The BAC Jet Provost is a British

jet trainer A jet trainer is a jet aircraft for use as a Trainer (aircraft), 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 ai ...

aircraft that was in use with the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...

(RAF) from 1955 to 1993. It was originally developed by Hunting Percival from the earlier

piston engine A reciprocating engine, more often known as a piston engine, is a heat engine that uses one or more Reciprocating motion, reciprocating pistons to convert high temperature and high pressure into a Circular motion, rotating motion. This article ...

-powered

Percival Provost The Percival P.56 Provost is a basic trainer aircraft that was designed and manufactured by British aviation company Hunting Aircraft, Percival. During the 1950s, the Provost was developed for the Royal Air Force (RAF) as a replacement for the ...

basic trainer, and later produced by the

British Aircraft Corporation The British Aircraft Corporation (BAC) was a British aircraft manufacturer formed from the government-pressured merger of English Electric, English Electric Aviation Ltd., Vickers-Armstrongs, Vickers-Armstrongs (Aircraft), the Bristol Aeroplane ...

(BAC). In addition to the multiple RAF orders, the Jet Provost, sometimes with light armament, was exported to many air forces worldwide. The design was also further developed into a more heavily armed

ground attack Close air support (CAS) is defined as aerial warfare actions—often air-to-ground actions such as strafes or airstrikes—by military aircraft against hostile targets in close proximity to friendly forces. A form of fire support, CAS requires ...

variant under the name BAC Strikemaster.

Development

Origins

In early 1951, Hunting Percival began work on the design studies that would ultimately lead to the Jet Provost. At the time, the company was in the process of establishing mass production for the earlier piston-engined

basic trainer, but had anticipated that demand for a jet-powered trainer aircraft would be on the horizon. The design team aimed to produce an aircraft capable of equalling the handling characteristics of operational jet fighters of the era while also possessing modest approach and stall speeds and remaining simple to handle, as opposed to aiming to obtain maximum performance. Hunting Jet Provost T

During the early design process, a series of increasingly frequent liaisons with RAF Flying Training Command took place, helping to gauge the considerations required to succeed in aspects of the proposed aircraft's design, such as instructional processes and maintenance requirements. During development, Hunting Percival had intentionally reused as many existing components and subsystems of the Percival Provost as possible, including the tail surfaces, main planes and main undercarriage legs, to speed development through to the prototype stage. The initial design work was performed as a private venture, independent of any service requirement; in March 1953, sponsorship from the British Government to support the development was made available as a result of interest from the

Ministry of Supply The Ministry of Supply (MoS) was a department of the UK government formed on 1 August 1939 by the Ministry of Supply Act 1939 ( 2 & 3 Geo. 6. c. 38) to co-ordinate the supply of equipment to all three British armed forces, headed by the Ministe ...

. That same month, an order for service-test quantity of Jet Provosts was received.''Flight International'', 6 May 1955, p. 587.

Prototypes and evaluation

On 26 June 1954, the prototype ''XD674'' conducted its

maiden flight The maiden flight, also known as first flight, of an aircraft is the first occasion on which it leaves the ground under its own power. The same term is also used for the first launch of rockets. In the early days of aviation it could be dange ...

from the factory at

Luton Airport London Luton Airport is an international airport located in Luton, England, situated east of the town centre, and is the fourth-busiest airport serving London. The airport is owned by London Luton Airport Limited, a company wholly owned by ...

, flown by Dick Wheldon.''Flight International'' 13 June 1958, p. 795. A series of seven flights were flown in quick succession over the following three days. By early November 1954, a total of 123 flying hours had been accumulated by the prototype during Hunting Percival's own flight test program, after which the prototype was submitted for official trials at RAF Boscombe Down. While testing proved the overall performance of the Jet Provost to be satisfactory, refinements were made, such as shortening the legs of the landing gear for a smoother ride when deployed at semi-prepared airstrips. On 19 February 1955, the first of ten pre-production aircraft, designated as the ''Jet Provost T1'', performed its first flight. In May 1955, three of the pre-production aircraft were assigned for the first stage of service trials with the

Central Flying School The Central Flying School (CFS) is the Royal Air Force's primary institution for the training of military flying instructors. Established in 1912 at the Upavon Aerodrome, it is the longest existing flying training school in the world. The sch ...

(CFS) of the RAF to determine the value of the Jet Provost in the ''

ab initio ( ) is a Latin term meaning "from the beginning" and is derived from the Latin ("from") + , ablative singular of ("beginning"). Etymology , from Latin, literally "from the beginning", from ablative case of "entrance", "beginning", related t ...

'' training role and to develop a syllabus for the training program. During the second stage of CFS trials using the same three aircraft, actual students were introduced to the type for practical evaluation purposes, which was performed at RAF Hullavington until the successful completion of trials on 2 July 1956. According to feedback from CFS examiners, the Jet Provost had noticeably improved the performance of students during its trial deployment.''Flight International'' 13 June 1958, p. 796.

Further development

As a result of the results and responses produced from the trials performed using the pre-production aircraft, Hunting Percival proceeded to develop and incorporate several different improvements upon the design. Amongst the changes made was an overall smoothing of the fuselage lines,

hydraulic Hydraulics () is a technology and applied science using engineering, chemistry, and other sciences involving the mechanical properties and use of liquids. At a very basic level, hydraulics is the liquid counterpart of pneumatics, which concer ...

systems being substituted for

pneumatic Pneumatics (from Greek 'wind, breath') is the use of gas or pressurized air in mechanical systems. Pneumatic systems used in Industrial sector, industry are commonly powered by compressed air or compressed inert gases. A centrally located a ...

counterparts, and the addition of a dorsal fillet; the new model was designated as the ''Jet Provost T2''. On 1 September 1955, the first Jet Provost T2 made its first flight. This variant was used only for development work; in addition to seeing use at Hullavington, three Jet Provost T2s were dispatched overseas for winterization trials in

Scandinavia Scandinavia is a subregion#Europe, subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also ...

and a series of sales tours across

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, the

United States of America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguo ...

, and

Latin America Latin America is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geogr ...

. In June 1957, a production order was placed for the first 40 of the developed ''Jet Provost T3'', featuring a more powerful

Armstrong Siddeley Viper The Armstrong Siddeley Viper is a British turbojet engine developed and produced by Armstrong Siddeley and then by its successor companies Bristol Siddeley and Rolls-Royce Limited. It entered service in 1953 and remained in use with the Ro ...

jet engine, ejector seats, a redesign of the airframe, and a shortened and strengthened version of the retractable tricycle undercarriage. Percival built a single example, which was used purely for structural tests throughout the development stages, giving the designers valuable research into what could be achieved with the basic design. On 22 June 1958, the first Jet Provost T.3 conducted its first flight. In total, 201 T3s were delivered between 1958 and 1962. The ''T4'' followed in 1960, fitted with a more powerful variant of the Viper engine and first flown on 15 July, and this was followed by the pressurised ''T5'' in 1967. The ''T51'' was an armed export version, sold to Ceylon (present day

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

), Kuwait and Sudan. It was armed with two 7.7-mm (0.303-inch) machine guns. The ''T52'' was another export version sold to Iraq,

South Yemen South Yemen, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen, abbreviated to Democratic Yemen, was a country in South Arabia that existed in what is now southeast Yemen from 1967 until Yemeni unification, its unification with the Yemen A ...

, Sudan and Venezuela, with the same armament as the T51. The ''T55'' was the final armed export version which was sold to Sudan. A more heavily armed variant of the airframe was developed as the BAC Strikemaster.

Design

The BAC Jet Provost is a dedicated jet-powered trainer aircraft; according to aviation publication ''

Flight International ''Flight International'', formerly ''Flight'', is a monthly magazine focused on aerospace. Published in the United Kingdom and founded in 1909 as "A Journal devoted to the Interests, Practice, and Progress of Aerial Locomotion and Transport", i ...

'', it has the distinction of being the first ''

'' jet trainer to be standardised by any air force. As designed, it was intended for the Jet Provost to replace, rather than accompany, the use of piston-engine trainer aircraft. The Jet Provost incorporates numerous features to support students during training. The aerodynamic design deliberately avoids speed, instead focusing on favourable handling characteristics and ease of recovery from stall and

spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spin (physics) or particle spin, a fundamental property of elementary particles * Spin quantum number, a number which defines the value of a particle's spin * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thr ...

conditions. An emphasis was placed on flexibility, enabling use of the type throughout a range of training operations.''Flight International'' 13 June 1958, p. 798. The cockpit of the Jet Provost, and much of the operational equipment fittings, is essentially identical to that of the preceding

. It features a side-by-side seating arrangement, both positions being fitted with duplicated flight controls and instrumentation, which is well suited to the pupil-instructor pairing. The dual flight controls employs conventional manually-controlled

flight control surfaces Flight control surfaces are aerodynamic devices allowing a pilot to adjust and control the aircraft's flight attitude. The primary function of these is to control the aircraft's movement along the three axes of rotation. Flight control surfaces ...

via a cable-and-

tie rod A tie rod or tie bar (also known as a hanger rod if vertical) is a slender structural unit used as a tie and (in most applications) capable of carrying tensile loads only. It is any rod or bar-shaped structural member designed to prevent the separ ...

arrangement. A key feature for the era amongst the fittings in the cockpit is the Centralized Warning Panel, which alerts the pilots in the event of a number of unfavourable or hazardous conditions being detected, such as

icing conditions In aeronautics, icing is the atmospheric icing, formation of water ice on an aircraft. Icing has resulted in numerous aviation accidents and incidents, fatal accidents in aviation history. Ice accretion and accumulation can affect the external s ...

, fire, and oxygen failure. The high-flying capabilities of the Jet Provost necessitated the addition of an oxygen system in the cockpit, which was unpressurised on early production aircraft. The Jet Provost has an uncomplicated structure, the airframe being based on the Percival Provost, albeit being strengthened in key areas such as the main wing spar and featuring a substantially different undercarriage arrangement. It possesses an all-metal stressed-skin fuselage built in two sections, the forward section stretching from the rear of the engine bay to the nose comprises a double-frame to absorb the wing and engine loads, while the rear fuselage section uses an orthodox semi-monocoque structure. Major loads across the fuselage are supported by a combination of four

longeron In engineering, a longeron or stringer is a load-bearing component of a framework. The term is commonly used in connection with aircraft fuselages and automobile chassis. Longerons are used in conjunction with stringers to form structural fram ...

s and a single longitudinal beam across the upper-center line.''Flight International'', 6 May 1955, p. 582. The

ailerons An aileron (French for "little wing" or "fin") is a hinged flight control surface usually forming part of the trailing edge of each wing of a fixed-wing aircraft. Ailerons are used in pairs to control the aircraft in roll (or movement around ...

elevators An elevator (American English) or lift (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English) is a machine that vertically transports people or freight between levels. They are typically powered by electric motors that drive tracti ...

, and

rudder A rudder is a primary control surface used to steer a ship, boat, submarine, hovercraft, airship, or other vehicle that moves through a fluid medium (usually air or water). On an airplane, the rudder is used primarily to counter adverse yaw ...

are all attached to the airframe via two inset hinges each. The nose contains a hinged metal assembly, housing the

radio Radio is the technology of communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 3 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmitter connec ...

, batteries, and other electronic equipment, and is easily serviceable by ground crew. All fuel tankage is housed within the wings. Where possible, all components used were designed to maximized interchangeability and to conform with international standardisation; a total of 49 service panels across the aircraft's exterior provides access for maintenance and servicing.''Flight International'', 6 May 1955, p. 583.''Flight International'' 13 June 1958, p. 799. The Jet Provost is equipped with a single Armstrong Siddeley Viper 101

turbojet The turbojet is an airbreathing jet engine which is typically used in aircraft. It consists of a gas turbine with a propelling nozzle. The gas turbine has an air inlet which includes inlet guide vanes, a compressor, a combustion chamber, and ...

engine, which is mounted behind the cockpit in a roomy

stainless steel Stainless steel, also known as inox, corrosion-resistant steel (CRES), or rustless steel, is an iron-based alloy that contains chromium, making it resistant to rust and corrosion. Stainless steel's resistance to corrosion comes from its chromi ...

-lined engine bay upon a secondary steel-tube structure. Air is fed to the engine by a pair of

ram-air intake A ram-air intake is an intake design which uses the dynamic air pressure created by vehicle motion, or ram pressure, to increase the static air pressure inside of the intake manifold on an internal combustion engine, thus allowing a greater mass ...

s set on either side of the aircraft's forward fuselage connected via sharply-curving ducts to converge just forward of the engine itself. As supplied, each engine is delivered as a compact engine-change unit, comprising the engine itself, accessories, and oil tank. Both the hydraulic and electrical systems were driven via a fuselage-mounted accessories gearbox connected to the Viper engine by a telescopic drive.''Flight International'', 6 May 1955, p. 586. One particularly favourable aspect of the Viper engine is the low maintenance demands imposed for the era. Engine ignition is achieved via an electric starter system, the engine controls have been described as being of a conventional nature.

Operational service

The Jet Provost proved to be a capable trainer, being used in the ''ab initio'' Basic Trainer role from the outset (pilots progressed to the

de Havilland Vampire The de Havilland DH100 Vampire is a British jet fighter which was developed and manufactured by the de Havilland, de Havilland Aircraft Company. It was the second jet fighter to be operated by the Royal Air Force, RAF, after the Gloster Meteo ...

and later the

Folland Gnat The Folland Gnat is a British compact swept-wing subsonic aircraft, subsonic fighter aircraft that was developed and produced by Folland Aircraft. Envisioned as an affordable light fighter in contrast to the rising cost and size of typical comb ...

for Advanced Jet Training). After successful acceptance trials of the T1 during late 1955 at No. 2 Flying Training School at RAF Hullavington, the RAF formally accepted the type in 1957. The first production version was the T3, powered by the Viper 102, and this entered service with No. 2 FTS, located at RAF Syerston, during June 1959, when deliveries commenced from the Hunting Aircraft factory at

Luton airport London Luton Airport is an international airport located in Luton, England, situated east of the town centre, and is the fourth-busiest airport serving London. The airport is owned by London Luton Airport Limited, a company wholly owned by ...

. The T3 was also operated by

at RAF Little Rissington; the Royal Air Force College at

RAF Cranwell Royal Air Force Cranwell or more simply RAF Cranwell is a Royal Air Force List of Royal Air Force stations, station in Lincolnshire, England, close to the village of Cranwell, near Sleaford. Among other functions, it is home to the RAF Colleg ...

, Lincolnshire; by No. 1 Flying Training School at

RAF Linton-on-Ouse Royal Air Force Linton-on-Ouse or more simply RAF Linton-on-Ouse is a former Royal Air Force station at Linton-on-Ouse in North Yorkshire, England, north-west of York. It had satellite stations at RAF Topcliffe and Dishforth Airfield (Brit ...

, Yorkshire; 3FTS at

RAF Leeming Royal Air Force Leeming or more simply RAF Leeming is a Royal Air Force station located near Leeming, North Yorkshire, England. It was opened in 1940 and was jointly used by the RAF and the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF). Between 1950 and 19 ...

, Yorkshire; 6FTS at

RAF Acklington Royal Air Force Acklington, simply known as RAF Acklington, is a former Royal Flying Corps and Royal Air Force List of former Royal Air Force stations, station located southwest of Amble, Northumberland and north of Newcastle upon Tyne. The a ...

, Northumberland; and 7FTS at

RAF Church Fenton Royal Air Force Church Fenton or more simply RAF Church Fenton is a former Royal Air Force List of former Royal Air Force stations, station located south-east of Tadcaster, North Yorkshire, England and north-west of Selby, North Yorkshire, ne ...

, Yorkshire. The twin-seated side by side variant was also used at RAF Brawdy in Wales to train Forward Air Controllers. The later T4 was fitted with the more powerful Viper A.S.V. 11 of 2,500 lbs static

thrust Thrust is a reaction force described quantitatively by Newton's third law. When a system expels or accelerates mass in one direction, the accelerated mass will cause a force of equal magnitude but opposite direction to be applied to that ...

and first flew on 15 July 1960. It quickly entered service with the units listed above. The T5 variant was fitted with the Viper 201 and cockpit pressurisation. These developments encouraged the RAF to utilise the Jet Provost in a number of different roles besides basic training. With a top speed of 440 mph, excellent maneuverability, mechanical reliability and low operating costs, the Jet Provost was utilized as an

aerobatic Aerobatics is the practice of flying maneuvers involving aircraft attitudes that are not used in conventional passenger-carrying flights. The term is a portmanteau of "aeroplane" and "acrobatics". Aerobatics are performed in aeroplanes and gl ...

aircraft, air warfare and tactical weapons training as well as advanced training. The first T5 made its maiden flight on 28 February 1967 and deliveries from BACs Warton factory commenced on 3 September 1969. Operators of the T5 included the RAFs

and No. 1, No. 3 and No. 6 Flying Training Schools. Hunting Jet Provost 603 Iraq FAR 12

Besides service with the RAF, the Jet Provost found success in export markets. A single Jet Provost T2 was exported to Australia and was operated by the

Royal Australian Air Force The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) is the principal Air force, aerial warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Australian Army. Constitutionally the Governor-Gener ...

(RAAF) to evaluate the type for the purpose of providing 'all-through' jet-based training. Following a six-month evaluation period, the RAAF ultimately decided to retain the

to fulfill its requirements for a jet-powered trainer, and later replaced its Vampires with the Italian-built Aermacchi MB-326 during the late 1960s instead. The sole aircraft itself was retained, being presented to the Sydney Technical College for use as an instructional airframe, and was later preserved. Ceylon ordered 12 Jet Provost T51, these went into operational service in early 1960, one crashed in February 1960 following a flame out. The Provost were meant for pilot conversions for jets and intended as a stepping stone to introduce jet fighters to the Royal Ceylon Air Force (RCyAF). However these plans were scrapped due to defense cuts following the attempted coup in 1962 and by the late 1960s the remaining Provosts were mothballed. With the outbreak of the

1971 JVP insurrection The 1971 Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) insurrection (also known as the 1971 Revolt) was the first of two unsuccessful armed revolts conducted by the communist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) against the socialist United Front Government of ...

in April 1971, the RCyAF took out its mothballed Provosts and started a crash program to bring these to operational readiness in three days. These Provost carried out ground attack sorties on insurgent targets, vectored in by helicopters that used smoke bombs to mark targets for Provosts. One Provost crashed returning from a sortie and its pilot killed. Nigeria acquired two ex-Sudan Air Force Jet Provost T.51s in 1967, using them for training and ground attack purposes against

Biafra Biafara Anglicisation (linguistics), anglicized as Biafra ( ), officially the Republic of Biafra, was a List of historical unrecognized states and dependencies, partially recognised state in West Africa that declared independence from Nigeria ...

during the

Nigerian Civil War The Nigerian Civil War (6 July 1967 – 15 January 1970), also known as the Biafran War, Nigeria-Biafra War, or Biafra War, was fought between Nigeria and the Republic of Biafra, a Secession, secessionist state which had declared its independen ...

. Flown both by Nigeran and

mercenary A mercenary is a private individual who joins an armed conflict for personal profit, is otherwise an outsider to the conflict, and is not a member of any other official military. Mercenaries fight for money or other forms of payment rather t ...

pilots, they proved effective as in both roles, but efforts to obtain more Jet Provosts directly from Britain failed. The Jet Provost was withdrawn from RAF service during the early 1990s, having been replaced by the newer

turboprop A turboprop is a Gas turbine, gas turbine engine that drives an aircraft Propeller (aeronautics), propeller. A turboprop consists of an intake, reduction drive, reduction gearbox, gas compressor, compressor, combustor, turbine, and a propellin ...

-powered Short Tucano. ''Ab initio'' training had reverted to piston-engined aircraft in the early 1970s, using the Scottish Aviation Bulldog. The Jet Provost remains popular among private operators and enthusiasts; being an inexpensive jet, many have been acquired and maintained in a flightworthy condition by collectors and private individuals. Some are flown at airshows, whilst roughly equal numbers are maintained in ground-runnable condition at various locations, many of these being in the United Kingdom.

Variants

Operators

; *

evaluated a single T.2 in No. 1 Flying Training School RAAF for six months in 1959. ; * Royal Ceylon Air Force received 12 T.51s. ; *

Iraqi Air Force The Iraqi Air Force (IQAF; ) is the aerial warfare service branch of the Iraqi Armed Forces. It is responsible for the defense of Iraqi airspace as well as the policing of its international borders. The IQAF also acts as a support force for t ...

received 20 T.52s, with deliveries starting in August 1964. ; * Kuwait Air Force received six T.51s. ; *

Nigerian Air Force The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) is the air branch of the Nigerian Armed Forces. It is the youngest branch of the Nigerian Armed Forces, established four years after the nation became independent. As at 2021, the air force is one of the largest in A ...

received two ex-Sudanese T.51s in 1967. ; *

Portuguese Air Force The Portuguese Air Force () is the air force, aerial warfare force of Portugal. Locally it is referred to by the acronym FAP but internationally is often referred to by the acronym PRTAF. It is the youngest of the three branches of the Portuguese ...

evaluated the T.2B in 1959. (Returned to UK in 1960). ; *

Republic of Singapore Air Force The Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) is the aerial service branch of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) responsible for controlling and defending the airspace of the country, and providing air support to the Army and Navy. It was establis ...

operated three (ex-South Yemen Air Force) T.52s from 1975 until 1980. ; * People's Republic of Yemen Air Force (originally South Arabian Air Force) received four T.52As in 1967, and then four Strikemasters in 1970. ; * Sudan Air Force received four T.51s and eight T.52s in 1962. Five T.55s were ordered in 1966. ; *

No. 1 Flying Training School RAF The No. 1 Flying Training School (1 FTS) is the oldest military pilot training school in the world, currently used to deliver rotary training to aircrew of the British armed forces. History First formation (1919 – 1931) On 23 December 1919 ...

(1961-) ** No. 2 Flying Training School RAF (1955–70) ** No. 3 Flying Training School RAF (1961-) ** No. 6 Flying Training School RAF (1961-68 & 1970-88) ** No. 7 Flying Training School RAF (1962-66 & 1979-92) **

(1955-at least 1977) **

Royal Air Force College Cranwell The Royal Air Force College (RAFC) is the Royal Air Force academy which provides initial training to all RAF personnel who are preparing to become commissioned officers. The College also provides initial training to aircrew cadets and is resp ...

** RAF College of Air Warfare **

Central Air Traffic Control School The Defence College of Air and Space Operations is the UK's training establishment for all military Air Operations Branch such as air traffic controllers (ATCs), Weapons controllers, Identification Officers, Flight Operations personnel and Air a ...

; *

Venezuelan Air Force Bolivarian Military Aviation of Venezuela (), is a professional armed body designed to defend Venezuela's sovereignty and airspace. It is a service component of the National Bolivarian Armed Forces of Venezuela. Etymology The organization is al ...

received 15 T.52s.

Surviving aircraft

Jet Provost at Gippsland Armed Forces Museum

Australia

* The only Jet Provost T2 to enter service with the RAAF, ''A99-1'', is preserved at the

RAAF Museum RAAF Museum is the official museum of the Royal Australian Air Force located at RAAF Williams Point Cook, Victoria, Australia. The museum displays aircraft of significance to the RAAF from its inception as the Australian Flying Corps to the pre ...

, RAAF Williams, Point Cook, Victoria, Australia."A99 Jet Provost."
''RAAF Museum'', Retrieved: 21 April 2016. * A Jet Provost is outdoors in preservation at Gippsland Armed Forces Museum ( West Sale Airport,

VIC Vic, vic or VIC may refer to: People and fictional characters * Vic (name), a list of people, fictional characters and mascots with the given name * V.I.C. (rapper) (born 1987), stage name of an American rapper Places * Vic, Spain, a town and ...

)

Canada

* Jet Provost T4, ''XR679 (C-FDJP)'', is housed at the Jet Aircraft Museum, London International Airport,

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, Canada."BAC Jet Provost."
''Jet Aircraft Museum'', Retrieved: 21 April 2016.

Cyprus

* Jet Provost T4, ''XP666'' is privately owned at Pafos Airport, Cyprus.

Germany

* Jet Provost T4, ''XS217'' is privately owned in Germany.

Italy

* Jet Provost T3A, ''XM478'' is on display at Volandia - Parco e Museo del Volo, Somma Lombardo, Italy.

Jersey

* Jet Provost T4, ''XP573'' is at the Jersey Airport Fire Section, Channel Islands.

New Zealand

* Jet Provost T5A, ''XW357'', is on display at the National Transport and Toy Museum,

Wānaka Wānaka () is a popular ski and summer resort town in the Otago region of the South Island of New Zealand. At the southern end of Lake Wānaka, it is at the start of the Clutha River and is the gateway to Mount Aspiring National Park. Wānaka ...

, New Zealand.

Sri Lanka

* 2 Jet Provost T51s are on display at the Sri Lanka Air Force Museum, Rathmalana, Sri Lanka.

United Kingdom

* Jet Provost T1, ''XD674'' is located in Hangar 1 at Royal Air Force Museum Cosford. * Jet Provost T1, ''XM129'' (painted as XD693) is stored at North Weald Airfield. * Jet Provost T3, ''XM351'' is also located at Royal Air Force Museum Cosford. * Jet Provost T3, ''XN458'' was bought on

eBay eBay Inc. ( , often stylized as ebay) is an American multinational e-commerce company based in San Jose, California, that allows users to buy or view items via retail sales through online marketplaces and websites in 190 markets worldwide. ...

for £1,050 by a group of people formed for the purpose, the 458 Club. It was put on display after restoration, in the original 1960s colour scheme of 1 FTS, in the

beer garden A beer garden (German: ''Biergarten'') is an outdoor area in which beer and food are served, typically at shared tables shaded by trees. Beer gardens originated in Bavaria, of which Munich is the capital city, in the 19th century, and remain co ...

of the Standard Inn,

Northallerton Northallerton ( ) is a market town and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the River Wiske in the Vale of Mowbray and had a population of 16,832 in 2011. Northallerton is an administrative centre for York and North Yorkshire ...

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in Northern England.The Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority areas of City of York, York and North Yorkshire (district), North Yorkshire are in Yorkshire and t ...

, England, whose

landlord A landlord is the owner of property such as a house, apartment, condominium, land, or real estate that is rented or leased to an individual or business, known as a tenant (also called a ''lessee'' or ''renter''). The term landlord appli ...

Paul Greig found and

snipe A snipe is any of about 26 wading bird species in three genera in the family Scolopacidae. They are characterized by a very long, slender bill, eyes placed high on the head, and cryptic/ camouflaging plumage. ''Gallinago'' snipe have a nearly ...

-bid for the aircraft. Now located at Fishburn Historic Aviation Centre, Fishburn airfield, County Durham. * Jet Provost T3, ''XN637'' (registered as "G-BKOU" for civilian use) is owned by a private group and flies from North Weald Airfield. * Jet Provost T3A ''XM350'', is on display at

South Yorkshire Aircraft Museum The South Yorkshire Aircraft Museum (SYAM) is a volunteer-led museum located at Lakeside in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. It occupies the former site of the Royal Air Force Station, RAF Doncaster. The museum occupies the last remaining o ...

, along with

cockpit A cockpit or flight deck is the area, on the front part of an aircraft, spacecraft, or submersible, from which a pilot controls the vehicle. The cockpit of an aircraft contains flight instruments on an instrument panel, and the controls th ...

sections of T3 ''XM411'', T3 ''XN511'' and T4 ''XS216.'' * Jet Provost T3A, ''XM405'' (registered as "G-TORE" for civilian use), is located on a private farm in Market Harborough. * Jet Provost T3A, ''XM412'', is located on the airfield at Balado, near

Kinross Kinross (, ) is a burgh in Perth and Kinross, Scotland, around south of Perth, Scotland, Perth and around northwest of Edinburgh. It is the traditional county town of the Counties of Scotland, historic county of Kinross-shire. History Kinro ...

, Scotland. * Jet Provost T3A, ''XM414'', is located at the Ulster Aviation Society at Long Kesh,

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

. * Jet Provost T3A, ''XM479'' (registered as "G-BVEZ" for civilian use), is owned by a private group and flies from Leeds East Airport. * Jet Provost T3A, ''XN459'', (registered as "G-BWOT" for civilian use) is owned by a private group and flies from North Weald Airfield. * Jet Provost T3A, ''XN582'', is preserved at the Yorkshire Air Museum, Elvington,

York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...

, England. The museum has also acquired T3A ''XN589'' with the closure of nearby

and is restoring it. * Jet Provost T3A, ''XN586'', is on display at the Brooklands Museum,

Weybridge Weybridge () is a town in the Borough of Elmbridge, Elmbridge district in Surrey, England, around southwest of central London. The settlement is recorded as ''Waigebrugge'' and ''Weibrugge'' in the 7th century and the name derives from a cro ...

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

, England. * Jet Provost T4, ''XP556'', is at Cranwell Aviation Heritage Museum, North Rauceby, Lincolnshire, England. * Jet Provost T4, ''XP557'', is at Dumfries and Galloway Aviation Museum,

Dumfries Dumfries ( ; ; from ) is a market town and former royal burgh in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, near the mouth of the River Nith on the Solway Firth, from the Anglo-Scottish border. Dumfries is the county town of the Counties of Scotland, ...

, Scotland. * Jet Provost T4, ''XP568'' is on static display at East Midlands Aeropark. * Jet Provost T4, ''XP627'', is on display at North East Land, Sea and Air Museums,

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a port at the mouth of the River Wear on the North Sea, approximately south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is the most p ...

Tyne and Wear Tyne and Wear () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North East England. It borders Northumberland to the north and County Durham to the south, and the largest settlement is the city of Newcastle upon Tyne. The county is ...

, England. * Jet Provost T4, ''XP640'', is preserved at the Yorkshire Air Museum, Elvington, York, England, along with the cockpit section of T3 ''XM373''. * Jet Provost T4, ''XS209'', is located at the Solway Aviation Museum, Carlisle Lake District Airport, England. * Jet Provost T4, ''XS228'', converted to T52A for South Arabia and exported as ''G-27-7'' before serialled as ''104'', then South Yemen AF still as ''104'' until 1975, then ''352'' for Royal Singapore Airforce until 1980. Purchased by private owners in UK in 1983 with new reg ''G-PROV''. Flown most recently flying in original Southern Arabian markings as ''G-PROV'' but marked as ''104'' until at least 2023, current status unclear. * Jet Provost T5A, ''XW290'', is stored at Cold War Jets Collection, Bruntingthorpe,

Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire to the north, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire to the south-east, Warw ...

, England. * Jet Provost T5A, ''XW310'' (registered as ''G-BKOU'' for civilian use), is stored at North Weald Airfield,

Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

, England. * Jet Provost T5, ''XW323'', is located at the

Royal Air Force Museum London The Royal Air Force Museum London (also commonly known as the RAF Museum) is located on the former Hendon Aerodrome, in North London's Borough of Barnet. It includes five buildings and hangars showing the history of aviation and the Royal Air ...

, Hendon Aerodrome, London, England. * Jet Provost T5A, ''XW405'', is on display at the Hartlepool College of Further Education,

Hartlepool Hartlepool ( ) is a seaside resort, seaside and port town in County Durham, England. It is governed by a unitary authority borough Borough of Hartlepool, named after the town. The borough is part of the devolved Tees Valley area with an estimat ...

, England. The college also uses T5 ''XW309'' and T5A ''XW404'' to educate students. * Jet Provost T5A, ''XW375'', is on site at the former Highland Aviation Museum * Jet Provost T5A, ''XW434'', is on display as gate guardian at Wolverhampton Halfpenny Green airport Provost T5-A

United States

* Jet Provost T3, ''XM349'', is on static display at Air Heritage Aviation Museum in

Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania Beaver Falls is a city in Beaver County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 9,005 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located 31 miles (50 km) northwest of Pittsburgh, the city lies along the Beaver River (Pennsylvan ...

. * Jet Provost T3A, ''XM357'', is housed at the Tillamook Air Museum,

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

. * Jet Provost T3, ''XM455'', in a private collection in Las Vegas, Nevada * Jet Provost T3A, ''XM464'', is on static display at

Pima Air & Space Museum The Pima Air & Space Museum is an aerospace museum in Tucson, Arizona, US. It features a display of nearly 400 aircraft spread out over on a campus occupying . It has also been the home to the Arizona Aviation Hall of Fame since 1991. Overv ...

Tucson, Arizona Tucson (; ; ) is a city in Pima County, Arizona, United States, and its county seat. It is the second-most populous city in Arizona, behind Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix, with a population of 542,630 in the 2020 United States census. The Tucson ...

* Jet Provost T5A, ''XW294'', located at the Everett Community College. Paine Field, Washington * Jet Provost T5A, ''XW306'', is privately owned and registered as N313A * Jet Provost T5A, ''XW312'', also located at the Everett Community College. Paine Field, Washington * Jet Provost T5A, ''XW314'', in private storage roadside in Maple Hill, North Carolina * Jet Provost T5A, ''XW326'', registered as N326GV is located at the Zephyrhills airport in Florida. Privately owned and displayed at airshows by its owner aerobatic pilot Dondi Pesquera.

Specifications (Jet Provost T.5)

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * Clarke, Bob. ''Jet Provost: The Little Plane With The Big History''. Stroud, UK: Amberley Publishing Plc, 2008. . *
"Jet Provost T.3"
''

'', 13 June 1958. Vol. 73, No. 2577, pp. 795–799.
"Jet Provost: Hunting Percival's New Ab Initio Trainer."
''Flight International'', 6 May 1955. pp. 582–587. * * * * * Taylor, John W.R. "Hunting Jet Provost and BAC 167." ''Combat Aircraft of the World from 1909 to the present''. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1969. . * Taylor, John W.R., ed. ''Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1971–72''. London: Janes's Yearbooks, 1971. . * Thetford, Owen. ''Aircraft of the Royal Air Force since 1918''. Putnam & Company Limited. .

External links

The Jet Provost File: Individual RAF service histories

Jet Provost heaven

{{Authority control Jet Provost 1950s British military trainer aircraft Jet Provost Single-engined jet aircraft Low-wing aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1954 Aircraft with retractable tricycle landing gear