The North American F-86 Sabre is one of the legendary aircraft of the 1950's.
Utterly forgotten is a prototype aircraft it inspired, the XA-86 Attack Sabre.
Design work began at the end of the First Korean War to counter reports of a massive Soviet bloc armor build up. Engineers at North American saw the turbo-prop as a solution to the limitations of jet power for the tank-busting role.
Adding a contra-rotating propeller promised practically no yaw from torque and the enhanced directional stability ensured a very stable gun platform.
With wing mounted 47.95 mm gun pods and additional hard points for bombs, the new XA-86 Attack Sabre looked every bit the business when it was rolled out for flight testing.
After exceeding all expectations in initial trials, a small service-test batch of XA-86s was ordered. These aircraft were being put through their paces in the spring of 1955.
The timing couldn't have been better as things were about to get hot again in Korea.
After countless perceived provocations, an incident happened that pushed North Korea over the edge.
The North Koreans launched an attack across the 38th Parallel led by armor spearheads.
U.N. forces were almost helpless in the teeth of this tank juggernaut so the test group of Attack Sabres was quickly dispatched to Korea. Due to the hurried nature of their deployment, the XA-86s were given hastily applied camouflage and the crews barely had time to get the U.S. insignia on after disembarking.
The Attack Sabres were able to slow the commie onslaught until new high-caliber Bazooka Joes could be issued to front-line infantry units which finally allowed U.N. forces to push the invaders back over the border.
It was soon learned that the XA-86's gun pods had a tendency to jam due to lubrication impurities and by the time better lubrication quality control could be implemented, it was too late. The war ended when Pat Boone's popularity hit the skids after he embraced rock-n-roll's seamier side.
No more Attack Sabres would ever be built and the aircraft was soon forgotten. Even the so-called "experts" dismiss this little-known type as being contra to everything they've been taught.
Brian da Basher