The winner of the competition to build the first new Air Force trainer after World War II, the T-28A fell short of expectations, and the Air Force eventually added the T-34 to the syllabus to provide ab initio training. Following a Department of Defense decision to standardize training, the Navy also purchased the T-28B and C versions, which had some significant differences from the Air Force version, including an arresting hook for carrier- landing training. The US used a number of T-28s in the early stages of Operation Farm Gate to train the South Vietnamese in commando-type operations. In 1962, the US Air Force began to modify nearly 300 T-28s as fighter-bombers for counterinsurgency warfare, and these were redesignated T-28D Nomads. Many of these airplanes were turned over to the South Vietnamese Air Force. T-28 pilots normally flew in two-plane formations for day strikes. One of the most successful uses for the T-28 was on night hunter-killer missions. A forward air control pilot in an O-1F used a Starlight scope to locate enemy vehicles, which the T-28 pilots then bombed. Several Air National Guard squadrons used T-28s briefly in the late 1950s while awaiting conversion to jets. Air Force training in T-28s ended in the late 1950s to the early 1960s, when the T-37 entered service. Armed T-28s were also used by France in Algeria.

Contractors:	North American Aviation, Inc.
Locations Built:	Inglewood, Calif.
Number Built: (USAF)	1,989 (1,175)
First Flight:	September 24, 1949
First Flight Model:	XT-28
First Flight Location:	Unconfirmed but most likely Inglewood, Calif.
First Flight Pilot:	Unconfirmed
Models/Variants:	T-28A, D. AT-28D
Powerplant:	One Wright R-1300-1 Cyclone nine-cylinder radial of 800 hp
Wingspan:	40 ft 7 in.
Length:	32 ft 0 in.
Height:	12 ft 8 in.
Weight:	6,365 lb gross
Armament:	None (T-28A); two .50-cal. machine guns in detachable pods and underwing pods for up to 1,800 lb of rockets or bombs (T-28D)
Accommodation:	Crew of two (student and instructor in tandem)
Cost:	$123,000
Max. Speed:	283 mph
Range:	1,000 mi.
Ceiling:	25,000 ft.