Warbird Information Exchange

This Skyhawk is perched on a pole in front of Cumberland County High School in Crossville, TN. Curt Watson, former Blue Angels pilot, went to school there and helped the school acquire the a/c.


My brother-in-law said that they were called the "Jets" even before Curt Watson was there.








This is the T-33A-1-LO, serial # 51-6756 that is over at the football field, about 200 yards from the Skyhawk. It's easily accessible but in rough shape. I have no idea who "Miss Nettie" is/was.



I didn't climb up on the wing but it looks like they bolted some sheet metal over what is left of the canopy.





That left wingtip tank is just barely hanging on.





Dave G.

Thanks for the posting. My folks live there - retired USAF / Korean 'wrench'. He turned me onto planes with taildragging Cessna's as a kid. Now I role around in a DC3 (www.duggy.com) with Odegaard, Challans and McPherson. Thanks.
BTW - the actor who is the 'Plumber' on Desperate Housewives has commented on this 'high school Blues'.

Hey Valk, mind if I kidnap those for the registry?

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These are in the Locator just in case anyone is looking to find them. You can find the entry in the Tennessee section at...

http://www.aerialvisuals.ca/Locator.html#USA_TN

Look for "Cumberland County High School" in Crossfield.

Mike

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Do you want to find locations of displayed, stored or active aircraft? Then start with the The Locator.
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When I moved from PA to TX this was one of the planes on my route, I wonder how many kids it inspires to get into aviation.

Its not a true Blue Angels bird, but wish we had one in front of my high school.

Bill.

I was flying a C-172 once and saw these birds from the air I descended down to get a better look and figure out how to get back. I thought they were a P-80 and a Skyray or Panther. I was very disappointed to see just a T-33 and A-4. The T-33's canopy and tailpipe have been stolen and have been gone at least ten years.
You can see these birds by getting off the main Crossville exit from I-40E and going south about 6 miles, they are near the road in front of the Cumberland County High school.
There's also an F-84F in the area, I've been meaning to get back to.

help yourself...there is also an F-86D and an F-104 inside McGhee Tyson AFB here in Knoxville that I am gonna work my way into to photograph.

Marine Air, where's that F-84F? My wife is from Crossville and I will be back there in a few weeks for Christmas so I can poke around and take some shots if you know.

Dave G.

Here is a pic of the F-104C: http://aeroweb.brooklyn.cuny.edu/database/museums/getimage.htm?id=2630

And a couple of the F-86L: http://www.coastcomp.com/av/pres/williams/52-03679.htm

The F-86 was originally located at Chilhowee Park in Knoxville proper for 40 years until they moved it to the base in 2000.

BK

Hi,
Yeah I shouldn't have mentioned the F-84, as I hope to have the right equipment after the first of the year to go back and survey and photo it properly if it's even still there. I was flying between two lakes with a seaplane student when we spotted it and that was 5 years ago. It had the original 1950's Air Force markings, very faded.
Also was talking with a "good ol boy" on a construction site who said his neighbor had a junk metal airplane behind the barn in Nolensville, Tn.
Email me if you or anyone wants to go looking for some of this stuff after the holidays/ first of the year. We have also gotten permission to metal detect on a crashsite of a B-26C Marauder,serial #41-34836, we have located.

Marine Air

This was in the Crossville, TN paper last week.


Miss Nettie is in the danger zone: Funds needed to restore mascot aircraft

By Josh Hayes / jhayes@crossville-chronicle.com

Normally military aircrafts come to the rescue of civilians. In this case, a T-33 training aircraft, known to the community as "Miss Nettie," is counting on the civilians of Crossville to come to her rescue.

Given to the city of Crossville by the Air Force in 1962, Miss Nettie has served as the mascot for Cumberland County High School since Crossville, Pleasant Hill and Homestead high schools consolidated and became CCHS.

In the Air Force turning over the T-33A to city government, part of the agreement was that Miss Nettie be kept at her "historically correct painting schemes," according to Christie Warner, CCHS teacher.

After going through various stages of disrepair, Miss Nettie must now be restored or else the Air Force will retrieve her and she will likely be scrapped.

In order to ship the jet for repairs, Miss Nettie must be disassembled, have a casing built around her, and lifted by a crane, said Warner, saying CCHS will have to pay for the crane, disassembling equipment, and flatbed trucks.

This will act as a learning project for the vocational department and building trades at CCHS. The school will incur the deconstruction and shipping costs, estimated to cost $17,000 to $20,000.

The actual restoring process will cost CCHS nothing, as Miss Nettie will be shipped to the North Central Flight Institute in Clarksville, TN. There, the jet will be taken on as a learning project for the winter.

The entire restoration project is estimated to take about a year, said Warner.

Once Miss Nettie returns, she will be mounted on the hill behind the north in-zone of the CCHS football field.

The jet was originally brought to CCHS through the help of a high school cheerleader, Nettie Stevens. At the building dedication ceremony for CCHS in 1962, U.S. Senator Albert Gore Sr. served as the speaker. Following his speech, Stevens approached Gore asking him if he could possibly find a jet for the school. After others went to work on the matter, the T-33 training aircraft was officially loaned to Crossville city authorities and dedicated as the school's mascot. Miss Nettie was originally set up in front of the gym.

According to CCHS teacher Janet Burnett, students from the class of 2006 began searching for contractors able to do the restoration. Until now with the North Central Flight Institute, the school was unable to find any contractors.

Burnett said polls have been taken with the 42 CCHS alumni on staff and also with alumni from the community who said they didn't want the jet to be taken away.

The school has already expended some funds for the project, but is counting entirely on donations. Warner said that she hoped alumni would be willing to donate and that corporate sponsors might be willing to contribute to the project.

For those interested in saving Miss Nettie, a table will be set up at the CCHS-SMHS football game on Friday night. Should anyone be interested in mailing a donation, money can be sent to the high school at: Cumberland County High School, ATTN: Miss Nettie, 660 Stanley Street, Crossville, TN 38555.

For more information, contact Christie Warner at (931) 248-1126.

Sounds like a worthy cause. As stated before, how many of these publicly displayed aircraft have inspired kids to follow a path in aviation? In these post 911 days where many once accessible aircraft are now in restricted areas (gated airports and bases) , I think these non military facilities based displays are as important as ever.
I'd be happy to add to the kitty if it were decided to make a Group contribution as the WIX for this bird. Anyone else?

Fund raising idea:
Contact our gfood friends at Trade-A-Plane...headquartered in Crossville.
They should be able to give you leads on dealers for a new canopy and tip tank....or make a cash contribution.

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Remember the vets, the wonderful planes they flew and their sacrifices for a future many of them did not live to see.

update to this old post made under my old username Valkyrie...I found this while searching for some new info, as I thought they were supposed to have this plane restored by now.

This is from March:(http://www.crossville-chronicle.com/fea ... d=topstory)

$15,000 more needed for repairs
By Josh Hayes / jhayes@crossville-chronicle.com

Most people would go to great lengths to ensure a loved one gets the operation he or she needs. In this case, the loved one is a T-33 training aircraft. Miss Nettie is counting on support from the community in order for her to be restored. Those in the fight to restore the jet hope to garner funds through selling brick dedications for the walkway to be built for Miss Nettie's return. "We want to restore her to her original beauty and grandeur," said Janet Burnett, CCHS teacher. "We want to make she sure she's historically correct." For the jet's fall return, the Miss Nettie Committee plans to build a patio with a wall of bricks about seat-high. For $100 per stone, the names of individuals, families, classes or businesses can be engraved permanently on a 4" x 8" brick. Burnett said they would like every CCHS class, from 1963 to 2011, to be represented with a brick in the patio walls. She commented with the old stadium seating deteriorating, they anticipate having to bring in bleachers for the home and visitors' sides. The patio for Miss Nettie would sit across from the home side to give them the best vantage point of the restored jet. Lifted 12 feet from the ground, Miss Nettie would sit adjacent to the visitors' side bleachers. Plans had been to place the jet behind the north in-zone of the football field. Since that would cause more of the campus to be torn up, the committee went with the idea for the patio and brick walls. So far, around $5,000 has been raised for the restoration of the CCHS mascot jet. Christie Warner, CCHS teacher, said originally Miss Nettie was expected to be returned this spring, but now it won't be until the fall. It was this past fall that the CCHS mascot was sent to the North Central Flight Institute in Clarksville, TN. Teachers from the high school have taken two trips to visit the jet. CCHS building trade and vocational students have vistied Miss Nettie once and are planning to visit again soon, Warner said. Warner and Burnett told the Chronicle that the Miss Nettie Committee has incurred costs for a new canopy and fuel tanks. At the flight institute, repairs are being done as a means of training for students there. However, it's costing the committee to pay for the instructors' time with the jet. Before being sent to Clarksville, Miss Nettie went through several stages of disrepair. The military told CCHS the jet must be restored and maintained at certain standards or else the Air Force would seize her, which in that case, Miss Nettie would likely have been scrapped. Parts for a jet of this age have become harder to find, Burnett said. Fifteen to 20 years ago, such parts would be more accessible or even cheaper, she commented. Small individual fundraisers have been going on throughout the year at CCHS to help with the cost of Miss Nettie's repairs. The school has been selling "candygrams," which are candy bars students can send to one another with a note attached to them. Also, with faculty being allowed to wear blue jeans on payday Fridays, which take place every other week, for a $5 charge, they can wear jeans on the other Fridays as well. Furthermore, a book sale has been going on among the faculty and staff in which they can bring in old books and novels to be sold for $2. Specialty lunches have been taking place each month for the faculty to raise funds too, Burnett said. "We want the alumni to be proud and teach the kids to take care of what you got," Burnet explained. "We want them to learn to preserve their heritage." She commented that she'd heard stories from alumni about their experiences with Miss Nettie, adding that current students are becoming aware of the story of how the jet originally came to Crossville.
Burnett added that they plan to place a time capsule in the mounting of Miss Nettie once she returns. The committee is encouraging people to purchase the bricks as gifts for graduation, birthdays, Mother's Day and Father's Day, and for businesses to place their name on the bricks. The Miss Nettie Committee has forms and flyers available for those interested in purchasing brick dedications or setting out flyers at their place of business. For forms, flyers or more information about the Miss Nettie Fund, contact Burnett, Warner or Jane Way at (931) 484-6194. You also may write to Cumberland County County High School, ATTN: Miss Nettie, 660 Stanley Street, Crossville, TN 38555. E-mails may be sent to jsmithb@yahoo.com.

pre-restoration pics from me:










pics that accompanied the article:











and here's a more recent story, from May

http://www.crossville-chronicle.com/loc ... 65420.html

here's the relevant stuff:

Speaking of aircraft, Cumberland County High School (CCHS) teacher Janet Burnett talked to the council about progress on the restoration of Miss Nettie, the school's jet plane mascot.

Said Burnett, “We are bringing Miss Nettie home.”

The T-33 training jet was given to the school by Senator Al Gore, Sr. in 1962 at the suggestion of one of the school cheerleaders for whom the jet is named. Recently the two restored wing pods returned to the school and the remainder of the plane will be coming soon.

The cost of the restoration is estimated to be $20,000 with Burnett saying that they have raised some $14,000 so far. Burnett explained the fundraiser CCHS is currently working on to sell engraved bricks at $100 each. The bricks will be incorporated into a wall at the site of the jet and since they won't be walked on, they are expected to last a long time.

Burnett said she was seeking any assistance from the city and the public to help pay for the return of Miss Nettie to her former glory.

Dave G

H-E Double Toothpicks Bells , contact good ole Al Gore to donate the funds they are short , who knows, since he invented the internet , he would probably say that he invented the T-33 .

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Kind Regards,
Gary Lewis
J.A.F.O.

Fixed some broken photo links here (1-2-2012):

I was in Crossville today for Mother's Day and saw in the paper that Miss Nettie returned to Cumberland County High School this week. I think they may have used a Bedazzler on the underbelly...



Here are some shots from today...