List of Korean War flying aces

The number of total flying aces, who are credited with downing five or more enemy aircraft in air-to-air combat, is disputed in the war.

[1] The status of many claimed aces in the Korean War has been increasingly debated as more data becomes available, showing that instances of over-claiming abounded on both sides.

[4] The Soviets also had lax standards for confirming kills at the beginning of the war, leading to widespread over-claiming.

However, records from China, the Soviet Union, and North Korea conflict widely and accounts vary on how many aircraft on each side were lost and who is credited with the victories.

[10] UN pilots claim 840 aircraft shot down during the war, while Chinese, Soviet, and North Korean sources indicate only 600 were lost among the three nations, including non-combat losses.

Overestimation of victories on both sides has been attributed to the stress and confusion of air combat situations during the war, as well as the tendency for pilots to deliberately exaggerate claims for career advancement.

[8] Historians suggest that numbers in these nations were deliberately exaggerated for propaganda purposes and to appease their superiors.

For example, Soviet pilots faced penalties for perceived failure or ineffectiveness, making inaccurate or false claims of victories more common.

The system of claims awards in the Soviet Union was unclear and appears to have been highly inconsistent during the war.

[7] Realizing the chronic problem with false claims, Soviet leaders began to tighten the criteria for confirming victories in 1952.

[7] A USAF report listed six Chinese pilots attained ace status during the Korean War.

There is some controversy as to whether any pilots of the North Korean People's Air Force attained ace status.

[21] However, historian Michael J. Varhola subsequently contended that Chinese and Soviet records indicate it is unlikely any North Korean pilots attained enough victories for ace status.

Little is known of some of the pilots and their combined tally is incompatible with the number of aircraft the USAF claims to have lost in the war.

[7] Subsequent independent sources generally agree the number of aces claimed was around 52, but 15 names differ among the lists, particularly lower-scoring pilots.

Of 40 United States military servicemen who attained ace status in Korea, all but one of them flew primarily the F-86 Sabre during their air-to-air fights.