The F-86F-2 Sabre

The air war over the Korean Peninsula between 1950 and 1953 represents a singular moment in the history of aerial warfare, a violent transition period where the tactical dogmas of World War II collided with the nascent technologies of the jet age. For the United States Air Force, the conflict was defined by the struggle for air superiority over "MiG Alley," the strip of airspace along the Yalu River where American F-86 Sabres dueled with Soviet, Chinese, and North Korean MiG-15s. While the F-86 Sabre is often remembered as the victor of this contest, contemporary analysis and pilot reports from the era reveal a deep-seated anxiety regarding the Sabre’s lethality. The standard armament of the F-86 - six Colt-Browning AN/M3 .50 caliber machine guns - was increasingly viewed as insufficient against the rugged, armored airframe of the MiG-15. This lethality gap spurred a classified operational test program known as Project Gunval, an initiative that placed experimental 20mm cannon-armed Sabres into the freezing skies of Korea in early 1953.

Many Check Your 6! Jet Age gamers most likely have the F-86 in their collections - I personally own F-86s painted for both Korea and the Indo-Pakistan conflicts. They are solid birds, especially the later models with improved thrust, gunsight, and a wing configuration that increased maneuverability. However it was just recently that I learned of the 20mm armed version being used in combat over Korea. I have posted the first of a handful of scenarios that will all feature the F-2 model. By the way, eight F-2s were sent to Korea, these being a combination of E-10 and F-1 models modified to the F-2 configuration. These F-2s featured the "6-3" wing as well as the improved A-4 gunsight. Speaking of gunsights, when the Soviets evaluated a captured Sabre, they acknowledged the advantage the gunsight provided, not just for deflection shooting, but for long range accuracy as well. Therefore consider using the @FF as is for deflection shots, but also add a +1 to hit for tail arc shots at 4 hexes or greater.

The F-86F-2 had its flaws, all related to the cannon armament. When the guns where fired at higher altitudes, propellant gases would emit from the cannons and could be sucked into engine air intake, causing instances in which the engine on the Sabre would flame-out - not an ideal situation when in combat, especially as the MiGs usually operated at an extremely high altitude. In addition, due to the high rate of fire of the M39 (T-106) cannons and the limited ammunition carried for these weapons, running out of ammo early in a fight was a true concern. American pilots learned to fire snap bursts to conserve ammo, and would also try dipping the nose to clear the gas. However the Air Force still lost two F-2s due to engine flame outs caused by the gases created by the 20mm cannon. It was decided to not move forward with standard equipping of the Sabre with the improved firepower.

The scenarios will include rules to deal with the F-2 model and its woes.