguished apart from the T-28B.  Besides its use as a trainer, the T-28 was successfully employed as a counter-insurgency aircraft, primarily during the Vietnam War. It has continued in civilian use as an aerobatics and Warbird performer.

This 1/144 scale model of the T-28B is a slightly modified version of a 1/350 scale model that was one of the first models I designed a few years ago. The “model” is actually two models, one “In-Flight”, and the other “On the Deck”. The “In-Flight” version consists of 5 parts, including a single piece canopy and a spinning propeller, and has a pilot hole incorporated into the underside of the fuselage to accommodate a 1/8” rod for displaying the model in-flight.  The “On the Deck” version consists of 10 parts including landing gear, a 3-piece canopy for displaying the canopy open, and a stationary propeller. Although the airframes are slightly different, both propellers and canopies may be used on either of them.