CANADAIR T-33 SILVERSTAR The Backstory
CANADAIR T-33 SILVERSTAR The Backstory


Our Silverstar’s history is marked more by longevity than high drama. After training thousands of pilots for the Royal Canadian Air Force during 1954–1961, the jet took a rest, and then spent more than 20 years working for military aircraft research, development, and exhibition at the Civilian Flight Test Center in Mojave, California. But read on—the development of the T-33 illustrates “perfection in design” backed by eccentricity, genius, and some rank sweat that kept people at the right arm’s length.
After being commissioned to build the fighter jet North America needed, the Lockheed Corporation turned the project over to their loose cannon—namely, Clarence “Kelly” Johnson. A true eccentric, Johnson and his brilliant crew worked out of a shop that started out as a lean-to built from salvaged lumber. Though the facility was named “Skunk Works” to signify that the group should be left alone, the fact that the shop started out with no windows or air conditioning likely ensured that anyone not involved kept a safe distance. Johnson’s team was legend for producing aircraft that exceeded performance expectations, ahead of schedule and under budget. After delivering the P/F-80 and the T-33 Shooting Star, the team continued for decades at the forefront of aviation, giving us the most advanced jets ever produced—including the SR-71, F-117 Stealth, and the YF-72.