Canadair Sabre 4
Serial Number:
XB812
Period:
Post-WWII
Collection Ref: 1994/1350/A
Location: RAF Museum Cosford, National Cold War Exhibition
The British-designed replacements for the outclassed
Meteor and Vampire fighters were suffering many development problems,
and the appearance early in the Korean War (1950 to 1953) of the Soviet
MiG-15 forced the Royal Air Force to acquire the North American Sabre.
At a critical time in East/West relations, with no other Western jet able
to combat the MiG-15, the United States of America supplied the Royal
Air Force with 430 high-performance, swept-wing Sabre fighters.
The Royal Air Force's Sabres were built in Canada and most were based
in Germany as part of NATO's 2nd Allied Tactical Air Force. The Royal
Air Force actually had some experience of the type before it was introduced
into service as a small number of British pilots flew with the Americans
in Korea. A number of MiG-15 aircraft were shot down by these Royal Air
Force pilots. Most pilots found the Sabre a delight to fly and many expressed
disappointment when they were replaced by the Swift and early marks of
the Hunter.
In the spring of 1955 the first Hunters began to arrive in Germany, completely
replacing Sabres by June 1956. The Sabres were returned to the Americans
who passed them on to the Italian and Yugoslav Air Forces.
