Tag Archives: F-86E-10-NA

Medal of Honor, Major George Andrew Davis, Jr., United States Air Force

Major George Andrew Davis, Jr., United States Air Force. (1 December 1920–10 February 1952)
Major George Andrew Davis, Jr., United States Air Force. (1 December 1920–10 February 1952)

MEDAL OF HONOR

GEORGE ANDREW DAVIS, JR.

The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pride in presenting the Medal of Honor (Posthumously) to Major George Andrew Davis, Jr. (ASN: 0-671514/13035A), United States Air Force, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving with the 334th Fighter Squadron, 4th Fighter Wing, Fifth Air Force in action against enemy forces near Sinuiju-Yalu River, Korea, on 10 February 1952. While leading a flight of four F-86 Saberjets on a combat aerial patrol mission near the Manchurian border, Major Davis’ element leader ran out of oxygen and was forced to retire from the flight with his wingman accompanying him. Major Davis and the remaining F-86’s continued the mission and sighted a formation of approximately twelve enemy MIG-15 aircraft speeding southward toward an area where friendly fighter-bombers were conducting low level operations against the Communist lines of communications. With selfless disregard for the numerical superiority of the enemy, Major Davis positioned his two aircraft, then dove at the MIG formation. While speeding through the formation from the rear he singled out a MIG-15 and destroyed it with a concentrated burst of fire. Although he was now under continuous fire from the enemy fighters to his rear, Major Davis sustained his attack. He fired at another MIG-15 which, bursting into smoke and flames, went into a vertical dive. Rather than maintain his superior speed and evade the enemy fire being concentrated on him, he elected to reduce his speed and sought out still a third MIG-15. During this latest attack his aircraft sustained a direct hit, went out of control, then crashed into a mountain 30 miles south of the Yalu River. Major Davis’ bold attack completely disrupted the enemy formation, permitting the friendly fighter-bombers to successfully complete their interdiction mission. Major Davis, by his indomitable fighting spirit, heroic aggressiveness, and superb courage in engaging the enemy against formidable odds exemplified valor at its highest.

General Orders: Department of the Air Force, General Orders No. 20 (April 30, 1954)

Action Date: February 10, 1952

Service: Air Force

Rank: Major

Company: 334th Fighter Squadron

Regiment: 4th Fighter Wing

Division: 5th Air Force

Major George Andrew Davis, Jr., U.S.A.F., stands in the cockpit of North American Aviation F-86A-5-NA Sabre 49-1225, circa December 1951. (U.S. Air Force 050428-F-1234P-032)

George Andrew Davis, Jr., was born 1 December 1920, at Dublin, Erath County, Texas. He was the seventh of nine children of George Andrew Davis, a farmer, and Pearl Love Davis. George attended high school at Morton, Texas, and Harding College (now, Harding University), at Searcy, Arkansas.

Davis married Miss Doris Lynn Forgason in Maple, Texas, 21 February 1941. They would have three children, Mary Margaret Davis, George Andrew Davis III, and Charles Lynn Davis.

Soon after the United States entered World War II, on 21 March 1942, George Davis enlisted as a private in the U.S. Army Air Corps at Lubbock, Texas. He was 5 feet, 7 inches (170 centimeters) tall and weighed 135 pounds (61 kilograms). Davis had a light complexion, black hair and blue eyes. He was selected as an Aviation Cadet and sent to Kelly Field, San Antonio, Texas, for pre-flight instruction. Cadet Davis received primary flight training at Bonham Field, Bonham, Texas, a member of Class 43-B.

On completion of flight training, Davis was commissioned as a second lieutenant, Air Reserve, 16 March 1943. He was then sent to Bowman Field , Kentucky, for combat training in the Curtiss-Wright P-40 Warhawk.

Assigned to the 342nd Fight Squadron, 348th Fighter Group, Lieutenant Davis was deployed to the Southwest Pacific, serving in New Guinea and the Philippine Islands. With that unit, he flew both the North American P-51 Mustang and the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt. He was credited with destroying seven enemy aircraft.

Second Lieutenant Davis was promoted to the rank of First Lieutenant, Air Corps, Army of the United States, 3 February 1944, and to First Lieutenant, A.U.S., 2 March 1944. On 12 November 1944, he was promoted to Captain, Army of the United States.

 

Captain George Andrew Davis, Jr., Air Corps, Army of the United States, circa 1945. (U.S. Air Force)

Following World War II, Captain Davis was assigned to Bryan Field, just west of Bryan, Texas. A contemporary newspaper article described his experiences during the war:

. . . Credited with seven Japanese planes, Davis got two of them and won the Silver Star over Clark Field, near Manila, last Dec. 24. He was leading a flight of three Thunderbolts, escorting Liberators, when he saw the two Nips attacking the bomber formation. He immediately turned in pursuit of one, and chased it to within firing distance. Then he let his wingman shoot it down. Soon after that he saw eight to ten more enemy planes attacking American fighters and went after one of them. Three short bursts from his guns were enough to send one Nip crashing into the side of a mountain.

     Once again in position covering the bombers, he saw another enemy fighter heading for the big planes. He climbed after it, and fired from 200-yard range. Pieces flew off the Jap plane and it burst into flames and crashed.

     The official citation says “the superb protection afforded the bombers by this officer enabled them to carry out their runs with telling effect.”

     Davis got the DFC when he shot down two more planes over Leyte last Dec. 10. He and his flight of four Thunderbolts were attacked by four Nips over Ormoc Bay. Davis gave chase and caught one over Cebu and the other over Negros.

     The Oak Leaf cluster to the DFC came 10 days later over the Mindoro beachhead. Again his flight of Thunderbolts was attacked by the Nips and again Davis gave chase to one of them. He fired three different bursts into his target and a short time later the enemy crashed into the water.

The captain had flown a total of 705½ hours on 266 combat missions before he left for home. He was commanding officer of one of the 348th’s units. 

Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Tuesday,  7 August 1945, Section Two, Page 1, columns 7–8

 

Captain George A. Davis, Jr., USAAF, in the cockpit of his North American Aviation P-51K-10-NT Mustang, 44-12085, during World War II.
Captain George A. Davis, Jr., USAAF, in the cockpit of his North American Aviation P-51K-10-NT Mustang, 44-12085, during World War II.

Following World War II, Captain Davis reverted to the rank of 1st Lieutenant, Air Corps Reserve, 16 Feb 1946. On 24 August 1946, he was appointed a 1st Lieutenant, Air Corps, with a date of rank retroactive to 16 February 1946. Lieutenant Davis was transferred to the United States Air Force when it was established as a separate military service, September 1947.

In 1950, Captain Davis flew as a member of the 1st Fighter Interceptor Group’s Sabre Dancers, an aerial demonstration team, based at George Air Force Base, California.

Film from the gun camera of Major Davis’ F-86E Sabre 51-2752 shows a MiG 15 smoking after being hit, 13 December 1951. (U.S. Air Force)

Captain Davis was promoted to the rank of Major in February 1951. He was assigned as commanding officer, 334th Fighter Squadron, 4th Fighter Interceptor Group, in Korea.

Major Davis was killed in action 10 February 1952, when his F-86 Sabre was shot down near the Yalu River. Both a Chinese pilot, Zhang Jihui, 12th Fighter Aviation Regiment ¹ and a Soviet pilot, Mikhail A. Averin, claimed the shoot down. Davis was posthumously promoted to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, 15 April 1953.

The Medal of Honor was presented to Mrs. Davis by General Nathan F. Twining, Chief of Staff, United States Air Force, at a ceremony held at Reese Air Force Base, 14 May 1954.

In addition to the Medal of Honor, Lieutenant Colonel Davis was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, three Silver Stars,  the Distinguished Flying Cross with three bronze oak leaf clusters in lieu of a fourth DFC, and eight Air Medals. He flew 266 combat missions in World War II, and 60 during the Korean War. An ace in both wars, he is credited with destroying 21 enemy aircraft.

Davis’ remains were not recovered. A cenotaph in his memory is at the City of Lubbock Cemetery, Lubbock, Texas.

¹ An interesting analysis can be found in “Who Shot Down Major Davis?” at https://www.historynet.com/shot-major-davis.htm

© 2022, Bryan R. Swopes

27 December 1951

The first prototype North American Aviation XFJ-2B Fury, Bu. No. 133756, lifts off the runway at Los Angeles International Airport, 27 December 1951. (north American Aviation)
The first prototype North American Aviation XFJ-2B Fury, Bu. No. 133756, lifts off the runway at Los Angeles International Airport, 27 December 1951. (San Diego Air and Space Museum Archive)
North American Aviation XFJ-2B Fury prototype Bu. No. 133756 climbs out after takeoff from Los Angeles International Airport, 27 December 1951. (San Diego Air and Space Museum Archive)
North American Aviation XFJ-2B Fury prototype Bu. No. 133756 climbs out after takeoff from Los Angeles International Airport, 27 December 1951. (San Diego Air and Space Museum Archive)

27 December 1951: The North American Aviation XFJ-2B Fury, Bu. No. 133756, made its first flight at Los Angeles International Airport with test pilot Robert Anderson Hoover at the controls.

The XFJ-2B was a prototype aircraft carrier-based fighter for the United States Navy and Marine Corps. It was modified from a standard production U.S. Air Force F-86E-10-NA Sabre day fighter. The primary difference was the substitution of four 20 mm Colt Mark 12 autocannon for the six .50-caliber Browning M-3 machine guns of the F-86E. 150 rounds per gun were carried. The aircraft was flown to the Naval Ordnance Test Station, Armitage Field, China Lake, California, for armament testing.

The second and third prototypes were unarmed but fitted with an arrestor hook, catapult points, folding wings and a lengthened nose gear strut to increase the fighter’s static angle of attack for takeoff and landings. These two prototypes were used for aircraft carrier trials.

Production FJ-2 Fury fighters were built at North American’s Columbus, Ohio plant, along with F-86F Sabres for the Air Force.

Prototype North American Aviation XFJ-2B Fury, Bu. No. 133756, in flight, eastbound, just southwest of the Palos Verdes Peninsula. Santa Monica Bay and the Santa Monica Mountains are in the background. (North American Aviation, Inc./Boeing)
Prototype North American Aviation XFJ-2B Fury Bu. No. 133756 in flight, eastbound, just southwest of the Palos Verdes Peninsula. Santa Monica Bay and the Santa Monica Mountains are in the background. (North American Aviation, Inc./Boeing)
North American Aviation test pilot Robert A. ("Bob") Hoover with XFJ-2 Fury, Bu. No. 133754, the second prototype. (North American Aviation, Inc.)
North American Aviation test pilot Robert A. (“Bob”) Hoover with XFJ-2 Fury Bu. No. 133754, the second prototype. Note the extended landing gear strut. (North American Aviation, Inc.)

Robert A. Hoover was one of the world’s best known exhibition pilots. He was a fighter pilot in the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II. While flying a British Supermarine Spitfire with the 52nd Fighter Group based at Sicily, he was shot down, captured, and held as a prisoner of war at Stalag Luft I in Germany.

After 16 months in captivity, Hoover escaped, stole a Luftwaffe Focke-Wulf Fw 190 and flew it to The Netherlands.

After the war, Bob Hoover trained as a test pilot at Wright Field, Ohio, and remained in the Air Force until 1948. He worked as a test pilot for the Allison Division of General Motors, and then went on to North American Aviation.

Bob Hoover was famous  for flying aerobatic demonstrations around the world in his yellow P-51D Mustang and a twin-engine Shrike Commander, both built by North American Aviation.

Robert Anderson Hoover died 25 October 2016 at the age of 94 years.

Robert Anderson Hoover, Test Pilot, with North American Aviation F-100D-30-NA Super Sabre 55-370A. (The Washington Post)

© 2018, Bryan R. Swopes

13 December 1951

Major George Andrew Davis, Jr., United states Air Force, 334th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, 4th Fighter Interceptor Wing, Korea, 1951. (U.S. Air Force)
Major George Andrew Davis, Jr., United States Air Force, Commanding Officer, 334th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, 4th Fighter Interceptor Wing, Korea, 1951. (U.S. Air Force)

13 December 1951: Major George Andrew Davis, Jr., United States Air Force, commanding officer of the 334th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, 4th Fighter Interceptor Wing, flying a North American F-86E-10-NA Sabre, serial number 51-2752, led his unit on two “MiG Sweeps.”

Film from the gun camera of Major Davis’ F-86E Sabre 51-2752 shows a MiG 15 smoking after being hit, 13 December 1951. (U.S. Air Force)
Film from the gun camera of Major Davis’ F-86E Sabre 51-2752 shows a MiG 15 smoking after being hit, 13 December 1951. (U.S. Air Force)

During the mid-day fighter sweep, the 334th encountered Mikoyan Gurevich MiG 15 fighters of the 18th GIAP, 303rd IAD,  Voyenno-Vozdushnye Sily (the Soviet Air Force), and an air battle ensued. Major Davis was credited with shooting down two of the Russian fighters. The pilot of one of the MiGs, I.A. Gorsky, was killed. The identity and fate of the second Soviet pilot is not known.

During a second sweep in mid-afternoon, George Davis and the 334th again encountered enemy MiG 15s of the 40th Regiment, 14th Division, of the Peoples Liberation Army Air Force (Chinese Air Force). At 3:52 p.m. (1352) Davis shot down one of the Chinese MiG 15s. One minute later, he shot down another, his fourth aerial victory for the day.

These frames of film from the gun camera of Davis’ F-86 Sabre show a MiG 15 trailing smoke after being hit by the Sabre’s six .50-caliber machine guns. Chinese sources confirmed the loss of two MiG 15s, but again, the identities of the pilots and whether or not they survived is not known.

This North American Aviation F-86E-10-NA Sabre, 51-2849, seen here in flight over Edwards Air Force base, california, is the same type fighter that was flown by Major George Davis, 13 December 1951. (U.S. Air Force)
This North American Aviation F-86E-10-NA Sabre, 51-2849, seen here in flight near Edwards Air Force Base, California, is the same type fighter that was flown by Major George A. Davis, Jr., 13 December 1951. (U.S. Air Force)

© 2015, Bryan R. Swopes

17 August 1951

Colonel Fred J. Ascani, United States Air Force
Colonel Fred J. Ascani, United States Air Force

17 August 1951: In order to demonstrate the capabilities of the United States Air Force’s new day fighter, Colonel Fred J. Ascani, Vice Commander, Air Force Flight Test Center, Edwards Air Force Base, California, had been assigned to take two new North American Aviation F-86E Sabres from the production line at El Segundo, California, to the National Air Races at Detroit, Michigan. He was to attempt a new world speed record.

Colonel Ascani selected F-86E-10-NA 51-2721 and 51-2724. They received bright orange paint to the forward fuselage and the top of the vertical fin. Bold numbers 2 and 4 were painted on their sides.

North American Aviation F-86E-10-NA Sabre 51-2721. (FAI)
Colonel Fred J. Ascani with the Thompson Trophy, 1951. (AP)

Flying Number 2, F-86E 51-2721, Fred Ascani flew a 100-kilometer closed circuit at an average speed of 1,023.04 kilometers per hour (635.69 miles per hour), and set a new Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) World Record for Speed Over a Closed Circuit of 100 Kilometers.¹

For his accomplishment, Colonel Ascani was awarded both the Thompson Trophy and the MacKay Trophy.

The North American Aviation F-86 was a single-seat, single-engine day fighter designed by Edgar Schmued and the same team at North American that designed the World War II P-51 Mustang fighter. The Sabre was the first fighter to incorporate swept wings, which improved flight at high subsonic speed by reducing aerodynamic drag and delaying the onset of compressibility effects. The leading edges of the wings and tail surfaces were swept 35° based on captured German technical data and extensive wind tunnel testing.

North American Aviation F-86E-10-NA Sabre 51-2721. (U.S. Air Force)
North American Aviation F-86E-10-NA Sabre 51-2721. (U.S. Air Force)

The F-86E Sabre was an improved F-86A. The most significant change was the incorporation of an “all flying tailplane” in which the entire horizontal tail moved to control the airplane’s pitch. The tailplane pivoted around its rear spar, allowing the leading edge to move up or down 8°. The elevators were mechanically linked to the tailplane and their movement was proportional to the tailplane’s movement. Control was hydraulic, and this provided improved handling at high speeds where compressibility could “freeze” control surfaces. There were systems improvements as well, with “artificial feel” to the hydraulic controls to improve feedback to the pilot and prevent over-controlling. Beginning with Block 10 aircraft, the “V”-shaped windscreen of the earlier models was replaced with an optically flat laminated glass windshield.

Fred Ascani in the cockpit of F-86E
Fred Ascani in the cockpit of North American Aviation F-86E-10-NA Sabre 51-2724. (U.S. Air Force)

The F-86E was 37 feet, 6.5 inches (11.443 meters) long with a wingspan of 37 feet, 1.4 inches (11.313 meters) and overall height of 14 feet, 1 inch (4.293 meters). Its empty weight was 10,555 pounds (4,787.7 kilograms) and the maximum takeoff weight was 16,436 pounds (7,455.2 kilograms).

The F-86E was powered by a General Electric J47-GE-13 turbojet engine. The J47 was an axial-flow turbojet with a 12-stage compressor and single stage turbine. The J47-GE-13 was rated at 5,200 pounds of thrust and 6,000 pounds (“wet”). The engine was 12 feet, 0.0 inches (3.658 meters) long, 3 feet, 3.0 inches (0.991 meters) in diameter and weighed 2,525 pounds ( kilograms).

The F-86E Sabre had a maximum speed of 679 miles per hour (1,092.7 kilometers per hour) at Sea Level and 601 miles per hour (967.2 kilometers per hour) at 35,000 feet (10,668 meters). Its service ceiling was 47,200 feet (14,386.7 meters).

The F-86E carried 437 gallons (1,654.2 liters) of fuel internally and could carry two 200-gallon (757.1 liter) drop tanks under the wings. Maximum range was 1,022 miles (1,645 kilometers).

The F-86A, E and F Sabres were armed with six Browning AN-M3 .50-caliber aircraft machine guns with 1,602 rounds of ammunition.

6,233 F-86 Sabres were built by North American at Inglewood, California and Columbus Ohio. Another 521 were assembled by Fiat and Mitsubishi. 1,815 CL-13 Sabres were built by Canadair, and 115 CA-26 and CA-27 Sabres by Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation in Australia. Total production for all types and manufacturers was 8,684. North American Aviation built 336 F-86Es and 60 more were built by Canadair (F-86E-6-CAN).

In order to emphasize that Colonel Ascani’s record-setting Sabre was a standard production airplane, it was immediately sent into combat with the 25th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, 51st Fighter Interceptor Wing, at Suwon Air Base, Korea. There, it was christened THIS’LL KILL YA. On 3 May 1953, 51-2721 was damaged during a landing accident at Kimpo Air Base, but it was repaired and returned to service.

The FAI World Speed Record holder, North American Aviation F-86E-10-NA Sabre 51-2721, at Suwon Air Base, Korea, circa 1952.
A group of Allied pilots stand with the FAI World Speed Record holder, North American Aviation F-86E-10-NA Sabre 51-2721, at Suwon Air Base, Korea, circa 1952. Its pilot, Lieutenant Jack L. Price, has named it THIS’LL KILL YA.

¹ FAI Record File Number 10429

© 2017, Bryan R. Swopes