F-86D Markings

[Sabrejet]

A recent thread by @adey m raised the valid question regarding timescale for Sabre markings, notably the date when the prominent ‘U.S. AIR FORCE’ markings were placed on the fuselage sides; and also when the ‘FU-‘ buzz number was moved from the nose on F-86Ds to the tail. Photos below NAA and USAF official unless stated.

 

Well first of all, the initial F-86D deliveries from North American’s Inglewood plant looked like this: serial number on the vertical tail fin, with small ‘U.S.AIR FORCE’ placed above it; buzz number on aft fuselage, ‘USAF’ placed above the stbd/RH wing and below the port/LH wing. Note the slight misalignment in the fuselage star and bar where a replacement aft fuselage has been fitted: 50-456 was used as an NAA testbed for various aft fuselage configurations, hence the replacement item. It was delivered in June 1951. 

 

 

And this is 50-458, delivered September 1951 and still in the same scheme.

 

 

However the next aircraft, 50-459, was not delivered until July 1952 and was the first numerically to have the buzz number on the nose:

 

 

It should be pointed out however that chronologically the next aircraft delivered after 50-458 was 50-471, delivered at the end of October 1951, and also with the buzz number on the forward fuselage. So this provides a nice Sep/Oct 51 date for that change.

 

 

And there things rested until partway through the final F-86D-60 series, the last few in the ’50-459’ scheme being 53-837 (delivered to 432nd FIS on 24 March 1955 – photo via Collect Air):

 

 

And though the ‘U.S.AIR FORCE’ on the fin is obscured by the squadron markings on this 520th FIS Dog also shows the earlier scheme (photo via Dave Menard): 53-866 was delivered on 6 April 1955. 

 

 

Next, the following F-86D shows the factory-applied ‘U.S.AIR FORCE’ on the forward fuselage, but retaining the buzz number in that location. NAA font was a rounded type, and distinct from the squared-off Amarillo font used by USAF overhaul units. 53-900 was delivered on 18 April 1955 – again showing the rough date where the factory-applied schemes changed (photos via Isham).

 

 

Finally, the last F-86Ds delivered by NAA were also delivered in this ‘final’ scheme with the buzz number on the forward fuselage. Aircraft here (photo Bruce Robertson) are 53-4018, 53-4039, 53-4043, 53-4048 and 53-5056:

 

 

So what’s going on here? 52-3876 with rounded NAA font ‘U.S.AIR FORCE’ on the fuselage, when it shouldn’t be there (not factory-applied until circa 53-900)? 

 

 

Well as ever, there are always exceptions, and in this case (and others that don’t fit in with the factory-applied schemes detailed above), it’s down to where an aircraft was overhauled: in the case of 52-3876, it began life as an F-86D-40 (no drag chute etc) and was converted to an F-86D-41 (with drag chute etc, as shown above), by North American at Fresno, which applied the NAA font during Pull-Out conversion and delivered it to 519th FIS on 24 May 1955. Photo below shows the same aircraft as-delivered, as an F-86D-40 (no drag chute), with 62nd FIS and without the fuselage script.

 

 

In-service the changes were haphazard and took a while to standardize. I’ll cover some permutations in the next post.

 

 
 

Edited July 9, 2018 by Sabrejet

[Sabrejet]

Forgot to also mention that the fuselage star & bar was repositioned slightly further aft when the buzz number was relocated to the forward fuselage!

[stevehnz]

Thanks for this interesting thread, it'll be really useful with both Airfix & Hasegawa -D's in stock. I'm wondering if the tail band on FU-035 changed with the change in units mentioned in @adey m's thread?

Steve.

[Terry1954]

Great thread here @Sabrejet, am definitely leaning towards a D as the next Sabre build. 

 

Terry

[Space Ranger]

The real mystery is why the USAF allowed NAA's use of a non-regulation typeface.

[72modeler]

1 hour ago, Space Ranger said:

The real mystery is why the USAF allowed NAA's use of a non-regulation typeface.

I'm guessing that when you are the company that provided the USAAF/USAF with the T-6, B-25, P-51, and F-86, you could be cut a little slack!😁

[Sabrejet]

5 hours ago, stevehnz said:

Thanks for this interesting thread, it'll be really useful with both Airfix & Hasegawa -D's in stock. I'm wondering if the tail band on FU-035 changed with the change in units mentioned in @adey m's thread?

Steve.

No - stayed the same.

[Sabrejet]

F-86D-50 52-10019 was assigned to 406th FIW at Manston on 12 December 1954 and further to 514th FIS. First view, though looking battered already, was taken early in 1955 at Manston; it would appear that the red-yellow-blue fuselage band signified the aircraft to be Col William S Harrell’s machine: Harrell was CO Group at Manston. Nose flash was mid blue with a thin black outline: canopy rail also mid blue (photo: Drury Callahan).

 

 

This second photo was taken less than five months after the first, but shows a number of changes in a short space of time. Col Harrell’s name has now been painted on the canopy rail in white letters; and the fuselage bands have been removed, though traces of their presence can be seen stained into the bare metal. Finally, the coloured tail bands have been repainted and the 514th FIS badge applied. The photo (author’s collection) was taken at the RAF Fairford Armed Forces Day Open House on 21 May 1955.

 

 

Now wearing the fuselage ‘U.S.AIR FORCE’ legend (squared-off Amarillo USAF font) and similar-style buzz number on the aft fuselage, 52-10019 also has a re-painted serial number on the tail and the blue ‘harpoon’ design of later 406th FIW Sabres. Strangely, most of the 406th’s F-86D aircraft were re-painted with horizontal tail bands when the ‘harpoon’ was added, but not ‘019. It was photographed by JMG Gradidge at RAF Burtonwood on 17 May 1958.

 

 

When 514th FIS departed Manston in early 1958 they relocated to Ramstein AB in Germany. At the same time the squadron was reassigned to 86th FIW and gained a new colour scheme of a black and white sunburst on the tail fin, though retaining the general location for the squadron badge. On 25 June 1958 52-10019 was sent to Fiat in Turin for overhaul and while there it was modified to incorporate the prominent ‘sugar scoop’ fuselage-mounted engine cooling intakes in place of the previous NACA ducts. It served with 514th at Ramstein until retired to Chateauroux AB in France where the final photo was taken circa June 1959.