The US Air Force had it and the Russians wanted it. In October of 1951, they would finally get their chance. It was the North American F-86A Sabre, and reportedly the order came from the very highest office in the Kremlin to grab a Sabre, the hottest ship
in the Korean skies.
10/6/51 Second Lieutenant Bill Garrett's F-86A no. 91319 sustains 23mm and 37mm cannon hits behind the cockpit, damaging his J-47 engine and rendering his ejection seat useless. A Russian pilot, flying a MiG-15 in North Korean livery, claims the victory in a high altitude dogfight between the two combat groups.
Garrett heads for the coastline and later bellies in among the tidal pools and mud flats alongside the Yellow Sea. It is the beginning of a three-hour gunfight above the young flier's head as the Americans try to destroy the Sabre, while the Russians attempt to drive them off. They do so, but the effort cost them seven of their prized MiGs. The Americans lose no more Sabres, and Garrett is picked up by an SA-16 amphibian.
The next day, the Russians return with 500 Chinese laborers, and through will power and brute force, retrieve the wreckage and dismantle it. Flatbed trucks take the parts overland to Andun airfield, where they are examined by Soviet technicians.
Later, the F-86 is shipped to the USSR where it is studied. Several features are found to be superior to those on the MiG, including the leading edge slats and the Sperry APG-30 radar gunsight. Such elements are incorporated into later Soviet designs as a result of the determined effort to snatch a Sabre.
From commissioned artwork by SMITHSONIAN AIR & SPACE MAGAZINE - JULY 20033
13" x 19" watercolor
Limited Edition of 250 prints
Signed by Artist only
Double Matted
Framed in a Black Metal Frame
Protected with Picture Grade Acrylic ~ Safer, Lighter & Easier to Ship then Glass
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