Beechcraft T-6 Texan II

T-6 Texan II
A USAF T-6A Texan II flying from Randolph Air Force Base.
General information
TypeTrainer aircraft
National originUnited States
ManufacturerTextron Aviation
StatusIn service
Primary usersUnited States Air Force
Number built900 (August 2015)
History
Manufactured2000–present
Introduction date2001
First flight15 July 1998 [1]
Developed fromPilatus PC-9

The Beechcraft T-6 Texan II is a single-engine turboprop aircraft built by Textron Aviation. A trainer aircraft based on the Pilatus PC-9, the T-6 replaced the United States Air Force's Cessna T-37B Tweet and the United States Navy's T-34C Turbo Mentor during the 2010s.

The T-6A is used by the United States Air Force for basic pilot training and Combat Systems Officer (CSO) training, the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps for primary Naval Aviator training and primary and intermediate Naval Flight Officer (NFO) training, and by the Royal Canadian Air Force (CT-156 Harvard II designation), Greek Air Force, Israeli Air Force (with the "Efroni" nickname), and Iraqi Air Force for basic flight training. The T-6B is the primary trainer for U.S. student naval aviators (SNAs). The T-6C is used for training by the Mexican Air Force, Royal Air Force, Royal Moroccan Air Force, and the Royal New Zealand Air Force.

  1. ^ Bill Kinzig; Dave Bailey (2010). T-6A Texan II Systems Engineering Case Study (PDF) (Report). Center for Systems Engineering at the Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT/SY). p. 49. Retrieved 1 March 2023. First flight of the initial production aircraft occurred on July 15, 1998, at the contractor's field in Wichita.