North American SNJ-5 Texan

Designed as a transition trainer between basic trainers and first-line tactical aircraft, the SNJ trained several hundred thousand pilots in over 30 different countries over a period of 25 years. North American Aviation built 15,495 planes between 1938 and 1955. Considered a “pilot’s airplane,” it was designed to give the best possible training in all types of tactics, from ground strafing to bombardment and aerial dog fighting.

This SNJ-5 flew with the US Navy from 1943 through 1958 from Naval Air Stations in Texas, Louisiana, Florida and New Jersey. It has been civilian-owned since.