Iven Takes Ivan by Rick Herter

Who doesn’t like the smooth and sleek lines of the North American F-86 Sabre? The Sabre was the most successful American fighter of the Korean War, making Aces of dozens of USAF fighter pilots.

“Iven takes Ivan” captures aerial combat near the Yalu River on 1 April 1952. United States Air Force Capt. Iven C. Kincheloe has just shot the tail of a North Korean MiG-15, thought to have been flown by a Russian Air Force pilot. On this day Kincheloe scored his 3rd and 4th kills. Before his tour of 101 combat missions in the F-86 ended, Capt. Kincheloe would score his 5th victory becoming an Ace.

After returning from Korea, Kincheloe went from Ace to Space! The fighter pilot became a USAF test pilot and went on to set speed and altitude records in the X-2 and was called “America’s First Spaceman.”