Hobby Master HA5412 USAF Northrop T-38A Talon Jet Trainer - 62-3702, 7th Fighter Training Squadron, Langley AFB, Virginia, 2023 (1:72 Scale)
"Television brought the brutality of war into the comfort of the living room. Vietnam was lost in the living rooms of America - not on the battlefields of Vietnam."
- Marshal McLuhan
The Northrop T-38 Talon is a two-seat, twin-engine supersonic jet trainer. It was the world's first supersonic trainer and is also the most produced. The T-38 remains in service as of 2013 in air forces throughout the world.
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the largest operator of the T-38. In addition to training USAF pilots, the T-38 is used by NASA. The US Naval Test Pilot School is the principal US Navy operator (other T-38s were previously used as USN aggressor aircraft until replaced by the similar Northrop F-5 Tiger II). Pilots of other NATO nations fly the T-38 in joint training programs with USAF pilots.
As of 2012, the T-38 has been in service for over 50 years with its original operator (the USAF).
Pictured here is a 1:72 scale replica of a USAF Northrop T-38A Talon jet trainer that was attached to the 7th Fighter Training Squadron, then deployed to Langley AFB, Virginia, during 2023.
Pre-order! Ship Date: January 2025.
Dimensions:
Wingspan: 4-1/4-inches
Length: 7-3/4-inches
Release Date: ?
Historical Account: "Talons Out" - The inactivation of the 7th, however, was brief as it was reactivated on May 15th, 2008, as the 7th Fighter Squadron, and equipped with the Lockheed Martin F-22A Raptor. The 7th was the first of two F-22 squadrons to be activated at Holloman. The squadron was equipped with 18 F-22s transferred from the 3rd Wing at Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska, the last aircraft being received in late 2009.
After its reactivation, the 7th Fighter Squadron deployed frequently to overseas locations in support of United States objectives. The 7th Fighter Squadron, better known as the "Screamin' Demons", maintained combat readiness to deploy worldwide in accordance with Secretary of Defense taskings. Operating the F-22A Raptor, the squadron provided air dominance in the world's most dangerous threat arenas.
In 2012, it was announced that the 7th Fighter Squadron was to move its support personnel and aircraft to Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida, in the spring of 2013 to comply with the Air Force's F-22 fleet consolidation plan. In return, the squadron was to receive General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft from Luke Air Force Base, Arizona as part of a training restructuring plan to move the F-16 Training School from Luke to Holloman. Luke AFB is scheduled to begin the Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II training mission in October 2005. In August 2013, it was announced however, that the United States Congress enacted a freeze on U.S. Air Force structure changes, including aircraft transfers. These moves were reviewed and in April 2014 the last of the F-22s were sent to Tyndall. The squadron was inactivated a month later, on May 2nd.
Currently, the 7th FTS is equipped with the Northrop T-38 Talon. The squadron was redesignated the 7th Fighter Training Squadron and activated in November 2021 at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia, assigned to the 1st Operations Group