F-86F-40 (China)

This page is about the Chinese jet fighter F-86F-40 (China). For other variants, see F-86 (Family).

␗F-86F-40

␗F-86F-30

␗F-100A

␗F-86F-40

␗F-86F-30

␗F-100A

China

V Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
8.3	9.0	9.3

Class:

Fighter

Jet fighter

Research:61 000

Purchase:340 000

Description

The ␗F-86F-40 Sabre is a rank V Chinese jet fighter with a battle rating of 8.3 (AB), 9.0 (RB), and 9.3 (SB). It was introduced in Update "Starfighters".

General info

Flight performance

Air brakes

Allows you to dramatically reduce the flight speed by releasing special flaps

Max speed

at 0 m1 106 km/h

Turn time23 s

Max altitude14 700 m

EngineGeneral Electric J47-GE-27

TypeJet

Cooling systemAir

Take-off weight10 t

Describe how the aircraft behaves in the air. Speed, manoeuvrability, acceleration and allowable loads - these are the most important characteristics of the vehicle.

Characteristics	Max Speed (km/h at 0 m - sea level)		Max altitude (metres)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (metres/second)		Take-off run (metres)
	AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
Stock	1,095	1,088	14700	24.4	24.9	38.8	36.3	750
Upgraded	1,115	1,106		22.1	23.0	55.8	46.5

Details

Features
Combat flaps	Take-off flaps	Landing flaps	Air brakes	Arrestor gear	Drogue chute
✓	✓	✓	✓	X	X

Limits
Wings (km/h)	Gear (km/h)	Flaps (km/h)			Max Static G
		Combat	Take-off	Landing	+	-
0	350	590	550	350	~11	~6

Optimal velocities (km/h)
Ailerons	Rudder	Elevators	Radiator
< 850	< 600	< 650	N/A

Engine performance

Engine			Aircraft mass
Engine name		Number	Empty mass		Wing loading (full fuel)
General Electric J47-GE-27		1	5,490 kg		232 kg/m2
Engine characteristics			Mass with fuel (no weapons load)			Max Takeoff Weight
Weight (each)	Type		7m fuel	20m fuel	26m fuel
1,150 kg	Axial-flow turbojet		5,848 kg	6,490 kg	6,786 kg	9,530 kg
Maximum engine thrust @ 0 m (RB / SB)			Thrust to weight ratio @ 0 m (100%)
Condition	100%	WEP	7m fuel	20m fuel	26m fuel	MTOW
Stationary	2,626 kgf	N/A	0.45	0.41	0.39	0.28
Optimal	2,626 kgf (0 km/h)	N/A	0.45	0.41	0.39	0.28

Survivability and armour

Crew1 person

Speed of destruction

Structural0 km/h

Gear350 km/h

• 6.35 mm - Fore-cockpit steel plates
• 38 mm - Bulletproof windscreen
• 12.7 mm - Steel plate behind pilot's seat
• 20 mm - Steel plate in pilot's headrest

The plane is equipped at the front with 2 steel plates, each 6.35mm thick. The cockpit has a 38mm bullet proof glass that protects the pilot's torso and head. The backseat is made of 12.7mm of steel which protects the pilot's back while his head is further protected by another 20mm steel plate. This protection will help against smaller calibre rounds, however, cannot sustain many direct hits with 20 mm rounds or higher.

Modifications and economy

Repair costBasic → Reference

AB3 422 → 4 588

RB9 012 → 12 085

SB9 520 → 12 766

Total cost of modifications101 800

162 800

Talisman cost2 200

Crew training98 000

Experts340 000

Aces1 800

Research Aces780 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

120 / 380 / 600 %

202 / 202 / 202 %

Modifications

Flight performance	Survivability	Weaponry
Fuselage repair Research: 5 100 Cost: 8 200 240 Compressor Research: 5 100 Cost: 8 200 240 New boosters Research: 7 600 Cost: 12 000 360 Wings repair Research: 6 400 Cost: 10 000 310 Engine Research: 6 400 Cost: 10 000 310 G-suit Research: 11 000 Cost: 18 000 520	Airframe Research: 7 600 Cost: 12 000 360 Cover Research: 11 000 Cost: 18 000 520	bmg50_belt_pack Research: 5 100 Cost: 8 200 240 FRC mk.2 Research: 5 100 Cost: 8 200 240 M117 Research: 7 600 Cost: 12 000 360 bmg50_new_gun Research: 6 400 Cost: 10 000 310 FLBC mk.1 Research: 6 400 Cost: 10 000 310 AIM-9B Research: 11 000 Cost: 18 000 520

Armaments

Offensive armament

Weapon 16 x 12.7 mm M3 Browning machine gun

Ammunition1 800 rounds

Fire rate1 200 shots/min

The F-86F-40 (China) is armed with:

• 6 x 12.7 mm M3 Browning machine guns, nose-mounted (300 rpg = 1,800 total)

The F86F-40 JASDF were U.S. airframes assembled by Mitsubishi in Japan, and they offered the same offensive armament of many of it's Saber brethren, namely the 6 x M3 Browning 12.7 mm/.50 calibre machine guns. These machine guns are similar in performance to their predecessor, the M2 Browning; however, they excelled with a significantly higher rate of fire. The total ammunition count for this aircraft is 1,800 rounds, divided up with 300 rounds per gun. Ammunition belts for this aircraft are conventional 12.7 mm belts found on U.S. aircraft, and typically the tracer belts permit for the quickest correction of aim. Other belts may be utilised as necessary and depending on play-style such as the Stealth belts; however, these should be used by skilled pilots who already understand the firing aspects of the M3 Brownings and bullet performance. One challenge with the Stealth belts is the lack of tracers, making it much harder to correct aim when solely relying on visual clues.

Suspended armament

List of setups (4)

Setup 18 x HVAR rockets
8 x HVAR rockets

Setup 22 x 750 lb M117 cone 45 bomb

Setup 32 x 1000 lb AN-M65A1 Fin M129 bomb

Setup 42 x AIM-9B Sidewinder air-to-air missiles

The F-86F-40 (China) can be outfitted with the following ordnance:

• Without load
• 16 x HVAR rockets
• 2 x 1,000 lb AN-M65A1 Fin M129 bombs (2,000 lb total)
• 2 x AIM-9B Sidewinder missiles

The unguided rockets out-fitted on this aircraft are the familiar American HVARs, which can be used against slow-moving bombers or ground target vehicles and anti-aircraft guns. Since the HVARs are a fire-and-forget rocket, they work best against either stationary targets or against slow-moving targets which may not be able to avoid inbound rockets. Another option for suspended ordnances includes bombs, namely the 1,000 lbs AN-M65A1 bombs. Two of these bombs is all that this aircraft can safely carry, but these bombs will do considerable damage against ground units, ships and bases. While performing bombing runs, always be on the lookout for enemy fighters attempting to swoop in and eliminate the F-86F-40 which may be flying slower and lower than typical. For air-to-air combat, using the Aim-9B missiles to complement the M3 Browing machine guns makes for a deadly combination. These missiles are best used in close quarters, anywhere from 600 - 800 m which minimizes the opportunity for the enemy pilot to evade or out-fly the missiles. It is quite possible for the enemy to avoid the in-bound missile; however, this provides the attacking aircraft with the opportunity to manoeuvre in and take out the fighter with its machine guns. Hopefully, the enemy fighter has bled any energy advantage it may have had presenting itself as an ideal target for the machine guns.

Usage in battles

While the F-86F-40's acceleration and top speed are lacking compared to its contemporaries, the F-86F-40's slats allow the plane to have an outstanding maneuvrability. That said, one must beware of their speed as pulling high maneuvres at high and max speed can put the plane under great stress which leads to the wings falling apart. The outstanding maneuvrability comes at the cost of speed. Pulling hard turns will bleed your air speed. Try to climb up before engaging the enemy to ensure you have enough energy to get out of a sticky situation. Hopefully, there will be a furball underneath you where you would be able to pounce on low-energy fighters with your guns or the AIM-9B. One advantage the F-86 has over the jets of other nations is the large ammo count of its 6 x 50 cals (1,800) although it would be wise to hit most of your shoots. Try staying above 500 km/h as any slower and you would lose a significant amount of energy in a prolonged turn.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Outstanding manoeuvrability
• Can wield air-to-air missiles
• Good guns: the 12.7 mm MGs have lots of ammo, straight bullet trajectory, and adequate velocity
• Air-to-ground armament, such as bombs and missiles
• Excellent roll rate
• Great dive acceleration makes it a nice diver
• Good energy retention in a climb
• Stable shooting platform during high speeds
• Air brakes and flaps allow for tight manoeuvres and enemy overshoots at the cost of reduced speed

Cons:

• Mediocre acceleration
• Mediocre top speed
• Weak one-second burst mass of the armament
• High speed manoeuvres can lead to wings breaking apart
• Slower turn rate than many contemporaries

History

The F-86 is considered one of the best fighter jets of the Korean War. It is the most-produced Western fighter, with almost 10,000 aircraft produced by the US, Australia, Canada (as the re-engined CL-13), Italy, and Japan.

The F-86 was developed by North American Aviation, the creator of the venerable P-51 Mustang. The XP-86 prototype was created to meet the USAF requirement for a high-altitude escort fighter. It was derived from the Navy's FJ-1 Fury, a transitional fighter jet that borrowed the wings, tail surfaces and canopy from the P-51D. The XP-86 was under threat of cancellation because the XP-80 and XP-84 had similar performance characteristics and were farther ahead in development. However, North American designers made a radical change to the design and replaced the straight wing with a swept wing, which was shown by seized German research to greatly reduce drag and increase performance at high speed. The resulting performance boost was so significant that the swept-wing prototype of the XP-86 was supposedly able break the sound barrier in a dive a few days before Chuck Yeager made his official attempt.

The F-86F is a further development of the F-86E, which introduced a full power-operated control system and the all-flying tail, in which the entire horizontal stabilizer moves to significantly increase the aircraft's maneuverability at high speed. The F-86F is fitted with the uprated J47-GE-27 engine. The leading edge slats featured on earlier Sabre models were removed in later production versions of the F-86F in favor of more space for fuel. Some of the earlier F-86F models had the static leading edge slats retrofitted. It also carried over the capability to carry tactical nuclear weapons from the F-86E.

To cover the shortfall of F-86s for export, production of the F-86 was restarted by North American. The new production block, the F-86F-40-NA, differed from the preceding production block in having a new wing. While Blocks 25 to 35 had been equipped with the slatless 6-3 wing, the Block 40 saw the airframe retain the 6-3 proportioned wing, but with an introduction of the slats in order to improve low-speed handling, and the wingtips extended so the overall span was increased from 37.12 to 39.11 ft. This lowered the stall speed of the F-86F-40-NA from 144 to 124 mph, and decreased the take-off run by 800 ft. Despite these modifications adding 250 lb to the F-86F-40-NA's weight when compared with the earlier F-86F-35-NA, overall performance remained the same.

In 1954, the Republic Of China, led by Generalissimo Chiang Kai-Shek's Kuomintang, started to order F-86 from the US. Next year, RF-86F, reconnaissance versions of the F-86F, were delivered to the Republic Of China's Air Force (ROCAF). During the second Taiwan Strait Crisis in 1958, the F-86 composed the backbone of the ROCAF. Through "Operation Black Magic", ROCAF Sabers were equipped with AIM-9B Sidewinders, which proved effective against the People's Liberation Army Air Force's (PLAAF) MiG-15s and MiG-17s. One was reported to have hit a MiG-17 but failed to detonate, the missile was later brought back to mainland China and later given to the USSR, where it was reverse engineered into the R-3S.

In the 1970, the F-86 was retired from service in the ROCAF and repurposed for training duties, by 1977 all F-86 planes were fully retired. Now a days one can find some ROCAF F-86 in parks throughout the island.

Media

Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.

See also

Related development

• Canadair Sabre (those Sabres manufactured with the designator "CL")
• North American F-86D Sabre
• North American F-100 Super Sabre
• North American FJ-4 Fury

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration and era

• Dassault Super Mystère
• Grumman F-9 Cougar
• Hawker Hunter
• Lavochkin La-15
• Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15
• Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17
• Saab J29 Tunnan

External links

• Official data sheet - more details about the performance
• [joebaugher.com] North American F-86F-40-NA

North American Aviation
Fighters
P-51A	P-51 · P-51A
P-51C	P-51C-10
P-51D	P-51D-5 · P-51D-10 · P-51D-20-NA · P-51D-30
P-51H	P-51H-5-NA
Twin-engine fighters	F-82E
Jet fighters	F-86A-5 · F-86F-2 · F-86F-25 · F-86F-35 · F-100D
Strike aircraft	A-36 · PBJ-1H · PBJ-1J
	FJ-4B · FJ-4B VMF-232
Bombers	B-25J-1 · B-25J-20
Export/Licence	▂B-25J-30 · ␗B-25J-30
	▄Mustang Mk IA · F-6C-10-NA · ␗P-51C-11-NT · ␗P-51D-20 · J26 David · J26 · P-51D-20-NA · ␗P-51K
	F-86F-30 ▅ · ␗F-86F-30 · F-86F-40 ▅ · F-86F-40 JASDF▅ · ␗F-86F-40
	◄F-86K · ▄F-86K (Italy) · ▄F-86K (France)
	␗F-100A · ▄F-100D · ␗F-100F
Captured	▅P-51C-11-NT
	Canadair Limited license-built the F-86 as the CL-13 for use in Canada and export to Europe.
	Fiat license-built the F-86K for the Italian Air Force though another 120 NAA built F-86Ks were also sold to the Italians.
See Also	Mitsubishi Heavy Industries · Canadair Limited · Fiat Aviation