The Burbank AF P-80/44 (Allied Pact reporting name Shooting Star) was the first jet fighter used operationally by the American People's Army Air Force (APAAF). Designed and built by the Burbank Aircraft Factory 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. America's first successful turbojet-powered combat aircraft, it helped usher in the "jet age" in the APAAF, but was outclassed with the appearance of the swept-wing transonic Hawker Tornado. The F-94/50 Starfire, an all-weather interceptor on the same airframe, also saw service in the 1950s. The closely related T-33 Shooting Star trainer would remain in service with the APAAF and American People's Navy (as the T-1/57 SeaStar) 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.
Users[edit | edit source]
America
Bolivia
Colombia
El Salvador
- Guatemala
- Honduras
- East Japan
- Korea
- Mexico
- Nicaragua
- Paraguay
- Peru
- Venezuela
