F-86 Sabre
While the F-84 was outmatched by the Soviet Union’s MiG-15, North American’s F-86 Sabre, which briefly operated under SAC from the fighter’s introduction in 1949 until 1950, was considered perhaps the best aircraft of the Korean War. F-86 pilots claimed nearly 800 MiG-15 kills during the conflict, at the cost of only 78 Sabres. In fact, all but one of the 41 United States aces during the Korean War were Sabre pilots.
B-36 Peacemaker
With its 230-foot wingspan, Convair’s B-36 Peacemaker was the largest mass-production piston-engine aircraft ever built. When it was introduced, the joint propeller/jet driven B-36 was America’s only true intercontinental bomber (until the B-52 entered service in 1955), with its ten engines capable of carrying an 87,000-lb. payload a distance of 10,000 miles without in-flight refueling.
B-47 Stratojet
Boeing’s six-engine B-47 Stratojet served as the front line of America’s nuclear deterrent from 1951 through 1965. The world’s first swept-wing bombers were staged at forward operating bases across the globe, with one-third of the Air Force’s B-47 fleet on advanced alert at all times – loaded with fuel and nuclear weapons, ready to go. SAC also operated the RB-47, a reconnaissance version of the Stratojet, with three aircraft shot down by the Soviets during overflight missions in the 1950s and early 1960s.
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