F-86 Sabre

The North American Aviation F-86 Sabre was a transonic jet Fighter. The F-86 Sabre is best known for its role during the Korean War role where it was pitted against the Soviet MIG 15. With speeds often nudging the sound barrier, and performing combat manoeuvres at 600 m.p.h. imposing crushing G-forces, the F-86 pilots ran up a spectacular kill ratio of 8:1 against the MiGs. Although developed in the late 1940s and outdated by the end of the 1950s, the Sabre proved adaptable and continued as a front line fighter in air forces until the last active front line examples were retired by the Bolivian Air Force in 1994. More than 7,800 Sabres aircraft were built between 1949 and 1956, in the United States, Japan and Italy. It was by far the most-produced Western jet fighter, with total production of all variants at 9,860 units.