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The North American F-86 Sabre was an American transonic jet combat aircraft. The F-86 was developed in the late 1940s and was one of the most-produced Western jet fighters of the Cold War era. Initial proposals to meet a USAAF requirement for a single-seat high-altitude day fighter aircraft/escort fighter/fighter bomber were made in late 1944, and were derived from the design of the straight wing FJ Fury being developed for the U.S. Navy. Performance requirements were met by incorporating a 35 degree swept-back wing with automatic slats (Messerschmitt Me 262 airfoil and Me 262 HG II wing swep) into the design. Manufacturing was not begun until after World War II as a result. The XP-86 prototype, which would become the F-86 Sabre, first flew on 1 October 1947 from Muroc Dry Lake, California. The USAF Strategic Air Command had F-86 Sabres in service from 1949 through 1950. The F-86s were assigned to the 22nd Bomb Wing, the 1st Fighter Wing and the 1st Fighter Interceptor Wing. The F-86 was produced as both a fighter-interceptor and fighter-bomber. Several variants were introduced over its production life, with improvements and different armament implemented (see below). The XP-86 (eXperimental Pursuit) was fitted with a J35-C-3 jet engine that produced 4,000 lbf (18 kN) of thrust. This engine was built by GM's Chevrolet division until production was turned over to Allison. The J47-GE-7 engine was used in the F-86A-1 producing a thrust of 5,200 lbf (23 kN) while the General Electric J73-GE-3 engine of the F-86H produced 9,250 lbf of thrust. The F-86 was the primary U.S. air combat fighter during the Korean War, with significant numbers of the first three production models seeing combat. The fighter-bomber version (F-86H) could carry up to 2,000 pounds (900 kg) of bombs, including an external fuel-type tank that could carry napalm. Both the interceptor and fighter versions carried six Browning M3 .50 in (12.7 mm) caliber machine guns in the nose (later versions of the F-86H carried four 20 mm cannons instead of machine guns). Unguided 2.75 inch (70 mm) rockets were used on some of the fighters in target practice, but 5 inch (127 mm) rockets were later used in combat operations. The F-86 could also be fitted with a pair of external jettisonable fuel tanks (four on the F-86F beginning in 1953) that extended the range of the aircraft. The F-86 entered service with the United States Air Force in 1949, joining the 1st Fighter Wing's 94th Fighter Squadron "Hat-in-the-Ring" and became the primary air-to-air jet fighter used in the Korean War. With the introduction of the Soviet Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 into air combat in November 1950, which out-performed all aircraft then assigned to the United Nations, three squadrons of F-86s were rushed to the Far East in December. The F-86 could out turn and out dive the MiG-15, but the MiG-15 was superior to the F-86 in ceiling, acceleration, rate of climb, and zoom (especially until the introduction of the F-86F in 1953); MiGs flown from bases in Manchuria by Chinese, Korean, and Soviet VVS pilots, were pitted against two squadrons of the 4th Fighter-Interceptor Wing forward-based at K-14, Kimpo, Korea. Many of the American pilots were experienced World War II veterans while the North Korean and the Chinese lacked combat experience, thus accounting for much of the F-86's success. However, whatever the actual results may be, it is clear that the F-86 pilots did not have as much success over the better trained Soviet piloted MiG-15s. Although Soviets piloted the majority of MiG-15s that fought in Korea, North Korean and Chinese pilots increased their activity as the war went on. The Soviets and their allies periodically contested air superiority in MiG Alley, an area near the mouth of the Yalu River (the boundary between Korea and China) over which the most intense air-to-air combat took place. The F-86E's all-moving tailplane has been credited with giving the Sabre an important advantage over the MiG-15. Far greater emphasis has been given to the training, aggressiveness and experience of the F-86 pilots. Despite rules-of-engagement to the contrary, F-86 units frequently initiated combat over MiG bases in the Manchurian "sanctuary." 51st FIG "Checkertails" at K-13 air base (Suwon, South Korea) are prepped for a mission The needs of combat operation balanced against the need to maintain an adequate force structure in Western Europe led to the conversion of the 51st Fighter-Interceptor Wing from the F-80 to the F-86 in December 1951. Two fighter-bomber wings, the 8th and 18th, converted to the F-86F in the spring of 1953. No. 2 Squadron, Postwar totals officially credited by the USAF are 379 kills for 103 Sabres lost, amounting to a ratio of nearly 4 to 1. Modern research has claimed the actual ratio is closer to 2 to 1. The Soviet claims of downing over 600 Sabres together with the Chinese claims are considered exaggerated by the USAF. Recent USAF records show that 224 F-86s were lost to all causes, including non-combat losses. But direct comparison of Sabre and MiG losses seem irrelevant, since primary targets for MiGs were heavy B-29 bombers and ground-attack aircraft, while the primary targets for Sabres were MiG-15s. Of the 40 USAF pilots to earn the designation of ace during the Korean war, all but one flew the F-86 Sabre. Crew: 1 Length: 37 ft 1 in (11.4 m) Wingspan: 37 ft 0 in (11.3 m) Height: 14 ft 1 in (4.5 m) Wing area: 313.4 sq ft (29.11 m²) Empty weight: 11,125 lb (5,046 kg) Loaded weight: 15,198 lb (6,894 kg) Max takeoff weight: 18,152 lb (8,234 kg) Powerplant: 1× General Electric J47-GE-27 turbojet, 5,910 lbf (maximum thrust at 7.950 rpm for five min) (26.3 kN) Fuel provisions Internal fuel load: 437 gallons (1,650 l), Drop tanks: 2 x 200 gallons (756 l) JP-4 fuel Basic mission wing loading: 58 lb/sq ft Maximum speed: 687 mph at sea level at 14,212 lb (6,447 kg) combat weight also reported 678 mph (1,091 km/h) and 599 at 35,000 feet (11,000 m) at 15,352 pounds (6,960 kg). (597 knots, 1,105 km/h at 6446 m, 1091 and 964 km/h at 6,960 m.) Range: 1,525 mi, (1,753 NM, 2,454 km) Service ceiling 49,600 ft at combat weight (15,100 m) Rate of climb: 8,100 ft/min at sea level (41 m/s) Thrust/weight: 0.38 Stalling speed (power off): 124 mph (108 kt, 200 km/h) Landing ground roll: 2,330 ft, (710 m) Lift-to-drag ratio: 15.1 Time to altitude: 5.2 min (clean) to 30,000 ft (9,100 m) Guns: 6 × 0.50 in (12.7 mm) machine guns (1,602 rounds) Various bombs (2 x 1,000 lb, 450 kg bombs, standard load) USN 89 Scale 1:72 René Hieronymus Building time: 11 hrs. |