Air Classics - Where History Flies! - August 2022

60 AIR CLASSICS/August 2022

O

n 12 April 1953, Captain McConnell was

leading a flight of F-86F Sabres from the 39th

FIS out of K-13 near Suwon in the Republic of

South Korea. He was flying his usual mount, F-86F

51-12971 Beautious Butch when he spotted a

USAF Sabre in the distance being attacked by a

MiG 15. At the time, very few Americans realized

that top Soviet pilots were flying MiG 15s against

the Americans and the attacking MiG was being

piloted by Capt. Semyon Alekseyevich Fedorets

who was the commander of the 913th IAP Fighter

Aviation Regiment based out of Antung Air Base in

China. The Russian was also flying his usual air-

craft, a camouflaged MiG 15 bis serial 2315393.

Fedorets had just shot down F-86A-5-NA

49-1297 that was flown by 2nd Lt. Norman Green

of the 335th FIS and it was the Russian’s fifth

victory of the war. Green ejected and was plucked

out of the Yellow Sea by a USAF SA-16 Albatross.

Fedorets closed on McConnell and as his wing-

man called “break”, the Russian let loose with

a volley from the two 23mm and single 37mm

cannon.

He scored hits on the American who rolled

right and Fedorets presumed he had shot down

the Sabre but McConnell completed a barrel roll

and came up behind Fedorets and hit the MiG

with a solid burst from the six Browning M3 ma-

chine guns. Fuel was pouring from the MiG, which

was also on fire. Leveling out at 36,000 feet,

Fedorets abandoned the stricken fighter.

However, the Sabre was also badly damaged.

The radio and many instruments were knocked

out and the turbojet was surging as power rapidly

dropped. McConnell knew he could not make a

safe airfield so he headed out over the Yellow

Sea while 1st Lt. Harold Chitwood, who was

leading McConnell’s second element called air-

sea rescue just as the pilot ejected. Beautious

Butch rolled to the right and plunged nose down

into the Yellow Sea. Chitwood spotted a Sikorsky

H-19 make a course change and head towards

the parachute.

Second Lieutenant Robert Sullivan hovered

his H-19 over the parachute and used his rescue

hoist to pull the pilot out of the water. McConnell

had been in the brine for about just two minutes.

McConnell’s Sabre was Fedorets’ sixth aerial vic-

tory while Fedorets’ MiG was McConnell’s eighth

victory. Fedorets was injured and would be out

of action for about a month. He would return to

combat and shoot down two more Sabres before

being rotated back to the Soviet Union. Because

the gun camera film was lost, Fedorets was

credited with just one victory on 12 April 1953.

Promoted to major, he was made a Hero of the

Soviet Union for his actions during WWII and the

Korean War. He died in 2003.

AN UNEXPECTED ENEMY

SOVIET PILOTS TURNED OUT TO BE A MAIN FOE OF AMERICAN SABRES

Major Fedorets after his Korean War

combat.

Fedorets’ MiG 15bis coded Red 393.

Lieutenant Jim Thompson’s (no relation to the coauthor!) spectacular The Huff, F-86F-1-NA 51-2897 of the 39th FIS, had elaborate art
work on the left side while the right was a bit more subdued with the names Miss Jenny/Bill’s Baby.