As Argentina does not have an industry capable of a gradual change of aircraft performance these shifts happen at huge leaps. And so do the tactics to use them.
As the Pulqui II was never mass produced the North American F-86 F-30 Sabre was purchased instead.
Thus from a WWII era Gloster Meteor we jumped to a Korean War veteran.
It was a true step forward not only in technology but also operation and trainging.
USAF learnings from the Korean War were implemented and from a WWII mindset we moved to a professionalism with G suits, ejection seats, radar to aim the guns and transonic flight.
Grupo 1 de Caza-bombardeo (Fighter bomber) changed their Fiat G-55 with the Sabres thus becoming the elite Group of the FAA.
In this painting a Flight of Sabres flies by Aconcagua Mountain (the tallest in the entire American Continent)
Artwork by Exequiel Martínez
This painting documents a historic flight by an F-86 Sabre of the Argentine Air Force over Aconcagua, the highest peak in the Americas. The F-86 was the first jet fighter operated by the FAA, acquired in the 1960s and transforming Argentina’s combat aviation capability.
Flying over Aconcagua at more than 6,900 meters represented an enormous technical and physical challenge for pilots of that era. Exequiel Martínez, himself a military pilot trained in the same generation, captures with precision and emotion this milestone of Argentine aviation.
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The Argentine Air Force operated the F-86 Sabre alongside the Mirage III during the 1960s and 70s, forming a capable air defense force. These aircraft were flown by elite pilots graduated from the Escuela de Aviación Militar. Exequiel Martínez, one of those military aviators himself, immortalizes these high-altitude missions over the Andes, preserving the legacy of Argentina’s jet age for future generations.