A few months back, I was intrigued with this F-86 Sabre jet that I drive by nearly everyday as I take my kids to school. Here is a little more history on the dedication of this F-86 Sabre Jet...
This F-86 Sabre Jet, located at Delaware Street and Chandler Boulevard was dedicated in 1961 and moved to its current location in 1985. This former fighter plane, one of the Air Force's first jet fighters, is a monument to the former Williams Air Force Base, now Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, about 8 miles east. The base opened in 1941 as an Army Air Corps flying school and became an Air Force base in 1948 after that branch of the service was spun off from the Army. Williams was one of the Air Force's premier pilot-training facilities. In 1961, the Chandler Jaycees wanted to erect a monument to the people who had served at the base and acquired the plane on loan from the Air Force to be installed at the northeastern corner of Dr. A.J. Chandler Park. The monument was dedicated in spring 1961 and celebrated with a parade and a dance. The plane remained there until the park was redesigned in the 1980s and it was decided (over strenuous objection) that the F-86 didn't fit with the new plans. After being given a fresh coat of paint, the plane was moved by crane to its present location in 1985. T he location was said to make sense at the time, because Chandler Boulevard was the main road connecting Chandler to the base. There used to be a bus stop that was used by base personnel near the plane's present location and airmen were said to frequently hitchhike between Chandler and the base along that street.
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