Beechcraft T-6 Texan II

The Beechcraft T-6 Texan II is a single-engine turboprop aircraft built by the Raytheon Aircraft Company (which became Hawker Beechcraft and later Beechcraft Defense Company, and was bought by Textron Aviation in 2014). A trainer aircraft based on the Pilatus PC-9, the T-6 has replaced the Air Force's Cessna T-37B Tweet and the Navy's T-34C Turbo Mentor. The T-6A is used by the United States Air Force for basic pilot training and Combat Systems Officer (CSO) training and by the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps for Primary and Intermediate Naval Flight Officer (NFO) training. The T-6A is also used as a basic trainer by the Royal Canadian Air Force (CT-156 Harvard II), the Greek Air Force, the Israeli Air Force (Efroni), and the Afghan Air Force. The T-6B is the primary trainer for U.S. Student Naval Aviators. The T-6C is used for training by the Royal Moroccan Air Force, the Royal New Zealand Air Force, and the Mexican Air Force.

Variants

 * Model 3000: Company designation.
 * T-6A Texan II: Standard version for the USAF, USN, and Hellenic Air Force.
 * T-6A NTA Texan II: Armed version of the T-6A for the HAF. T-6A NTA has the capability to carry rocket pods, gun pods, external fuel tanks, and bombs.
 * T-6B Texan II: Upgraded version of the T-6A with a digital glass cockpit that includes a Head-Up Display (HUD), six multi-function displays (MFD) and Hands on Throttle And Stick (HOTAS), used at Naval Air Station Whiting Field, Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, and United States Naval Test Pilot School.
 * AT-6B Wolverine: Armed version of the T-6B for primary weapons training or light attack roles. It has the same digital cockpit, but upgraded to include datalink and integrated electro-optical sensors along with several weapons configurations. Engine power is increased to 1,600 shp (1193 kW) with the Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6-68D engine, and the structure is reinforced.
 * T-6C Texan II: Upgraded version of the T-6B with wing hard points, primarily designated for export sales.
 * T-6D Texan II: Version based on T-6B and C for the US Army for operational support, testing, utility, and chase plane roles.
 * CT-156 Harvard II: Version of the T-6A for NFTC with the Canadian Forces. Nearly identical to standard USAF and USN in terms of avionics, cockpit layout, and performance.

Users

 * Afghanistan
 * Afghan Air Force - 40 (16 x T-6A and 24 x T-6C)
 * Argentina
 * Argentine Air Force - 12 x T-6C
 * Canada
 * Royal Canadian Air Force - 56 x CT-156
 * Colombia
 * Colombian Air Force - 8 x T-6C
 * Greece
 * Hellenic Air Force - 25 x T-6A and 20 x T-6A NTA
 * Israel
 * Israeli Air Force - 26 x T-6A
 * Mexico
 * Mexican Air Force - 48 x T-6C+
 * Mexican Navy - 2 x T-6C+
 * Morocco
 * Royal Moroccan Air Force - 24 x T-6C
 * New Zealand
 * Royal New Zealand Air Force - 12 x T-6C
 * Thailand
 * Royal Thai Air Force - 12 x T-6TH; 8 x AT-6B
 * Tunisia
 * Tunisian Air Force - 12 x T-6C - 8 more on order
 * United Kingdom
 * Royal Air Force - 14 x T-6C
 * Royal Navy
 * United States
 * United States Air Force - 450 x T-6A
 * United States Army - 4 x T-6D
 * United States Navy - 326 x T-6
 * Vietnam
 * Vietnam People's Air Force

Related Development

 * Pilatus PC-9

Comparable Aircraft

 * Embraer EMB 314 Super Tucano
 * Fuji T-7
 * KAI KT-1 Woongbi
 * PZL-130 Orlik
 * Pilatus PC-21
 * Short Tucano
 * TAI Hürkuş
 * UTVA Kobac