A United States Navy suspended the flights of its T-45 Goshawk training jets after one of the aircraft suffered an engine failure in flight, last Friday (12).
In a note to the portal USNI News, The US Navy Chief of Naval Air Training (CNATRA) confirmed that the planes were grounded and that he is evaluating “the fleet’s ability to safely resume flight.” The order came after a T-45C from Training Air Wing One experienced engine malfunction during flight. The crew – normally made up of a student and an instructor – “executed a precautionary landing at Hesler-Noble Field in Laurel, Mississippi.” No one was injured and the Navy is assessing the damage to the jet's engine.
Developed from the British BAE Hawk trainer jet, the T-45 Goshawk is the main instruction platform for United States Naval Aviation. The model entered service in 1991, replacing the T-2 Buckeye and TA-4 Skyhawk in the training of new naval aviators. The model, however, has presented problems e involved in accidents, some fatal.
According to the USNI, this latest in-flight failure was related to a failure in the blade of the F405 engine, manufactured by Rolls Royce. The 'grounding' of the jets also comes as the US Navy searches for a replacement for the T-45. The companies Textron/Leonardo and Lockheed Martin/KAI have already offered the M346 and the T-50 for the role. Boeing is also expected to offer a navalized version of the T-7 Red Hawk, a model that beat out the M346 and T-50 in the U.S. Air Force's bid for a new jet trainer.
