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Wing span 39 Ft. Wing Area 238 Sq. Ft.
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Length 34' 6".
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Ht. 11' 4".
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Wt. Empty 8240 Lbs. Gross Wt.15,336 Lbs.
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General Electric J33-GE-11 or Allison. J33-A-9
3850 Lb. Thrust.
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Max Speed F-80C 580 mph with J33.
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A modified F-80 (XP-80R, "Racey"), set a record
of 623.8 mph, June 19, 1947.
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Range normal 780 miles. Max.1440 miles.
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Service ceiling 45,000'.
An X P-80 made a first flight
Jan 9, 1944. A P-80 with the J33 engine was flown June 11, 1944. After
June 1946 it was designated F-80. This was the US Air Force's first true
jet-powered fighter of the jet air age. Production delivery began in Aug.
1943. On June 25, 1950, now as an F-80C it entered combat in Korea and
on Nov. 8, 1950 it tangled with a Russian MIG 15 in the first jet-to-jet
dogfight and emerged victorious.
By the time that production halted various
versions including the TF-80C there had been 1,714 built. Another version
was designated as T-33 and were used to train the first jet pilots. There
was a total of 5,691 T-33s built.
The Museum's F-80 was restored from the
remains of a F-80 that was left on the Aircraft Museum grounds.
Dick Wood of Denver, CO did the restoration
over a period of 4 years. The markings are from the 8th Fighter Bomber
Wing where the A/C served for 8 years of its service.
