North American QF-86F Sabre (Canadair Sabre Mk. 5)
The success of the North American F-86 Sabre in USAF service led the Royal Canadian Air Force to replace most of its World War II-era fighters with license-built versions of the Sabre. The first Canadian-built Sabre Mk.2s entered service in 1952, with two-thirds going to the RCAF and the remainder to the USAF, which needed more Sabres during the Korean War than North American could produce. Later marks of the Canadair Sabres improved on the F-86 design by using a more powerful Orenda engine, culminating in the most produced example, the Mk. 6.
The Sabre Mk. 5 was based on the F-86F, with a larger wing and no leading-edge slats, and an uprated Orenda engine. All served with the RCAF, and about a quarter were later supplied to the rebuilding postwar Luftwaffe. The Mk. 5 was withdrawn from service in the mid-1960s with the RCAF, and a number were bought by private firms to be turned into drones for the US armed forces.
This particular Sabre is a Mk. 5, constructed as RCAF 23231. It was delivered to the RCAF in 1954 and served with 421 Squadron at Grostenquin, France. It was retired from RCAF service around 1970, and may have spent over a decade in storage before being acquired by a warbird collector, who restored it to flying status by 1977 (in TWA colors, which made for an odd but attractive color scheme). In 1982, it was purchased by Tracor as a chase aircraft, and was reregistered as N91FS. After over a decade flying with Tracor, N91FS was retired and donated to the Joe Davies Heritage Airpark in 1998, where it has remained ever since.
N91FS/RCAF 23231 may be the best preserved aircraft at Joe Davies, and retains its Tracor colors. According to some sources, it is still airworthy, and at least one source mentions that it was purchased in 2019 to return it to the air. It was still at Joe Davies when we visited in June 2023, however.
North American QF-86F Sabre (Canadair Sabre Mk. 5)
The success of the North American F-86 Sabre in USAF service led the Royal Canadian Air Force to replace most of its World War II-era fighters with license-built versions of the Sabre. The first Canadian-built Sabre Mk.2s entered service in 1952, with two-thirds going to the RCAF and the remainder to the USAF, which needed more Sabres during the Korean War than North American could produce. Later marks of the Canadair Sabres improved on the F-86 design by using a more powerful Orenda engine, culminating in the most produced example, the Mk. 6.
The Sabre Mk. 5 was based on the F-86F, with a larger wing and no leading-edge slats, and an uprated Orenda engine. All served with the RCAF, and about a quarter were later supplied to the rebuilding postwar Luftwaffe. The Mk. 5 was withdrawn from service in the mid-1960s with the RCAF, and a number were bought by private firms to be turned into drones for the US armed forces.
This particular Sabre is a Mk. 5, constructed as RCAF 23231. It was delivered to the RCAF in 1954 and served with 421 Squadron at Grostenquin, France. It was retired from RCAF service around 1970, and may have spent over a decade in storage before being acquired by a warbird collector, who restored it to flying status by 1977 (in TWA colors, which made for an odd but attractive color scheme). In 1982, it was purchased by Tracor as a chase aircraft, and was reregistered as N91FS. After over a decade flying with Tracor, N91FS was retired and donated to the Joe Davies Heritage Airpark in 1998, where it has remained ever since.
N91FS/RCAF 23231 may be the best preserved aircraft at Joe Davies, and retains its Tracor colors. According to some sources, it is still airworthy, and at least one source mentions that it was purchased in 2019 to return it to the air. It was still at Joe Davies when we visited in June 2023, however.