On January 8, 1944, the first prototype of the Lockheed ... service, and with the creation of the US Air Force (USAF) as its own separate branch, the P-80 became the F-80. As the F-80, the ...

Lockheed’s F-80 Shooting Star, the first operational jet fighter, flew in June 1944 under the power of an Allison J-33 with a remarkable 4,000 pounds of thrust. GE started a school for future ...

One of the latest of these is a Lockheed P-80 ... service. The Shooting Star also helps round out the museum's collection of ...