Hi Widewing,
>With a 558 mph max speed (on the deck), a climb rate of better than 4,500 fpm, it would likely overpower the Me 262 in the MA (the P-80A weighs less than the 262 and has slightly greater wing area too).
To be fair, by 1946 the Luftwaffe jets would have had improvemed performance, too. Just mounting the upcoming BMW003D engine with 1100 - 1175 kp thrust on the existing aircraft would have given the following performance:
Me 262 - 570 mph @ sea level, 600 mph top speed, 5000+ fpm
He 162 - 575 mph @ sea level, 610 mph top speed, 6000+ fpm
The Ar 234B would have been replaced by the four-engined Arado 234C, which made 544 mph top speed with 4 x BMW003A and could be expected to reach 600 mph with 4 x BMW003D.
Then there was the Jumo 004E on the test benches, which featured an afterburner, the BMW003R which consisted of a BMW003A which a small rocket engine giving an extra 1250 kp (more than doubling the total thrust), and the diagonal-compressor He S011 which gave 1300 kp of thrust.
These three engines were completed and running in several examples at the end of the war. The only one going into production was the He S011, eight pre-series examples of which had to be completed for the US :-)
Regards,
Henning (HoHun)