The sleek Hawk jet trainer, developed by British company Hawker Siddeley, took to the skies for the first time exactly half a century ago. The debut took place at the aircraft manufacturer’s site in Dunsfold, Surrey.
The company’s chief test pilot, Duncan Simpson, was at the controls as the two-seat design completed its 53-minute maiden flight, taking the single-engine aircraft to a maximum altitude of 20,000 feet and speeds of up to 310 knots (573 km/h) and performing stall approaches with center and full flap settings.
We report on this milestone in our issue of August 29, 1974. Flight International Simpson reported, saying: “The approach and landing went very smoothly and we ended the flight with a fully operational aircraft.”
The following day, he put the aircraft through its paces again, extending its flight range to 27,000 feet and 400 knots before project pilot Andy Jones flew the type for the first time on August 22.
“There is no doubt that the Hawk will prove to be an excellent training aircraft,” Simpson said. “It flew well and was very quiet in flight. It was exceptionally comfortable and visibility was excellent.”
Production of the Hawk began for the British Royal Air Force (RAF) as part of an order for 175 T1 model training aircraft, and operations began in November 1976, with the new model replacing the RAF’s Folland Gnat design.
In total, just over 1,000 examples of this type were produced in a variety of standards, including the T-45 Goshawk, built by Boeing to meet the training requirements of the US Navy (USN), which included landing on aircraft carrier decks.
A single-seat light attack version of this type was also developed, branded as the Hawk 200. Although this model was produced in limited numbers, it is still in service in three customer countries: Indonesia (21), Malaysia (12) and Oman (10), according to Cirium fleet data.
The 50 of the Falconth The anniversary was one of the themes at this year’s Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT), which included a commemorative flight with aircraft from the air forces of Finland, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Great Britain.
The UK’s last modern Hawk T1 aircraft used as jet trainers were retired in March 2022, but the RAF’s Red Arrows aerobatic team continues to fly this version. A 28-aircraft fleet of younger T2 trainers is also operated from the base at Valley on Anglesey in North Wales.
Production of the Hawk has ceased; the last examples – built for Qatar and the Saudi Air Force – were delivered by BAE Systems at the beginning of this decade.
Data from Cirium shows that 433 Hawks are still in military service in 13 countries and the US Navy flies 189 T-45s.
The three largest Hawk users are India with 119 aircraft (102 Air Force and 17 Navy), Saudi Arabia (81) and Great Britain (44). Other countries that use this type are Australia, Bahrain, Kuwait, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates.
In addition, civilian company RAVN Aerospace operates 10 N-registered Hawks for adversary and pilot training after acquiring surplus jets retired from the Republic of Korea Air Force. Canada, Kenya, Switzerland and Zimbabwe were also former users of the type.
