The Air Force had 492 T-38A/C jets and 442 T-6s as of Sept. The T-38 is also used to teach fighter fundamentals. The T-6s are turboprop aircraft that teach basic flying skills, while the supersonic T-38 is used to prepare fighter and bomber pilots for their operational aircraft. The grounding affects 40 percent of the T-38 fleet and 15 percent of the T-6 fleet. The aircraft affected are spread among all USAF Undergraduate Pilot Training bases as well as Naval Air Station Pensacola, Fla. “Our instructor pilots accomplish an incredibly important and demanding mission every day, and we owe them safe and reliable aircraft.” “We will not return aircraft affected by this issue to the flying schedule until we’re confident their escape systems are fully functional,” he said. Craig Wills said in an emailed statement. The 203 T-38 Talons and 76 T-6 Texan IIs potentially affected are grounded until further notice “out of an abundance of caution,” Air Education and Training Command’s 19th Air Force commander Maj. The grounding, which went into effect July 27, affects nearly half the T-38 fleet.
Concerns about potentially faulty ejection seat parts have prompted the Air Force to ground 279 trainer aircraft until inspections can be performed to assure that the aircraft are safe to fly.
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