T-39 Sabreliner US NavyNorth American T 39 Sabreliner airplane model. The T 39 was developed by North American Aviation Inc. as a private venture to meet a USAF requirement for a twin jet utility trainer. The prototype T 39 made its first flight on September 16, 1958. In January 1959, the USAF placed a production order and on June 30, 1960, the first production T 39A made its initial flight. In all, 143 T 39As and 6 T 39Bs were built for the USAF. Another 62 T 39 variants