Monogram F-80 Shooting Star

Converted to a P-80A-1 using the Fox 3 conversion set.



A P-80A-1 using the Fox 3 conversion set and decals for Lil' Abner, a plane flown by Rex Barber (who shared credit with Thomas Lanphier for shooting down Yamamoto's Betty).  Later P-80's had a black panel on the nose in place of the landing light that covered a radio direction finder antenna.  The P-80A-1 cockpit was 9 inches further aft than later P-80's with ejection seats. Early P-80's were not built with ejection seats although many were later retrofitted with them. 

I don't know if it was this particular P-80, but there is a story of Rex Barber flying under a bridge near his home town in Oregon:

https://pamplinmedia.com/msp/129-news/130232-a-bridge-and-a-hero.html
ODOT officials in Central Oregon have entertained the notion of changing the bridge's name with enthusiasm, and are preparing to send a proposal to the Oregon Transportation Commission. "We don't often get an opportunity to consider naming a highway feature after a prominent local citizen so we're looking forward to working with this," said Bob Bryant, ODOT's Region 4 Manager. And if the powers that be are looking for one more reason to support the placing of Rex Barber's name upon the new $18 million bridge, they need hear nothing more than this story: Sometime during what was believed to be the year 1945, a gathering of Central Oregon folks lined up on the High Bridge, which was replaced by the Crooked River Bridge last October, to watch Barber's piloting antics in action. He was on leave with a buddy. Both were flying a new P-80 Shooting Star, the Air Force's first operational jet fighter. Against better judgment, they were going to fly into the Crooked River Canyon and swoop under the High Bridge that carries Highway 26. "The way the story is told, there were lots of people standing on the bridge watching," said Rex Barber Jr. "Dad flew under the railroad bridge first and the High Bridge no problem." But the pilot following Rex Barber Sr. hit some turbulence and had to pull up between the bridges and nearly collided with the High Bridge and the people on it. "It was a pretty dumb thing to do," said Margaret Barber. Added Rex Jr.: "If his buddy had hit the bridge Dad would have still be in the brig. "But back then the war was over, they were heros and they could do whatever they wanted to do." It was a long struggle straighten out the history books for Barber and his colleagues. Maybe honoring the Jefferson County native with a bridge in his name won't be such a daunting task.