Textron Aviation Defense announced the delivery of the 1,000th Beechcraft T-6C Texan II aircraft and the achievement of the 5 million flight hour milestone across the global T-6 fleet. All Beechcraft T-6 Texan II aircraft are designed and manufactured at the company’s Wichita, Kansas facilities.
“It’s an honour to celebrate the 1,000th delivery of a truly legendary aircraft,” said Ron Draper, president and CEO of Textron Aviation. “The world’s most advanced global air forces and pilots trust us to deliver a great aircraft that enables them to make the world a better, more secure place. Our world-class workforce goes above and beyond to design, manufacture, deliver and support the world’s premier military flight trainer. It is an honour that partner nations continue to put their confidence in the Beechcraft T-6 Texan II as the gold standard in training capabilities.”
The 1,000th T-6 military flight trainer was delivered to the Colombian Air Force. The fleet of five T-6C Texan II trainers equip Air Combat Command No. 1 (CACOM-1) with its initial slate of Beechcraft T-6C Texan II advanced military training aircraft at the Capitan Germán Olano Moreno Air Base in Palanquero, Colombia.
The global fleet of Beechcraft T-6 Texan II Integrated Training Systems (ITS) encompasses five variants, which were manufactured on an active production line with an industry-leading Manufacturing Readiness Level (MRL) rating of 10.
- Leading the fleet are the Joint Primary Aircraft Training System (JPATS) T-6A and T-6B aircraft — operated by the United States Air Force and the United States Navy, respectively.
- The T-6C is an exportable military flight trainer.
- The T-6C+ is an exportable armed variant of the T-6C.
- The T-6D is operated by the United States Army.
“Together, our team has crafted an integrated training system that is the world’s most advanced, most sought-after capability for producing pilots — in particular, 4th and 5th gen pilots,” said Tom Hammoor, president & CEO of Textron Aviation Defense LLC. “Our nation has relied on the T-6 for more than 20 years to train its flight students. Prior to that, the United States relied on the Beechcraft T-34 Turbo Mentor, the Beechcraft T-34 Mentor and the Cessna T-37 Tweet. That means that every pilot across the Department of Defense has learned to fly in a Beechcraft or Cessna aircraft for nearly 70 years.”
The fleet of 1,000 Beechcraft T-6 Texan II trainers empower global pilot capabilities across 13 nations and two North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) flight schools. Operators of the T-6 include:
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Additionally, the U.S. Air Force recently announced a 14th nation will acquire the T-6C via a Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program leveraging 2021 and 2022 Building Partnership Capacity funds.
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