Cessna T-37B Tweet

In 1952 the U.S. Air Force released a requirement for a new jet powered primary trainer. In all eight companies sent in 15 design proposals. Cessna’s design for a small twin-engine aircraft with side-by-side seating was selected for development and the first flight was made on October 12, 1954. The original production version of the T-37 was considered to be underpowered, but later versions with a new engine corrected this. Eventually all T-37A versions were upgraded to T-37B standards. The plane’s unofficial, but universally used nickname of Tweety Bird or Tweet was derived from the very high-pitched sound made by the aircraft’s jet engines. More than a dozen countries have use the T-37 for training and light attack duties and a specialized attack version the A-37 was developed for export. A total of 1,269 T-37 were built with the last one leaving the assembly line in 1967. The U.S. Air Force continues to use several hundred Tweets in their pilot training program.