British Aerospace Hawk S/N XX292 & Grumman F-11A S/N 141824

BRITISH AEROSPACE HAWK T.1A

The Hawk is a two-seat subsonic trainer developed by Hawker Siddeley as a replacement for the Folland Gnat in 1968. The Hawk has served as the main advanced jet trainer for the Royal Air Force for more than forty years. The prototype Hawk made its first flight on August 21, 1974, with the first aircraft entering service in 1976. The T.1A version of the Hawk included modifications allowing the carrying of Sidewinder missiles and a gun pod under the fuselage for air-to-air weapons training. Versions of the Hawk have served with numerous military forces outside of England. The United States Navy uses an aircraft carrier capable version called the Goshawk for advanced pilot training and carrier qualification.


GRUMMAN F-11A (F11F-1) TIGER

Begun as a supersonic variant of the F9F Cougar the Tiger quickly evolved into an entirely new design with its own designation, F11F-1. The Tiger showed great early promise as a fighter, but the rapid advancement of aviation technology in the 1950s resulted in the plane’s obsolescence even before it entered service. Tigers served in front line squadrons for only four years before they were replaced by the F-8 Crusader. Tigers continued in use in training and testing programs and with the Blue Angels up to the end of the 1960s. The last two flying Tigers were used in a program to test an inflight thrust reverser and made the last Tiger flights in 1975.

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