USAF Aircraft in Korea Trivia Quiz

Answer: Fifth

The Fifth Air Force is one of the oldest in the United States. It is also the only Air Force never to have been based in the US. The Fifth is used to protect the Pacific and Japan. Because of this it was the closest and most effective Air Force to be used over Korea.

Answer: CAS (Close Air Support)

The F-51 were the most numerous fighters early in the war because they had the range to loiter over a target and could be operated from the rough Korean forward air strips. They were the main USAF CAS aircraft but could not tangle with the jet powered MiG-15. When engaged by a MiG, they could only out-turn him and return home. They did down a number of rare Yak-9 prop fighters.

Answer: First jet-versus-jet combat ever

A F-80 pilot downed a MiG-15 after a tough dogfight. The F-80 Shooting Star appeared in late 1950 and where used as the top USAF fighter until the F-86 Sabre was used. The F-80's non-swept wings were a disadvantage and the planes were mostly used in the ground-attack role until better types arrived. By the time of the armistice only RF-80 reconnaissance ships were operated.

Answer: First American aircraft kill

The F-82 arrived on the scene very early because it had enough range to cover the entire Korean peninsula. During this time it scored the first three American aircraft kills of the war. Overall the F-82 was only of secondary importance to the war effort and was replaced in 1951 by the F-94 Starfire.

Answer: North American

The F-86 was a great fighter that served over Korea. The aircraft featured a 35 degree swept wing with a jet engine, making it the first superb American jet fighter. The F-86 was a direct descendant of the P-51, also designed by North American. The P-51 provided the basis for the FJ Fury, which in turn provided the basis for the F-86 Sabre.

Answer: False

The F-86 was actually inferior to the MiG-15. The MiG-15 was a tougher and more adaptable design with heavier armament. The MiG-15 used two 23-mm cannons and one 30-mm cannon. These had a much heavier punch than the six 50-mm cal machine guns of the F-86. The F-86 experienced a number of teething problems in Korea but eventually went into service.

Answer: 10:1

Though the Sabre was inferior the superb training of US pilots prevailed. Some US pilots where former World War II aces. Most MiG pilots where hastily trained North Korean or Chinese pilots. The F-86 pilots soon exploited this advantage to gain air superiority.

In combat the F-86 pilots usually discarded their radar gun sights and other complicated equipment. Some F-86 variants were the F-86D which featured a search radar and rockets for interception duties. Other models where fitted with 2 20-mm cannons.

Answer: The confidentiality of the radar they used

The F-94 was a derivative of the F-80 Shooting Star. They were some of the original variants fitted with four .50-cal machine guns. Later versions used all rocket armament. The F-94 was restricted until 1953 because of its secret AN/APG-33 radar that the US command did not want to fall into enemy hands.

The F-94 was the first US jet night fighter and the first US aircraft to use an afterburner.

Answer: 21

Of all the days of the war, there were only 21 when the B-29 did not fly. It was reclassified as a medium bomber after World War II and the advent of the B-36 and B-50.

Answer: 34

The B-29 was vulnerable to the jet powered MiG-15 which had been designed to destroy B-29s. Losses were less than 1 to 1000 sorties though because the North Koreans did not have enough MiG-15s to provide adequate air defence. B-29 gunners were extremely talented and downed 34 aircraft (16 MiGs) and got 17 probables. B-29s where eventually regulated to night bombing.

Answer: Drop napalm bombs

Under operation SNOWBALL C-119s were modified to drop 55-gallon drums of napalm on ground targets. The C-119 pilots performed gallantly and once even transported eight two-ton bridge spans to replace a destroyed bridge to aid a Marine withdrawal.

Answer: F-15 Reporter

The F-15 Reporter was a recon version of the P-61 Black Widow. 36 where produced and in 1948 they photo mapped the entire Korean peninsula. These photos where of great help in the Korean War.

Answer: True

The RB-36 was used for reconnaissance over Manchuria for bomb assessment and other recon missions. Only 21 were engaged, and they didn't really make a huge contribution.

Answer: Photo mapping and rescue

The B-17 found yet another use as the RB-17 and SB-17 photo mapping and rescue aircraft, respectively. The defensive weapons were fitted and the aircraft served well in the early months of the war.

Answer: 55

Their were 55 USAF airbases, or K-sites in the Korean War. Ultimately the Korean war provided a look into the USAF for the next fifty years. It pioneered some of the modern air operations we see today and was the first large use of jet aircraft in combat and set the stage for the Cold War.