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Left: Wayne Smith, a longtime pilot,
had such a great time piloting a jet
and performing aerobatics on his 80th
birthday that he’s thinking of doing it
again when he turns 90. He flew the
same type jet while serving in the Air
Force as a young man.

Right: Wayne Smith and plane owner
Larry Salganek after Smith completed
his flight. He found experiencing 4.5
Gs was more fun when he was 25 than
at age 80.

biplanes that cruise at 65 mph, gliders for the flight. Force and differed slightly from the U.S.
that land at 35 mph and more than one jet version, primarily in that it had a Rolls-
that easily exceeded the speed of sound. I was scheduled for the pre-flight briefing Royce Nene engine rather than the U.S.
at 9 a.m. on May 26. I got up early and standard Allison J33-A-35. Speeds, power
Of course, not all these planes are dressed in flight gear that I had kept settings, controls and procedures were
available for me to fly but several are. from the Air Force, the Commemorative essentially the same as I remembered
So I had to adjust my choice to those Air Force, and other flight activities. from years ago.
that I liked best that were also available. We all loaded up for the short trip from
Fortunately, my first choice turned out to the campground to the airport. When We went out to the plane, completed a
be not only my favorite airplane but also we arrived, the T-33 was already lined pre-flight inspection, and I climbed into
one that was available. up on the ramp, painted in Air Force the front seat. Salganek watched over my
Thunderbird colors. It was a beautiful shoulder from the ladder as I started the
After I graduated from United States sight. engine. With the Rolls-Royce engine, the
Air Force pilot training in 1956, my first starting procedure is slightly different
assignment was to the Basic Instructors I met Salganek in his office, and we did (and simpler) than that of the Allison.
School, where I became an instructor a short briefing. Since I had 1,700 hours Once we were started, Salganek strapped
in the Lockheed T-33 jet trainer. This of time in T-33s and had studied the into the back seat, I closed the canopy
has always been my favorite airplane. flight manual that he had sent me, we and we were on our way. Salganek taxied
Perhaps that is because it was the first didn’t need a long briefing. The airplane out to the active runway and made the
plane that I flew after pilot training, or we were to fly was one manufactured
maybe it was because I flew this plane in Canada for the Royal Canadian Air Continued on the next page
longer than any other plane that I flew in
the Air Force. Either way, it came out as A U G U S T 2 0 1 5 SUNRAYS | 73
my first choice. And, in addition, there are
a few of these planes that are currently in
civilian hands and that are available for
flights and dual instruction. This made
my choice easy. After 40 plus years away
from the “T-bird,” I decided to fly a T-33
again (with an instructor, of course; I may
be old, but I’m not stupid).

Searching through aviation trade
publications, I found exactly what I
needed. The January 2015 issue of AOPA
Pilot magazine contained an article about
the Jet Warbird Training Center in Santa
Fe, New Mexico, that had a T-33 available
for rent and dual instruction. I contacted
Larry Salganek, the plane’s owner, and
scheduled an hour of dual instruction
for my birthday. To make this even more
special, my daughter and her family,
including my 7-year-old granddaughter,
decided to fly out to Santa Fe from Dallas
for the event. My wife, Anne, and I took
a slow leisurely trip to Santa Fe in our
motor home and arrived a few days early

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