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F-86 (sh)




also called Sabre

Early U.S. jet fighter manufactured by North American Aviation, Inc. Built with wings swept back to limit transonic drag as flight speed approached the sound barrier, it could exceed the speed of sound in a dive.

The first squadron became operational in 1949, and the fighter saw combat in the Korean War. Production ended in 1956. A single-seat, single-engine fighter, it was powered by a series of turbojet engines, reaching a top speed of almost 700 mph (1,100 kph) in level flight. It carried guided missiles, machine guns or cannon in the fuselage, and rockets or bombs under the wings.