A jet trainer is a jet aircraft for use as a trainer, whether for basic or advanced flight training. Jet trainers are either custom designs or modifications of existing aircraft. With the introduction of military jet-powered aircraft towards the end of the World War II it became a requirement to train pilots in the handling of such aircraft.
The first generation of trainers in the 1940s were modified from existing designs like the Gloster Meteor and Lockheed T-33 but with these were followed by custom training aircraft like the Aero L-29 Delfín and the BAC Jet Provost.
As training developed different air forces used jet trainers for different phases of training. Although most air forces continued to use piston or later turboprop aircraft for basic training, a number of jet trainers like the Cessna T-37 Tweet appeared for the early stages of pilot training. Pilots who were picked to fly fighter or strike aircraft then went on to fly more advanced training aircraft like the Hawker Siddeley Gnat.
As the early jet-trainers became obsolete then further generations have appeared, the British using the single-engine BAE Systems Hawk while the French ordered the Dassault/Dornier Alpha Jet. In the Warsaw Pact the Aero L-39 Albatros became the standard jet trainer.
As the jet trainer developed it was also used for weapon training, which led to some trainers being modified as light strike aircraft; for example, the Cessna T-37 Tweet was developed into the Cessna A-37 Dragonfly.
Modern jet trainers are structurally strengthened in order to allow high stress maneuvers and aerobatics.
Below is a list of some current and former jet trainers
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| Aircraft | Country | 1st flight | No. built | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aermacchi MB-326 | Italy | 1957 | 800 | Limited service |
| Aermacchi MB-339 | Italy | 1976 | 230 | Operational [1] |
| Aero L-29 Delfín | Czechoslovakia | 1959 | 3,500 | Operational |
| Aero L-39 Albatros | Czechoslovakia | 1968 | 2,800 | Operational [1] |
| Aero L-39NG | Czech Republic | 2018 | 4 | In development |
| Aero L-59 Super Albatros | Czechoslovakia | 1986 | 60 | Operational [1] |
| Aero L-159 Alca | Czech Republic | 1997 | 72 | Operational [1] |
| AIDC AT-3 Tzu Chung | Republic of China | 1980 | 63 | Operational [1] |
| AIDC T-5 Brave Eagle | Republic of China | 2020 | 5 | Operational [2] |
| BAC Jet Provost | United Kingdom | 1954 | 741 | Retired |
| BAE Hawk | United Kingdom | 1974 | 1,000 | Operational [1] |
| Boeing–Saab T-7 Red Hawk | United States / Sweden | 2016 | 3 | In development |
| CASA C-101 | Spain | 1977 | 166 | Operational [1] |
| Canadair CT-133 Silver Star | Canada | 1952 | 656 | Retired |
| Canadair CT-114 Tutor | Canada | 1960 | 212 | Retired |
| Cessna T-37 Tweet | United States | 1954 | 1,269 | Limited service [1] |
| Dassault/Dornier Alpha Jet | France / Germany | 1973 | 480 | Operational [1] |
| Douglas TA-4E/J Skyhawk | United States | 1954 | 547 | Operational |
| Fiat G.80 | Italy | 1951 | 4 | Retired |
| FMA IA 63 Pampa | Argentina | 1984 | 27 | Operational [1] |
| Fokker S.14 Machtrainer | Netherlands | 1951 | 21 | Retired |
| Folland Gnat | United Kingdom | 1955 | 105 | Retired |
| Fouga Magister | France | 1952 | 929 | Retired |
| Fouga Zéphyr | France | 1959 | 32 | Retired |
| Fuji T-1 | Japan | 1958 | 66 | Retired |
| Mitsubishi T-2 | Japan | 1971 | 90 | Retired |
| Grumman F9F-8T/TF-9J Cougar | United States | 1951 | 400 | Retired |
| HAL HJT-16 Kiran | India | 1964 | 190 | Operational [1] |
| HAL HJT-36 Sitara | India | 2003 | 6 | Limited series production |
| HESA Yasin | Iran | 2019 | 2 | In development |
| Hispano HA-200 | Spain | 1955 | 212 | Retired |
| Hongdu JL-8/Karakorum-8 | People's Republic of China / Pakistan | 1990 | 700 | Operational [1] |
| Guizhou JL-9 | People's Republic of China | 2003 | 20 | Operational |
| Hongdu JL-10 | People's Republic of China | 2006 | 100 | Operational [1] |
| IAR 99 | Romania | 1985 | 28 | Operational |
| KAI T-50 Golden Eagle | South Korea | 2002 | 82 | Operational [1] |
| Kawasaki T-4 | Japan | 1985 | 208 | Operational [1] |
| Leonardo M 346 Master | Italy | 2004 | 68 | Operational [1] |
| Lockheed T-33 | United States | 1948 | 6,557 | Retired |
| Lockheed T2V SeaStar | United States | 1953 | 150 | Retired |
| McDonnell Douglas T-45 Goshawk | United States | 1988 | 221 | Operational [1] |
| Morane-Saulnier MS.760 Paris | France | 1964 | 165 | Retired |
| North American T-2 Buckeye | United States | 1959 | 1,146 | Operational |
| Northrop T-38 Talon [3] | United States | 1958 | 529 | Operational [1] |
| PZL I-22 Iryda | Poland | 1985 | 17 | Retired |
| PZL TS-11 Iskra | Poland | 1960 | 424 | Retired |
| Saab 105 | Sweden | 1963 | 192 | Operational |
| Soko G-2 Galeb | Yugoslavia | 1961 | 248 | Limited service |
| Soko G-4 Super Galeb | Yugoslavia | 1978 | 85 | Operational [1] |
| SIAI-Marchetti S.211 | Italy | 1981 | 60 | Operational [1] |
| TAI Hürjet | Turkey | 2023 | 1 | In development |
| Temco TT Pinto | United States | 1956 | 15 | Retired |
| Yakovlev Yak-130 | Russia | 1996 | 186 | Operational [1] |
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