Timeline F-86 Sabre

F-86 Sabre 13

• 1947 XP-86 Sabre first flight North American Aviation George Welch flies the swept-wing XP-86 prototype. Some claim he broke the sound barrier in a dive before Yeager, but it has never been confirmed.
• 1948 F-86 sets a world speed record Muroc, California An F-86A flown by Major Richard L. Johnson sets a world air speed record of about 1,080 km/h (671 mph).
• 1949 F-86A enters USAF service 1st Fighter Group The first operational Sabres join the US Air Force's 1st Fighter Group, making the F-86 America's first swept-wing fighter in service.
• 1950 First Sabre versus MiG victory MiG Alley, Korea Lt Col Bruce Hinton shoots down a MiG-15 in the first combat between the two swept-wing fighters, beginning a three-year duel over north-west Korea.
• 1951 James Jabara becomes the first jet ace Fifth and sixth MiG kills Flying an F-86, Captain James Jabara downs his fifth and sixth MiG-15s to become the world's first jet-versus-jet ace.
• 1953 Chuck Yeager test-flies a captured MiG-15 Okinawa Weeks after No Kum-sok's defection, test pilots including Chuck Yeager fly the MiG-15 on Okinawa and report its strengths and dangerous handling flaws.
• 1953 Joseph McConnell becomes the top US ace 16 victories in Korea Captain Joseph McConnell scores his last victories over Korea to finish as America's highest-scoring ace of the war, with 16 MiG-15s.
• 1953 Jacqueline Cochran breaks the sound barrier Canadair Sabre Flying a Canadian-built Sabre, Jacqueline Cochran becomes the first woman to fly faster than sound, with Chuck Yeager flying chase.
• 1953 Korean armistice ends the MiG Alley air war Panmunjom The armistice signed at Panmunjom ends three years of jet combat between MiG-15s and F-86 Sabres over north-west Korea.
• 1956 Sabre production ends 9,860 built Production ends after 9,860 Sabres of all variants, including licence-built aircraft — the most-produced Western jet fighter.
• 1958 First air-to-air missile kills Taiwan Strait Taiwanese F-86s armed with AIM-9 Sidewinders shoot down Chinese MiG-17s — the first kills by guided air-to-air missiles in combat.
• 1965 M.M. Alam's claimed Sabre victories Indo-Pakistani War Pakistani Sabre pilot M.M. Alam claims five Indian Hawker Hunters in under a minute near Sargodha. India disputes the count.
• 1994 Bolivia retires the last Sabres End of front-line service The Bolivian Air Force retires its F-86s, the last Sabres in front-line service anywhere, 47 years after the first flight.