Northrop T-38A Talon Fast Facts

• Pilot training, aerobatics and formation

• First built in 1959

• U.S. Air Force purchased 1,187 aircraft, 1961-1972

• Wingspan: 25 feet, 3 inches

• Length: 46 Feet, 4 ½ inches

• Height: 12 Feet, 10 ½ inches

• Weight: 12,093 pounds maximum load

• Speed: 812 miles per hour, Mach 1.2; 627 miles per hour cruising

• Range: 1,093 miles

• Service Ceiling: 53,600 feet

• Cross-country navigation

• More than 50,000 pilots earned their wings in the T-38

• The plane is set atop a three-foot diameter pedestal of concrete that spans 20 feet.

• The Boeing Company, located at Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, is upgrading the avionics on 500 T-38C planes for the Air Force.

• The T-38 remains in service as a training aircraft.

The static display of the T-38A and the Charles L. Williams Memorial Park at Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport is located at Sossaman and Tahoe Roads, across the street from the airport administration building. (Map)