Comrade Vlad wrote:I cannot find any good info anywhere aside from American propoganda.
"Best" I could find was 350 or so MIG-15's, down to 78 Sabres.
Is this true?
Doesn't make much sense.
I spent a many times to understand, and to find the truth. It is no use to read the western books, because most of the time it is only a western propaganda intended against communists, mostly debunking soviet industry, and soviet know-how. Before studying the conflict it is important to keep in mind these following elements to understand why in the early months of the war US pilots downed more Migs as they were in better situations before the war.
Duriing this conflict, westerners, and mostly US had a significant advantages than chineses and north koreans as americans had not only more experiences but better infrastructures to train their pilots. Do not forget that US did not suffer of the barbaric nazis invasions and destructions during the second world war as it was for Soviet Union.
At least 22 millions of sovets died during this conflict, at these figures
U must to add several dozens of millions soviet citizens were disabled, unable to work, to fight. Most of the west of USSR's infratructes were completely destroyed. It asks you time to rebuild. US did not suffer any destructions in its soil. Aside Soviet Union, People's Republic of China was proclaimed october 1949. The infrastructures in China were non-existent. All were to be re-build. As for Soviet Union it takes time to do it. No use to tell U more about north koreans infrastructures.
The war started end of june 1950. As U can understand before the war began US had a significant advantages than others, it is no wonder why the US in the
begining of war -I insist on beginning- had better scores against the Migs.
In term of features, and engineering the Mig-15, and F-86 are somehow equivalent, with slight advantages for the Mig in dogfight. As I said above, US pilots did have more experience, better infratrusctures to train their personnels, however at the end of the war the situation became more and more complexe for US, as the soviets, chineses and north koreans accumulated more experiences, and they became more lethal then the war ended in a stalemate.
In spite of these adversities the chinese, soviet, and north koreans pilots gained significant advantages in the end of conflicts forcing US to accept North Korea democratic republic.