https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockheed_P-80_Shooting_Star
The Lockheed P-80 Shooting Star was the first jet fighter used operationally by
the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF). Designed and built by Lockheed in
1943 and delivered just 143 days from the start of the design process,
production models were flying but not ready for service by the end of World War
II. Designed with straight wings, the type saw extensive combat in Korea with
the United States Air Force (USAF) as the F-80. America's first successful
turbojet-powered combat aircraft, it helped usher in the "jet age" in the USAF,
but was outclassed with the appearance of the swept-wing transonic MiG-15 and
was quickly replaced in the air superiority role by the transonic F-86 Sabre.
The F-94 Starfire, an all-weather interceptor on the same airframe, also saw
Korean war service. The closely related T-33 Shooting Star trainer would remain
in service with the U.S. Air Force and Navy well into the 1980s, with the last
NT-33 variant not retired until April 1997. Many still serve in a military role
in foreign air arms or are in private hands.
The impetus for development of the P-80 was the discovery by Allied intelligence
of the Me 262 in spring 1943, which had made only test flights of its own first
quartet (the V1 through V4 airframes) of design prototypes at that time, all
fitted with retracting tailwheel landing gear. After receiving documents and
blueprints comprising years of British jet aircraft research, the commanding
General of the Army Air Forces, Henry H. Arnold, believed an airframe could be
developed to accept the British-made jet engine, and the Materiel Command's
Wright Field research and development division tasked Lockheed to design the
aircraft. With the Germans and British clearly far ahead in development,
Lockheed was pressed to develop a comparable jet in as short a time as possible.
Kelly Johnson submitted a design proposal in mid-June and promised that the
prototype would be ready for testing in 180 days. The Skunk Works team,
beginning 26 June 1943, produced the airframe in 143 days, delivering it to
Muroc Army Airfield on 16 November.
Role
Jet Fighter
National origin
United States
Manufacturer
Lockheed
Designer
Clarence "Kelly" Johnson
First flight
8 January 1944
Introduction
1945
Status
Retired
Primary users
United States Air Force
United States Navy
Number built
1,715
Unit cost
US$110,000 in 1945
Variants
Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star
Lockheed F-94 Starfire
The initial production order was for 344 P-80As after USAAF acceptance in
February 1945. A total of 83 P-80s had been delivered by the end of July 1945
and 45 assigned to the 412th Fighter Group (later redesignated the 1st Fighter
Group) at Muroc Army Air Field. After the war, production continued, although
wartime plans for 5,000 were quickly reduced to 2,000 at a little under $100,000
a copy. A total of 1,714 single-seat F-80A, F-80B, F-80C and RF-80s were
manufactured by the end of production in 1950, of which 927 were F-80Cs
(including 129 operational F-80As upgraded to F-80C-11-LO standards). However,
the two-seat TF-80C, first flown on 22 March 1948, became the basis for the T-33
trainer, of which 6,557 were produced.
Shooting Stars first saw combat service in the Korean War, employing both the
F-80C variant and RF-80 photo-recon variants. The F-80 flew both air-to-air and
air-to-ground sorties, claiming several aerial victories against North Korean
Yak-9s and Il-10s. On 8 November 1950, the first American claim for a
jet-versus-jet aerial kill was made when Lieutenant Russell J. Brown, flying an
F-80, reported that he shot down a MiG-15. Soviet records showed that the MiG
survived the combat. Despite initial claims of success, the speed of the
straight-wing F-80s was inferior to the 668 mph MiGs. The MiGs incorporated
German research that showed that swept wings delayed the onset of
compressibility problems, and enabled speeds much closer to the speed of sound.
F-80s were soon replaced in the air superiority role by the North American F-86
Sabre, which had been delayed to also incorporate swept wings into an improved
straight-winged naval FJ-1 Fury. However, F-80 pilots still claimed to have
destroyed a total of six MiG-15s in aerial combat. When sufficient Sabres were
in operation, the Shooting Star flew exclusively ground-attack missions, and
were also used for advanced flight training duties and air defense in Japan. By
the end of hostilities, the only F-80s still flying in Korea were
photo-reconnaissance variants.
Specifications (P-80C/F-80C)
General characteristics
Crew: 1
Length: 34 ft 5 in (10.49 m)
Wingspan: 38 ft 9 in (11.81 m)
Height: 11 ft 3 in (3.43 m)
Aspect ratio: 6.37
Empty weight: 8,420 lb (3,819 kg)
Loaded weight: 12,650 lb (5,738 kg)
Max. takeoff weight: 16,856 lb (7,646 kg)
(20.46 kN) / 5400 lbf (24.02 kN) with water injection
Zero-lift drag coefficient: 0.0134
Performance
Maximum speed: 600 mph, Mach .76 (P-80A 558 mph at sea level and 492 mph at
40,000 ft) (965 km/h)
Cruise speed: 410 mph (660 km/h)
Range: 1,200 mi (1,930 km)
Service ceiling: 46,000 ft (14,000 m)
Rate of climb: 4,580 ft/min (23.3 m/s) 5.5 min to 20,000 ft (6,100 m)
Thrust/weight: 0.364 (0.427 with water injection)
Lift-to-drag ratio: 17.7
Armament
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