Iconic 'pilot-maker' marks 75 years in the skies

There was no mistaking the muscular roar of the big radial engine as the most famous trainer to come out of World War II soared above this rural Virginia town.
This year marks the 75th anniversary of the North American T-6 Texan, the big tandem-seat warbird in which countless pilots from dozens of countries honed their flying skills.
This weekend, some 30 Texans will set off from Culpeper, 115 kilometres outside Washington, and fly up the Potomac River, over the Pentagon and Arlington National Cemetery, to mark a unique aeronautical milestone.
"There's a lot of history in this airplane. It trained so many air forces in the world," said Len "Stoney" Stonich of the North American Trainer Association, which represents owners, pilots and fans of the estimated 1,000 civilian-owned Texans around the world.

"They called it 'the pilot-maker' because if you can fly the T-6, you can be up in any World War II fighter and be confident you can fly the airplane," he told AFP.
Known as the SNJ in its US Navy version, and the Harvard in Canada's air force, the Texan distinguished itself with its agile handling and aerobatic qualities as it prepared fighter pilots for combat in Europe and Asia.

It remained in US military service through the Korean War in 1950-53 and into the Vietnam era -- and kept flying for many other air forces for even longer, until South Africa retired its fleet in 1995.

In its day, the Texan represented the cutting edge of aviation technology, a mere 35 years after the Wright brothers' first flight on a North Carolina beach.
More than 20,000 were built, most of them in Texas -- hence the name -- of which more than 500 have been restored to flying condition in the US.
With its 600-horsepower Pratt & Whitney Wasp radial engine, the Texan can fly 200 miles per hour as its pilots enjoy a commanding view of the skies above and the ground below from within a sliding glass canopy.
Given how many were built, it remains the most popular of all World War II aircraft that turn heads at summer airshows all over North America.

The Culpeper Airfest will attract 70 vintage aircraft and an estimated crowd of 10,000 this weekend.