Today in History – June 27, 1950 – The first air-to-air kill of the Korean War

27 June 1950 –  “A USAF F-82 Twin Mustang shoots down a North Korean Air Force Yak-9, the first air-to-air kill of the Korean War.

The North American F-82 Twin Mustang is the last American piston-engined fighter ordered into production by the United States Air Force. Based on the North American P-51 Mustang, the F-82 was originally designed as a long-range escort fighter for the Boeing B-29 Superfortress in World War II. The war ended well before the first production units were operational.

In the postwar era, Strategic Air Command used the planes as long-range escort fighters. Radar-equipped F-82s were used extensively by the Air Defense Command as replacements for the Northrop P-61 Black Widow as all-weather day/night interceptors. During the Korean War, Japan-based F-82s were among the first USAF aircraft to operate over Korea. The first three North Korean aircraft destroyed by U.S. forces were shot down by F-82s, the first being a North-Korean Yak-11 downed over Gimpo Airfield by the USAF 68th Fighter Squadron.”(1)

Source (1): Wikipedia

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