North American AT-6 Texan Photo Album No. 2

WASP Ann “Rooney” Atkeison, Class of 44-10, suited up and ready to fly an AT-6 Texan trainer, 1944.

 

North American AT-6 Texan has its radial engine steam cleaned by a worker at Tinker Field in this undated photo during the mid-1940s during a major overhaul and likely upgrade to T-6G designation.

 

North American AT-6C Texan trainers on flight line at Eagle Pass Army Airfield, 1944. AT-6C-NT Texan s/n 41-32989 in foreground. Note "EP" stenciled on the fuselage to identify aircraft as an Eagle Pass AAF aircraft.

 

AT-6C Texans in flight over Eagle Pass Army Airfield, 1944.

 

WASP Florene Miller Watson boarding an AT-6 Texan at Love Field on 2 February 1943.

 

North American AT-6 Texan, 9 April 1945.

 

Three aviation machinist's mates working on a North American SNJ Texan training plane, Jacksonville Naval Air Station, 1944.

 

SNJ-1 1552 first of 16 produced; circa 1940.

 

Mechanics check the engine of an SNJ at Kingsville Field, NATC, Corpus Christi, Texas. November 1942. Kingsville, Corpus Christi, November 1942.

 

Early prototype (NA-32) fuselage.

 

Early prototype (NA-32) rear cockpit.

 

North American SNJ-4 of HQ Sqd FAW-4, circa 1944-45.

 

North American SNJ-4 Gen. Inspector of Naval Aircraft, 1943. Note red border to National Insignia.

 

North American SNJ-4 doing a "wingover", circa 1942.

 

North American SNJ-4 from NAS Corpus Christi in March 1943.

 

North American SNJ-4.

 

U.S. Navy North American SNJ-4 Texans.

 

U.S. Navy North American SNJ-4 Texan.

 

A cameraman films a North American T-6 Texan aboard the U.S. Navy aircraft carrier USS Yorktown (CVS-10) during the filming of the movie "Tora! Tora! Tora!", in December 1968. Most "Japanese" aircraft (in this case a Mitsubishi A6M2 Zero) were modified North American T-6 Texan trainers.

 

North American SNJ-3 BuNo 6924 US Navy.

 

North American SNJ-3 BuNo 6955.

 

North American SNJ-3C Texan training aircraft tied to the flight deck aboard the training aircraft carrier USS Wolverine on Lake Michigan, United States, 1942.

 

The Deck Officer gives an SNJ-3C Texan the go-ahead to launch from the training aircraft carrier USS Wolverine on Lake Michigan, United States, 26 April 1943.

 

North American SNJ-5C launching off USS Sable, 1945.

 

North American SNJ lands on board USS Sable as another goes around, 10 June 1943.

 

North American SNJ trapping on board USS Sable, 10 June 1943.

 

A Landing Signal Officer (LSO) guides a North American SNJ-3 trainer to a landing aboard the U.S. Navy training carrier USS Wolverine (IX-64) in Lake Michigan, in January 1943.

 

North American SNJ-3C launching off  USS Wolverine, 2 November 1942.

 

LSO/Pilot in SNJ on board USS Sable, circa 1943-44.

 

SNJ makes the 50,000th landing on USS Sable, May 1945.

 

Argentine North American NA-16-1P or NA-34 with fuselage uncovered.

 

Argentine North American NA-16-1P or NA-34 lineup.

 

North American NA-16 prototype NX2080 before enclosed canopy installed.

 

North American NA-16 prototype NX2080 with early enclosed canopy.

 

North American NA-22.

 

The sole NA-16-1A in California prior to its delivery to Australia. Notice the aircraft appears to have a mast to support the radio antenna in this photograph.

 

NA-16-1A. Notice that no aerial mast is evident in this photo.

 

NA-16-1A. Notice that no aerial mast is evident in this photo.

 

NA-16-1A. The corrugated skin on the horizontal stabilizer (as well as the tail fin) is evident in this image. The NA-16-1A arrived in Australia on August 9, 1937 and made its first flight on September 3 in the hands of Squadron Leader F.R.W. Scherger. Flight tests on the NA-16-1A at Point Cook continued until September 15. In 1936 an Australian Commission visited the United States and began negotiations with the company North American, to acquire a manufacturing license to produce an Australian version of this aircraft. Negotiations were finalized in 1937 and the Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation (CAC) took delivery of this aircraft plus one other (NA-16, A20-1) for evaluation and testing by the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). The Australian version was known as the Wirraway, with production deliveries to the RAAF, commencing in 1939. Wirraway's were used operationally (often with disastrous results) and as advanced trainers during the Second World War. Production ceased in 1946 after 755 examples had been manufactured by the CAC.

 

A North American NA-33 (NA-16-2K/Wirraway) two seat aircraft with the Australian registration number A20-2, parked on the flight line at Point Cook, Victoria.

 

North American NA-57 formerly French Air Force, in Luftwaffe service.

 

Sk 14 - North American NA-16-4M Swedish Air Force.

 

North American NA-16 aircraft in flight over RAAF Point Cook. This aircraft and a North American NA-33 aircraft (with retractable undercarriage) were given the serial numbers A20-1 and A20-2 after being imported from America for evaluation as production prototypes. Development of these aircraft types resulted in the Wirraway aircraft which was built in Australia by the Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation. Circa 1938.

 

North American Yale radio equipment.

 

Cockpit of North American Yale.

 

North American BT-14A: 27 BT-14s were re-engined with 400 hp (298 kW) Pratt & Whitney R-985-11.

 

North American NA-64 trainers captured from the French and in Luftwaffe service.

 

North American BT-14 basic trainer in flight; circa 1940.

 

North American BT-9B.

 

North American BT-9A.

 

North American BT-9 trainers flight line maintenance at Randolph Field, circa 1942.

 

North American BT-9 during night flying training near Randolph Field, Texas.

 

North American NJ-1 (NA-28) US Navy version of BT-9, June 20, 1937.

 

North American NJ-1, US Navy.

 

North American NJ-1, US Navy.

 

A U.S. Navy North American NJ-1 (BuNo 0947) assigned to Naval Air Station Anacostia, Washington, D.C. 1938-40.

 

North American Aviation then started producing the BT-14 (NA-57), with a steel fuselage and a more powerful Wright R-985 450hp (336kW) engine. 251 were built for the USAAC, and several planes were sold to foreign countries like France, which bought 230 NA-57s. When the armistice was signed with Germany at the end of France’s Campaign in June 1940, 119 planes that had not been delivered yet were delivered to Canada and the UK and renamed Yale I. On June 25, 1940, a handful of aircraft managed to escape to southeastern France (especially to Hyères), but a dozen had to be abandoned because of the German progress.

 

North American BT-14; Randolph Field.

 

USS Drayton (DD-366) underway at sea, off the U.S. West Coast; c. October 1941. Photographed from a Navy SNJ aircraft, whose starboard wing is in the foreground. Note Drayton's camouflage, which was the source of her contemporary nickname "The Blue Beetle".

 

Martin JM-1 Marauder and North American SNJ Texan aircraft parked near the main airship hangar, circa 1944. The JM-1s are painted yellow for use as target tugs. Nine L-Type blimps are flying in a line-abreast formation in the distance.

 

Aviation Machinist's Mate Mary Arnold, USNR(W) jumps down from atop the fuselage, while working on a SNJ training plane at Naval Air Station, Jacksonville, Florida; 4 November 1943.

 

Aviation Machinist's Mates Bernice Sanbury (left) and Mary Arnold removing an access panel behind the engine of a SNJ training plane, at Naval Air Station, Jacksonville, Florida; November 1943.

 

WAVES Aviation Machinist's Mates (AMM) working on a SNJ training plane and its Pratt & Whitney R-1340 radial engine; c. 24 July 1943. They are (from left to right) Seaman 1st Class (AMM) Inez Waits, Seaman 1st Class (AMM) Lucille H. Henderson, Seaman 1st Class (AMM) Mary Anne Gasser, AMM 3rd Class Helen Adams, and Seaman 1st Class (AMM) Leona Curry.

 

WAVES Aviation Machinist's Mates working on a SNJ training plane at Naval Air Station, Pensacola, Florida; 5 March 1944. Note stenciled note on the port wing trailing edge (lower left): "Wings marked thus * must be used in pairs, due to aileron movement."

 

North American SNJ Texan trainer plane revs its engine (P&W R-1340) while chocked on the flight deck of USS Charger (CVE-30) during training OPS; May 1944.

 

North American SNJ Texan trainers fly in echelon of Vs formation; 20 August 1942. These planes are operating out of NAS Corpus Christi, Texas.

 

North American SNJ Texan; NAS Miami, Florida, 9 April 1943. Free gunnery student with .30 cal. machine gun in the rear seat position.

 

North American SNJ Texan training aircraft ready for a flight at a Naval Air Station during World War II. The pilot checks conditions before boarding for takeoff.

 

North American SNJ-3 of first Marine Aircraft wing, flying in formation with a USMC/Curtiss SBC-4 Seagull during the spring of 1942. Both planes are in use as trainers. Note tail markings of style used January-May 1942. (The black bar in the upper left corner is a tape repair to the original negative.)

 

Formation of SNJ training planes flies over Corry Field's (Florida) tower building, in salute to Free French personnel in training there during World War II. Note French flag.

 

Student aerial photographer, with Fairchild F-56 camera, with 8¼-inch focal, in the rear seat of an SNJ training plane; February 1944.

 

Pilot and student aerial photographer, with a K-20 camera, in SNJ trainer discuss a mission; February 1944.

 

North American SNJ Texan trainer aircraft taxis past a display of international flags, at a Naval Air Station during World War II. Flags identifiable are, left to right, Mexico Columbia, United Kingdom, USA, Cuba and Chile.

 

A .30 cal. machine gun and gunner in the rear seat position of a SNJ training plane; NAS Miami, Florida, 9 April 1943. Gunner was attending free gunnery school.

 

Two North American SNJ trainers (left) one of which bears the marking "N.A.S. Lakehurst" shares the parking area with three Douglas SBD-3s of VS-5, at N.A.S. Quonset Point, R.I. on 14 November 1941. A Lockheed PBO-1 is at far right, coded 32-P-1, indicating its assignment to VP-82.

 

Aerial photography student with a Fairchild F-56 camera, with 8¼-inch focal, in the rear seat of a North American SNJ training plane; NAS Pensacola, February 1944. Note fire extinguisher panel in the plane’s side.

 

Harvard NA-31 (NA-16-4M) in Sweden. Virtually the same as the BT-9C, the only differences were the Wright R-975-E3 engine and Goodyear tires. The NA-31 was scrapped in November 1949 after some 1881 hours of flying. The Swedish air force designation was Sk 14.

 

North American Harvard Mk.II NZ916 advanced trainer during assembly at the Aircraft Assembly Unit, RNZAF Station Hobsonville. It had arrived aboard the merchant ship Limerick in May 1941 and was assembled at Hobsonville. Brought On Charge on 20 May 1941, it served with No.1 Service Flying Training School at RNZAF Station Wigram, Christchurch, before transferring to No.2 SFTS at RNZAF Station Woodbourne. It was used as an advanced trainer for fighter pilots. It crashed and burned at Woodbourn.

 

Dutch Harvard NA-27 (NA-16-2H) demonstrator in Air Force colors. It was lost at De Vlijt when destroyed by Bf 110s on 11 May 1940.

 

North American Harvard Mk I.

 

North American Harvard Mk.II advanced trainer NZ912 during assembly at the Aircraft Assembly Unit, RNZAF Station Hobsonville. It had arrived aboard the merchant ship Wairuna in March 1941 and was assembled at Hobsonville. Brought On Charge on 14 March 1941, it served with No.1 Service Flying Training School at RNZAF Station Wigram, Christchurch, before transferring to No.2 SFTS at RNZAF Station Woodbourne. It was used as an advanced trainer for fighter pilots.

 

Pilots A. F. Coggan and J. F. Lawless climb into the cockpit of a North American Harvard Mk.II, at No.4 Service Flying Training School, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, October 4, 1940.  The camouflage paint scheme on these particular Harvards is the same scheme applied to Mk.I Harvards supplied to the RAF for use in the UK where camouflage was a necessity. The scheme was also worn by UK-based Fairey Battles and other aircraft. There weren't many Harvard Mk.IIs that came to Canada in this scheme (direct from the makers). Perhaps revised instructions hadn't reached North American yet.

 

North American Harvard Mk.I RAF.

U.S. Army Air Corps North American BC-1, the initial production version with 600hp R-1340-47 engine, circa 1938.

 

USAAF North American AT-6A (NA-78) (41-16069) in flight. In this excellent shot Mo Chung Yung is shown at the controls with instructor in the rear flying.

 

This picture graced the cover of the 19 July 1943 Life magazine. The woman is Shirley Slade, a World War II WASP pilot of B-26 and B-29s.