Description

449th FIS F-89 Model

Fly with the 449th FIS in this handcrafted F-89 model. Each piece is carved from wood and hand-painted to provide a piece you’ll love.

• Made from Mahogany
• 18 inches
• US Veteran-Owned Business

Alaskan air defense
The 449th was reactivated at Adak Army Air Field as part of Alaskan Air Command in September 1947 and equipped with Northrop P-61 night fighters. Its aircraft and personnel were drawn from the 415th Night Fighter Squadron, which was simultaneously inactivated.[2] They were used as interceptors against Soviet aircraft intruding into North American airspace.

The squadron began to re-equipped with North American F-82 Twin Mustangs in 1948,[1] but only became a Twin Mustang unit upon moving to Ladd Air Force Base in 1949.[3] it received additional aircraft from Far East Air Forces after the model was withdrawn from the Korean War.[citation needed] These aircraft were modified to the F-82H model with the addition of cold weather equipment and additional de-icers. Many of these fighters operated with Strategic Air Command where they served as escorts for the massive Convair B-36 Peacemaker bomber during long flights over the Arctic.[citation needed] The 449th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron was the last USAF unit equipped with the F-82, retiring the model in 1953[4] when a lack of parts made it impossible to keep the aging airframes flying. The retirement of the F-82 marked the end of front-line use of USAF propeller-driven fighter aircraft. Many were ultimately scrapped in Alaska.

The squadron replaced their Twin Mustangs with jet Lockheed F-94 Starfires armed with 20mm cannon in 1952. The Starfire was not suited to service in the Arctic. When equipped with cold weather gear, the radar operator in the rear seat was cramped and found it difficult to operate. Moreover, the aircraft proved difficult to maintain and had a high accident rate. By mid 1954, the squadron had converted to the Northrop F-89 Scorpion. It initially flew a mix of F-89Cs, armed with cannon and F-89Ds, armed with Mighty Mouse rockets in wing pods.[4] In 1957, the squadron converted to the F-89J, which was armed with the nuclear MB-1 Genie air to air missile. After August 1958, the squadron maintained air defense of northern Alaska under the command of North American Air Defense Command.[6] It inactivated in 1960[1] along with turnover of Ladd to the United States Army as part of Fort Wainwright