T-33 Jet

Heroes Remember

T-33 Jet

Transcript

On the T-33, it was a single engine, it was what they call centre line thrust. Therefore, there was no tendency for the air craft to move one way or the other because all of its thrust is right down the centre line of the aircraft. And it took away a lot of the things that I had difficulty with, you know. So with the T-Bird, I remember our first flight they said you know once you take it off the wings are going to rock back and forth because the controls are very sensitive. The controls on a jet are hydraulicly boosted and you're going to be waving at everybody as you go down the runway after you get air borne. So these were things that I had stored away and said, you know, I'm not going to do that because what happens when you start to do that is you can't catch up. The wing drops to the right, you correct to the left and by the time you got it from the left correction, the left wing and you get back and you're going back and forth. So, I remember the first flight and the briefing. They'd said, you know, there was going to be this tendency and so on. For whatever reason I said to myself , no, that's not going to be me, and took off and just held the stick and accepted some of the things that, you know, a little bit of a wing drop but very gradually and smoothly brought it back and when I say smooth, smooth is synonymous with slowly. Not only is it slow but it's intentional, you have to force yourself to be gradual and do things in a slow manner and right from the first flight I remember coming down and the instructor says, “That is one of the better take offs I've seen on a first flight! And you can imagine how that made me feel. And as I say, many of the things that I had, had difficulty with in the previous phases, all seemed to fall into place and my progress on the jet was very rapid and so much so that by the end of the course I won the flying scholarship or the flying trophy for the highest marks in the course and won the... There was two trophies, one was the City of Moose Jaw Trophy and the other one, The Province of Saskatchewan Trophy for the highest academic marks. And what went along with this achievement was the fact that the top five people on the course got their choice of air planes.

Description

Mr. Peters describes how easily he mastered the T-33 jet, and receiving the school’s top two awards for flying excellence.

Walter Peters

Walter Peters, the youngest of six children, was born in Litchfield, Nova Scotia in 1937. A graduate of Mount Allison University, he worked for the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation before enlisting in the Royal Canadian Air Force at age twenty-four and entering pilot training. After receiving his commission and wings, Mr. Peters enjoyed a distinguished career on many levels. He was Canada’s first black jet fighter pilot and an A1 flying instructor. He was involved in the development of the Snowbirds and later flew with them. At Trenton, Mr. Peters piloted Hercules cargo aircraft on assorted missions around the globe, and it was here that he also became the Canadian Armed Forces’ first Human Rights Officer. As advisor to the United Nations Security Council, Mr. Peters offered advice on the tactical movement of troops by air, and analysed and briefed the Council after the Russian shootdown of a Korean civilian jet in 1983. He retired holding the rank of Major.

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