Air International 2008-04
D.Oliver - Fouga Magister /Aircraft profile/
For basic/advanced flying training Finland bought 20 Magisters from France and Valmet built a further 62. This Valmet-built CM.170R Magister FM-51, c/n 51, was fitted with guns for its use by the ground attack school in Pori, Finland.
Fouga CM.170 Magister of the Algerian Air Force which received 28 former-Luftwaffe aircraft in 1969 for the counter-insurgency role.
Fouga Magister AA-287, c/n 145 of the Luftwaffe circa 1964. An initial batch of 40 French-manufactured aircraft were supplemented with 194 built by Messerschmitt to meet the newly-created Luftwaffe's basic jet training requirements.
Fouga CM.170 Magister 4D-YL, c/n 359 of the Austrian Air Force, one of 18 supplied by France in the late 1950s.
Fouga CM.170 Magister 12-XJ, c/n 43 of the Armee del'Air, 12 Escadre, based at Cambrai.
Fouga CM.170 Magister L107 was one of nine of the type supplied to the Lebanese Air Force by France and Germany.
Aeronavale CM-175 Zephyr of 59S Flight based at Naval Air Station Hyeres, near Toulon in the south of France. Due to safety considerations during carrier operations, Zephyrs differed from Magisters in having sliding, instead of clamshell, canopies. These naval trainers were also fitted with an arrester hook and catapult strop attachment.
Israel is the sole remaining operator of the Magister, albeit in the form of a much-modified variant, the Tzukit. Over 40 of the type are understood to be in service with the Flight Academy at Hatzerim Air Base.
This photograph of Irish Air Corps Magister 220 clearly illustrates its short undercarriage. The CM.170 was withdrawn from service on June 10, 1999, and this particular aircraft is now located in the Carlow Institute of Technology, Ireland, where it is used as a training aid for students.