Dogfights: American F-86 Sabres vs. Communist MiG-15s (S2, E3) | Full Episode

Video Statistics and Information

Video
Captions Word Cloud
Reddit Comments
Captions
NARRATOR: In the skies above North Korea, a new kind of air war is raging at 500 miles per hour. Jet versus jet, dog fighting for the first time in history. At the knife edge of the speed of sound, life or death is decided in fractions of a second. [RAPID FIRE] Now, you're in the cockpit as American pilots pit their F-86 Sabre's against communist MiG-15s, redefining air combat in pursuit of a previously unknown glory, the title of jet ace. Experience the battle. Dissect the tactics. [BOOM] Relive the dog fights. [THEME MUSIC] May 20, 1951, American F-86 Sabre jets ripped through enemy airspace above Sinuiju, North Korea at over 500 miles per hour. [ENGINES BLARING] Their objective is simple, lure enemy MiGs into a fight and kill as many as possible. These pilots are pioneers of a new age. Air combat is now driven by the jet engine. [ENGINES BLARING] DAVID KENNEDY: These guys went into a very unknown environment. They went into a very tough war. This wasn't World War 2. They took airplanes that were flying twice the speed of any fighter combat before, and they showed us how it was done. NARRATOR: James Jabara flies element lead in a flight of six. The 27-year-old captain is one of the best. A Mustang pilot during World War 2, he's become a master of jet-versus-jet combat. With four MiG-15 kills to his credit, he's one away from becoming the first American ace of the jet age. [ENGINES BLARING] Jabara is so close. I mean, he's got four MiG kills. The Air Force desperately wants an ace, and he's the guy that can do it. NARRATOR: After only minutes in enemy territory, he'll get his chance. [ENGINES BLARING] 50 gleaming MiG-15s scream across the Yalu River to take on the Americans. Jabara punches his tanks to streamline his fighter for combat, but something goes wrong. He loses only one of his tanks. He gets a huge asymmetric rocking motion on the aircraft, probably bangs his head off the canopy, has a difficult time controlling the airplane. NARRATOR: The pins securing the tanks to the wing have frozen, a common problem in the frigid skies of North Korea. Standing orders dictate that he must return to base. He puts both hands on the stick, steadies it, and gets the aircraft back under control. And then in a very short amount of time, has to make that critical combat decision. Can I still fight with this airplane? Now, his judgment is weighed with his aggressiveness, and his aggressiveness wins out. NARRATOR: Jabara, and the rest of the Americans, pull a right break into the oncoming enemy. Approaching head on, the fighters close at over 1,600 feet per second. At this speed, it's next to impossible to get an accurate shot. [RAPID FIRE] The MiGs thunder past. Jabara jerks the stick hard left to pursue. The hung wing tank turns his F-86 into a bucking bronco. TERRY DEITZ: He's probably pulling 30, 40, 50 pounds of stick force right there and trying to control his jet as he's pulling lead out in front. NARRATOR: Jabara's wingman, Salvadore Kemp, calls out three more MiGs diving fast from behind. The MiGs are here. They've gained a 100 mile per hour speed advantage in the dive. Jabara and Kemp are here with only a split second to counter them. The MiGs hurdle in. Jabara pulls up and to the right. He's using the MiGs diving speed against them, forcing an overshoot. Jabara's break turn up to the right forces two MiGs to go right by and continue to go. One MiG, for one reason or another, decides to peel off to the left, exposing his belly to Jabara. NARRATOR: Jabara pounces. He snaps his plane to the left and locks on to tail-end Charlie. Not only is that the sign of a good fighter pilot, but it's a sign of a good fighter pilot in the new jet age. Things happen extremely fast. And those that are able to react, almost before it happens, are able to take advantage. NARRATOR: The bandit stays in a diving left turn. Jabara pulls the stick in tight to stay in trail. At this altitude, the F-86 and MiG-15 are evenly matched in a turning fight. But Jabara's got something his foe lacks, a g-suit. It's a World War 2 invention that came into its own as an essential tool of dog fighting in the jet age. The g-suit constricts around Jabara's legs and abdomen, keeping blood from pooling in his extremities. Jabara is able to pull tighter than the MiG pilot without blacking out. He closes the gap. His coveted fifth kill is now in perfect position, dead center in his gunsight. [RAPID FIRE] Jabara opens fire. .50-caliber rounds impact the MiG. [BOOM] The pilot ejects. Seconds later, the empty fuselage explodes. [BOOM] [RAPID FIRE] DAVID KENNEDY: This is what he's been working for. This is why he's been in Korea. So he has got to be elated at this point. NARRATOR: It's a confirmed kill. America has its first jet ace. [ENGINES BLARING] James Jabara honed his skills in the prop driven fighters of World War 2. After the war, he became one of the first American pilots to fly the next generation of combat aircraft, the jet fighter. In a turbo jet engine, air enters an intake and is compressed into a combustion chamber, where fuel is added and ignited. The rapidly expanding gas forces its way through a turbine and out the exhaust port, creating a massive amount of forward thrust. The jet engine was pioneered by British and German engineers during World War 2. In the waning months of the war, the Germans were the first to send a jet fighter into combat, the ME-262. Twin turbo jet engines gave it a 100 mile per hour speed advantage over prop fighters. The ME-262 combined jet technology with an innovative swept wing design. The swept wing created less drag than a conventional straight wing, allowing for higher top speeds. During the war years, both the Russians and Americans developed their own first generation jet fighters, the MiG-9 and the P-59 Airacomet. But these underpowered straight-wing designs never saw combat. In 1947, when German technology became available, both the Americans and the Russians adopted the swept wing. The result was the F-86 Sabre and the MiG-15. The F-86 had exceptional visibility and a strong airframe designed for air-to-air combat. The MiG was lighter with a faster rate of climb and a higher service ceiling. In the skies above North Korea, these fighters would square off in the first large-scale jet-versus-jet dogfights in history. [RAPID FIRE] [BOOM] May 20, 1951, after six months of high-speed air combat, James Jabara has just become America's first jet ace. But a massive air battle is still raging above him. LARRY DAVIS: There was never an inclination in his mind to break off and go home just because he made ace. His job, in Korea, was to kill MiGs. NARRATOR: Jabara coaxes his Sabre to 20,000 feet. His wingman is nowhere in sight. With a hung tank and nobody watching his six, he has two strikes against him. [ENGINES BLARING] There's a swirl of activity. There are MiGs. There are Sabres in the air. He looks forward and he sees six MiGs in the air above him. He immediately goes into attack mode, just as you would expect him to. And he immediately goes for the trail aircraft, which is the smart thing to do, to pick them off one by one from behind. NARRATOR: Jabara's gun thwarts are blazing. [RAPID FIRE] The MiG formation scatters, but number six climbs straight ahead. Jim was trying to close the gap, but of course, the F-86 was slower than the MiG in the climb to begin with. With the hung tank, it was very slow. And this MiG could have easily gotten away. NARRATOR: But the MiG pilot makes a critical mistake and suddenly dives to the left. The maneuver plays right into the Sabre's strength. It's faster in a dive. [ENGINES BLARING] [INTENSE MUSIC] Jabara draws a bead and pulls the trigger-- [RAPID FIRE] --shredding his enemy's engine. The powerless jet tumbles. His sixth kill. Suddenly tracer fire envelops Jabara's canopy. [RAPID FIRE] The tables have turned. MiG's are on his 6:00, closing in to avenge their fallen comrade. [RAPID FIRE] DAVID KENNEDY: Well, now Jabara has committed a couple of cardinal sins. Don't engage if you can't drop your tank. Don't engage if you don't have a wingman. Don't fixate on the target. And that's exactly what he's done in this case. NARRATOR: James Jabara realizes that his quest to become a jet ace could cost him his life. May 20, 1951, Captain James Jabara is running for his life from two MiG-15s. He pulls hard to the left, attempting to throw his attackers off. [RAPID FIRE] Glowing 37 and 23-millimeter tracers smoke past the right side of his F-86. Jabara pushes his J-47 jet engine to full power, 5,200 pounds of thrust. But the hung wing tank limits his speed to 500 miles per hour, 100 miles per hour less than the MiGs. What's worse? It handicaps his turning ability. With that tank in the slower speed, Jim was a sitting duck. DAVID KENNEDY: He pulls hard. Hits his speed brakes. Pulls his speed brakes in. Reverses. Turns hard the other way. Rolls out. Accelerates. Turns. Doing this just to momentarily break up the gun firing solution from the mix. NARRATOR: The enemy pilots are padlocked on his tail. DAVID KENNEDY: He is meat on the table. And unless something happens, Jabara's sixth kill will be his last kill. NARRATOR: Luckily, for Jabara, something does happen. American pilots, Mo Pitts and Rudy Holley happen upon the scene. The Sabres are here. The MiGs are here behind Jabara. The Americans will dive quickly to close the gap and knock the MiGs off Jabara's tail. At jet speeds, they'll have mere seconds to accomplish their goal. DAVID KENNEDY: Pitts and Holley roll in behind the MiGs. [RAPID FIRE] One of the MiGs pulls off. But the flight leader MiG is not so eager to get out of there. NARRATOR: MiG leader lines up his shot, but Holley is in position. His M-3 machine guns roar to life. [RAPID FIRE] The MiG smokes, breaks for home. The Americans slashing attack has worked. Pitts and Holley form up with Jabara and escort him home. As Jabara taxis in, he finds a crowd waiting for him. HOOT GIBSON: It was a great day. We had our first jet ace. And we had a big celebration on the ramp, carried him around. NARRATOR: Jabara is awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. After his 123rd mission, he is sent home to a hero's welcome. He returns to Korea in 1953 and adds an astonishing nine more MiG kills to his tally, becoming one of only two triple aces during the war. DAVID KENNEDY: Jabara was the first jet ace that the US Air Force had. And this was a major triumph and a major accomplishment. He would be the first of many during that war, and he led the way. NARRATOR: Jabara's historic achievement sets the bar for every American fighter pilot in Korea. With each new fighter sweep, Sabre pilots clamor for enemy encounters. They can't be the first jet ace, but with a little luck, they can be the second. [RAPID FIRE] [BOOM] First Lieutenant Hoot Gibson is one of these men. I could hardly wait. I was ready to go fight. I trained for six years to do this. NARRATOR: June 18, 1951. Less than one month after James Jabara's ace-making encounter, First Lieutenant Hoot Gibson heads into North Korea on combat air patrol. The confident 26-year-old fighter has yet to be credited with a confirmed kill, but he's aggressive and has superb mastery of jet combat tactics. [ENGINES BLARING] HOOT GIBSON: I had a lot of fighter time and a lot of experience simulating dogfighting. We thought we could whip anything, anybody in any airplane. NARRATOR: Heading West toward the China Sea, Gibson spots glints at 3:00 high, MiGs. Gibson is here with a formation of 18 American Sabres. 50 MiGs are here, 3,000 feet above at 3:00. The MiGs higher service ceiling means they can choose when and where they want to fight. Outnumbering the Sabres nearly three to one, the MiGs dive in. [INTENSE MUSIC] The Americans turn to engage the enemy head on. Gibson throttles up. His Sabre covers one mile every seven seconds. The jets merge in the blink of an eye. [RAPID FIRE] I started climbing right turn to try to be above them and maneuver to the rear of them. NARRATOR: Hoot and his wingman swing in behind the enemy formation and single out a straggling MiG. The MiG breaks hard to the left. Gibson maintains track and centers his Sabre's A1C radar ranging gunsight. A radar unit in the nose calculates the distance. And the gunsight determines the necessary lead to put rounds on target. Gibson pulls the trigger. With each burst, 60 .50-caliber rounds tear into the enemy jet. The MiG pilot tightens his turn and dives toward the deck, trying to throw off Gibson's aim. They had their nose below the horizon, and I was behind them, but I was on the inside of the turn. And they were turning about two to three degrees, and I couldn't quite stay with them. NARRATOR: Straining at over 5g's, Gibson is pulling so hard that he can't keep an angle on his target. The MiG drifts out of his gunsight. Gibson's wingman, Jim Heckman, has a better angle on the enemy. My wingman was in position to take him, so I told him to go ahead and shoot at him, and he did. NARRATOR: Heckman scores devastating hits, but Gibson must do something to regain a firing angle. He'll call on a tried and true air combat maneuver, the barrel roll. He'll pitch up, roll around his wingman, and position himself on the outside. He's not only out of his wingman's bullets, but he is also putting himself back in position to take another shot without hitting his wingman. [ENGINES BLARING] I maneuvered in behind them and got a good burst on him. [RAPID FIRE] And then he ejected. [RAPID FIRE] [BOOM] [RAPID FIRE] One down. But since Heckman scored the most damage, he'll get the credit. He made the right choice. The instinctive maneuver to stop his downrange travel, roll back into another firing solution while giving his wingman the shot, and then also the wingman got the kill. That's a hell of a guy. NARRATOR: With so many MiGs in the sky, it takes only seconds for Hoot to tally a new target, another pair of MiGs 2000 feet below at 2:00. Easy pickings. But Gibson's gunsight suddenly goes blank. It was probably dirt in the circuit breaker or something. I just reset it with my hand, but it wouldn't reset. It kept popping out. NARRATOR: No guts, no glory. Gunsight or no gunsight, Hoot Gibson is going on the attack. June 18, 1951. In a wild jet-versus-jet dogfight, F-86 pilot, Hoot Gibson, has seen one MiG-15 go down in flames. He's now in position to attack two more. The enemy jets are here. Gibson and his wingman are here. He has two options. He can nose down into a dive, but he may overshoot. His best option is to barrel roll. The maneuver will put him squarely on the MiGs tail. Gibson pitches up, a blind right rudder and aileron. So as they roll over and lose altitude and roll back down in front of the MiGs, they're in perfect firing position. [ENGINES BLARING] NARRATOR: Hoot rolls, wings level, with two MiGs at his 12:00. The enemy jets pitch up. The lighter MiGs can climb faster than the Sabres. Gibson must act quickly before they get away. [RAPID FIRE] I don't have a gunsight anymore, so I had to stay close, at, I'd say, 400 or 500 feet. And I put the airplane in my windscreen at about where I thought the pipper would be. [RAPID FIRE] This guy's a good shot. He doesn't necessarily need a radar in order to be able to figure out what the range is. He knows, from his experience, how big that MiG looks in his windscreen to be at the range where he wants to fire. NARRATOR: Hoot fires two dead-center bursts into the communist jet. [RAPID FIRE] The MiG pilot ejects as his entire right wing rips off. It's Gibson's first official kill. As the enemy plane spirals from view, Hoot catches sight of his commanding officer, Lieutenant Colonel Ben Emmert, below him at his 2:00. He's chasing a MiG, but he's not alone. There's another MiG on his tail closing in for the kill. He had tunnel vision for that MiG. And I called him and told him a MiG was on his tail, but I would be able to take care of him. NARRATOR: Hoot acts quickly. Yet again, he barrel rolls to the right. Gibson levels out with the MiG dead ahead. The MiG spots Gibson and jinks violently in a desperate attempt to shake his pursuer. He turned to the left and maybe lowered the nose three or four degrees below the horizon. I stayed right with him. He turned back to the right, and he just helped me stay in position. I got two more good bursts into him. [RAPID FIRE] [BOOM] NARRATOR: The MiG bursts into flames. [RAPID FIRE] [BOOM] At 3,000 feet, the jet explodes. [BOOM] [RAPID FIRE] [BOOM] [RAPID FIRE] [BOOM] In a matter of minutes, Hoot Gibson has seen three MiGs down, scoring two confirmed kills for himself, putting him in the running to become America's next jet ace. He claims his third kill three weeks later on July 11th. His fourth on September 2nd. And on September 9, 1951, Gibson downs a fifth, realizing his dream of becoming a jet ace. But the kill comes just minutes after Captain Dick Becker shoots down his fifth MiG. Officially, Becker is credited as the second jet ace. Hoot Gibson is the third. I felt good. That's what we were supposed to be doing, and I felt like that we were getting payback for all the training that I'd been given. NARRATOR: The early jet aces used the same principles of air combat developed for piston engine fighters of World War 2. But techniques and tactics had to adapt to the new realities of high-altitude, high-speed jet combat. Fuel management became the overriding consideration in Korean War jet combat. Instead of the large squadron-sized formations of World War 2, it was determined that flights of four Sabres continuously streaming in and out of the combat zone was the most efficient use of resources. This necessitated strict adherence to flight integrity and keeping the basic finger-four formation intact. At jet speeds, any sudden maneuver could easily split a flight of four or cause a lead to be separated from his wingman. An American fighter left alone was vulnerable. The rule was singles' go South. Just weeks before the air war ends, 28-year-old Captain Ralph Parr will face this danger firsthand in one of the most harrowing dogfights of the new jet age. June 7, 1953, 20 miles South of the Yalu River, Sabres of the 335th Fighter Squadron soar at 43,000 feet, hunting for enemy aircraft. Second Lieutenant Al Cox is element lead. On Cox's wing is Captain Ralph Parr. RALPH PARR: The weather was absolutely beautiful. If it had been just slightly clearer and you could have got slightly higher, you could have seen Paris, the visibility was so good. NARRATOR: But the stillness is shattered in an instant. [RAPID FIRE] A flight of MiGs bounces them from 9:00 high. [RAPID FIRE] Parr spots the attackers and calls a left break, but the lead element breaks right. In an instant, flight integrity is compromised. Flight lead orders Cox and Parr to withdraw and form up. Parr keeps his eyes peeled. RALPH PARR: As I was sweeping with my eyes to the lower right, I spotted a movement against the coloration of the ground. I called it out as a bogey, and Cox came right back and he says, I don't have it. You take it, I've got you covered. NARRATOR: The MiG is heading in the opposite direction, far below him, at treetop level. It's Parr's first chance for a kill. He wings over to intercept the MiG with a Split S. In the maneuver, Parr will dive, reverse direction, and drop in behind the MiG. The speed his jet builds in the dive will easily allow him to close the distance on his enemy. Parr snaps his plane over and firewall's the throttle. The move is so sudden that Cox doesn't see where Parr is headed. RALPH PARR: He called me and he said, I've lost you. Which way did you go? I said I went straight down. Come on down. See if you can find me. NARRATOR: He rapidly accelerates past 670 miles per hour, cracking the sound barrier. It's not uncommon for the Sabre to pass Mach 1 in a dive, but its flight controls are ill equipped to deal with these speeds. DAVID KENNEDY: F-86 came around in an era when we were breaking the sound barrier and understanding transonics and what went on with airplanes when they did go supersonic. And in a dive approaching supersonic speeds, the flight control surfaces will be far less responsive. And it may be not possible to recover from a dive. NARRATOR: Parr knows that the Sabre needs 14,500 feet to pull out of a vertical dive, but he's already dropped below 10,000 feet. TERRY DEITZ: In the new jet age, things just get away from you. The speed builds up and there's no way you can dissipate it because you don't have the aircraft control ability to slow your airplane down at that point. Even with idle boards, he's rocketing this jet at the ground at roughly 600 knots, 700 miles an hour. And he's there, and he's about to die. NARRATOR: June 7, 1953. Captain Ralph Parr is diving towards a MiG-15 that is hugging the treetops. Parr's biggest concern isn't the bandit, but terra firma rushing up at him at 1,000 feet per second. Self-preservation is now the only thing that matters. Parr pulls back on the stick hard. He grunts like a weightlifter to keep from blacking out. The pull of nine times the force of gravity instantly inflates the g-suit, gripping his abdomen and legs. For a moment, his body weighs 1,400 pounds. I suddenly realized, breathe. You're not breathing. Well, the reason I wasn't breathing is my g-suit had swollen up due to the g-load and the pull out, and I couldn't get any air in my lungs. NARRATOR: The horizon slowly slides into view outside his windscreen. Parr is alive by only inches. He's probably bent the airplane, but he's still flying. The MiG is now directly in front of him, still hugging the ground. Parr is gaining rapidly. Then a shattering realization. RALPH PARR: I looked straight ahead, and I could see one aircraft. Within a split second, I could see two. I could see four. The multiplied into another four. And then the other four multiplied in another eight. NARRATOR: Parr discovers that there are 16 bandits off his nose. He's on his own. The usual tactics don't apply. He'll rely on skill and pure guts to get out of this alive. He singles out the leader of the eight MiGs out in front. I'm gonna take the lead aircraft because he's got the most experience and cut the Indians loose rather than the other way around. NARRATOR: Still carrying a 100 mile per hour speed advantage from his hair raising dive, Parr closes quickly within 3,000 feet, gun range. [RAPID FIRE] He squeezes the trigger. [RAPID FIRE] The MiGs scatter. The MiG leader lifts his nose and breaks hard right. Parr throws the stick over to stay with him. TERRY DEITZ: With the onset of G, the speed, it's a very athletic endeavor to get yourself into a dogfight. To go from weighing 190 pounds to 1,300 pounds in a split second and having that 1,300 pounds of weight on you for 30 seconds is unbelievable. NARRATOR: Parr strains to keep his head upright and eyes outside. I was somewhere between 9, 9 and 1/2 g's, and my-- [SNAP] [RAPID FIRE] --my light on my gunsight, the reticle and the pipper, disappeared. NARRATOR: Either a fuse has blown or a circuit breaker tripped. Not surprising given the abuse thrown at the Sabre in the last 60 seconds. It was irritating. [CHUCKLES] You're expecting to use it. You're depending on having it there, and all of a sudden, it quits. NARRATOR: There's no time to dwell on it. Parr is on the verge of overtaking the MiG. His worst mistake would be to overshoot. He cuts the throttle to idle, pops his speed brakes, and does a half roll to bleed off air speed. To keep from over shooting him, I came up and lifted in close to him. So we wound up pretty much canopy to canopy like this. NARRATOR: MiG leader counters Parr's move. He's no slouch. The two silver Jets begin an incredible aerial ballet, twisting around each other, barely 500 feet from the ground. It's called a rolling scissors. The object is to bring your guns to bear on your opponent by forcing him to slip out front. The only way to do that is by gradually reducing air speed to the razor's edge of sustained flight. RALPH PARR: And I'm looking down through his canopy, and I can see his feet. I can even see the laces in his boots. NARRATOR: Parr uses stick and rudder with just enough throttle. The MiG does the same. It's energy management in the extreme. Coordination is key. Someone is bound to slip up. It's the MiG pilot. He adds a little too much throttle in the roll and moves ahead of Parr. I thought, friend that costs you. And I booted the outside rudder, outside aileron, and tried to slide in behind him. The next thing that went through my mind is I'm going to hit him. NARRATOR: Parr's heart is about to leap out of his chest. He slides the Sabre's nose just inches from the MiG's sharp-like tail. It's too close for comfort. The F-86 is thumped hard by the MiG's jet wash. A new hazard in the jet age. Parr controls the buffeting Sabre, reduces power, and backs off. I pulled the trigger. I hit him. [RAPID FIRE] He zigged off to one side, and I latched onto him and climbed into the saddle. NARRATOR: But MiG leader is not about to throw in the towel. RALPH PARR: He rolled underneath, which caught me totally by surprise. I hadn't anticipated that at all. NARRATOR: The MiG snap rolls to quickly change direction, attempting to regain the advantage and use his jet wash to keep Parr at bay. Parr stays on him like glue, but he must avoid the MiG's exhaust. The hot blast could flip the Sabre at any moment. And as low as they are, there's no room to recover, but Ralph Parr is not about to give up now. June 7, 1953. F-86 Sabre pilot, Ralph Parr, is in hot pursuit of a MiG-15, literally. The MiG has already forced him into a death-defying roll. As I was following him, he started to do it again. This time I thought you're not going to catch me on that. NARRATOR: Parr will pitch up and roll over the top. It's a bold move that will put him in firing position and clear of the MiGs jet wash. I went over the top, and I was sitting there waiting on him when he came out of tucking it under. And he was right in front of me. Then I let him have it. [RAPID FIRE] NARRATOR: The MiG lights up like a Roman candle. [INTENSE MUSIC] [BOOM] [BOOM] After an exhausting contest, Parr tastes victory for the first time. But there's no time to gloat. A quick glance over his left shoulder, more MiGs diving on him from 8:00. [RAPID FIRE] Parr adds power while snapping the stick hard left. The Sabre responds instantly. Orange tracers drift menacingly close to his tail. The MiGs try to stay with him, but they're too fast. The first MiG overshoots, followed by the second and the third. But the number four MiG stays in trail. The experienced Sabre pilot senses his enemy is about to bug out. He got disheartened a little bit, and he didn't think he was going to make it. NARRATOR: If he can trick the MiG and draw it in closer, Parr can force an overshoot and then go on the attack. What I had to do, then, was to back off on my turn to make it easier for him to get a shot at me. NARRATOR: Parr widens his turn, allowing the MiG to think he has a chance. The MiG pilot takes the bait and maneuvers for a shot. Parr will wait until the last second then load up and increase his turn rate. If the MiG overshoots, Parr will be able to reverse his turn and drop in on the MiG's tail. The MiG begins pulling lead. Parr pulls the stick back, adding power and throwing in more aileron. [ENGINES BLARING] The MiG flashes by. Parr reverses, rolling in behind his target. [ENGINES BLARING] [INTENSE MUSIC] [RAPID FIRE] Then I took the tracer's and just very slowly, walked them up through his [INAUDIBLE].. [RAPID FIRE] [BOOM] NARRATOR: Splash two for Ralph Parr. [RAPID FIRE] But almost instantly, another MiG streaks in, cannon blazing. [RAPID FIRE] Again, Parr puts the Sabre into a crushing turn to force another overshoot. The MiG-15 screams past him, too fast to engage. The MiG climbs to rejoin his comrades. They've had enough. During eight sweat-drenched minutes of jet-on-jet combat, Ralph Parr has engaged 16 MiGs and shot down two. [ENGINES BLARING] [RAPID FIRE] This won't be Ralph Parr's last encounter with the enemy in MiG alley. [BOOM] He scores eight more kills in record time, proving himself to be one of the most aggressive fighter pilots in US Air Force history. [ENGINES BLARING] Parr joins James Jabara as one of only 11 pilots to claim 10 or more victories over Korea. [ENGINES BLARING] The jet aces of the Korean War were the pioneers of the sky. They were very much a no-excuses bunch, and they showed us the way. They provided us with some tremendous uplifting victories in that war. TERRY DEITZ: These are the guys that have mastered the speed, the new dogfight. They've used tactics of old, but they're doing it at breakneck speed. [RAPID FIRE] NARRATOR: In the crucible of air combat over Korea, these elite few fought the battles and wrote the textbook on jet-versus-jet warfare. Many of these veteran pilots stayed in the cockpit to take the next generation of jet fighters to war, shattering the sound barrier above Southeast Asia and ushering in the missile age. [RAPID FIRE] The modern era of air warfare was born, owing to the intrepid young aviators who stared down a communist onslaught and won. [BOOM] The legacy of the jet aces. [ENGINES BLARING] [MUSIC PLAYING]
Info
Channel: HISTORY
Views: 321,965
Rating: undefined out of 5
Keywords: history, history channel, history shows, history channel shows, dogfights, history dogfights, dogfights show, dogfights full episodes, dogfights clips, full episodes, watch dogfights, dogfights scenes, dogfights episodes, planes, airplanes, jets, military planes, American F-86 Sabres, Communist MiG-15s, American F-86 Sabres vs. Communist MiG-15s, F-86 Sabres, MiG-15s, season 2, episode 3, jet fights, plane fights, air fights, explosions, history channel dogfights
Id: neobI1ro5XM
Channel Id: undefined
Length: 45min 12sec (2712 seconds)
Published: Thu Oct 28 2021
Related Videos
Note
Please note that this website is currently a work in progress! Lots of interesting data and statistics to come.