Walkaround - Lockheed F-80C Shooting Star c/n 080-2181
Where:
Brazilian Aerospace Museum, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
When:
October 5th, 2013.
The
Lockheed F-80 Shooting Star was the first Brazilian Air Force jet
fighter, but only its second fighter. It replaced the tired P-47 (F-47)
Thunderbolts, including a few veterans from WWII. During
January 1958 the first 13 F-80C arrived, with the remaining 20
being delivered in May. These birds came from USAF stocks, some of them
reportedly veterans from Korea. They received BAF registry 4200-4232.
The F-80 shown in this walkaround is BAF's 4201 (c/n 080-2181), currently on display at the Brazilian Aerospace Museum (as of 2013),
and one of the only two preserved former BAF Shooting Stars (the other
one is displayed at Fortaleza Air Base). It is painted with the usual
1st/4th Av. Group scheme - the only unit to employ the F-80 in Brazil
- and is very well preserved.
All BAF F-80s but one were deativated in 1967.
I hope
you find these photos useful. If you have
any interesting information about the history of this aircraft, please drop
me
a
line.
