William Harbison Air Vice - Marshal William H . " Paddy " Harbison , CB , CBE , AFC , FBIM ( born 1 January 1921 ) , is a retired Royal Air Force ( RAF ) fighter pilot who served during the Second World War and the Korean War . He held senior command roles in the RAF and is the author of a noted technical report that evaluated the performance and tactics of jet combat during the Korean War . Early years . William Harbison was born in the Republic of Ireland and educated at Ballymena Academy . World War II . Harbison joined the Royal Air Force ( RAF ) in 1941 shortly after the Battle of Britain . He received flight training in Canada and upon graduation joined No . 118 Squadron RAF and remained with them for the duration of the war . While in the European Theatre , Harbison flew the Supermarine Spitfire and North American P - 51 Mustang . On 23 March 1945 , Harbison led 118 Squadron on a mission escorting over 100 Avro Lancaster bombers . Shortly before reaching their target in Bremen , Germany , the formation came under attack by twenty Messerschmitt Me 262 fighters . Several members of the squadron , including Harbison , damaged enemy jets , but could not catch them due to their superior speed . Post World War II . After the war , he served with No . 64 Squadron RAF flying the twin - engine de Havilland Hornet , the fastest piston - engine fighter ever to enter service . Harbison also served with No . 263 and No . 257 Squadron s flying the Gloster Meteor . In 1948 , Harbison participated in an exchange program with the United States Air Force ' s 1st Fighter Group . He was stationed at March Air Force Base in California where he flew the Lockheed F - 80 Shooting Star and became the first serving RAF pilot to fly the North American F - 86 Sabre . Harbison returned to England in 1950 where he was assigned to the All - Weather Development Squadron at the Central Fighter Establishment ( CFE ) . Korean War . To obtain first - hand information on Korean air operations , CFE obtained approval from USAF Chief of Staff , Hoyt Vandenberg , to send four RAF pilots to observe and report . Second World War ace , Wing Commander John Baldwin , Squadron Leader Harbison , and two junior officers were selected for this task . Harbison ' s specific assignment was with the USAF 4th Fighter Group to evaluate combat tactics used by the F - 86 against the Soviet MiG - 15 . On 13 February 1952 , Harbison reported to Colonel Harrison Thyng , commander of the 4th Fighter - Interceptor Wing at Kimpo Air Base , South Korea where he was assigned to the 335th Fighter Squadron . After attending " Clobber College " , a program where newly arrived pilots flew training sorties with experienced instructors , Harbison once again found himself flying combat missions . He enjoyed the flying and considered himself lucky for the opportunity to " observe the air war along the Yalu River , arguably the best seat in the house " . Harbison was credited with damaging a MiG - 15 in combat and was awarded the United States Air Medal . After Baldwin failed to return from a weather reconnaissance mission , responsibility for completing the final report fell to Harbison . Despite the short notice and with little knowledge of the details Baldwin had intended to include , Harbison completed a 152 - page report that evaluated the operational characteristics of the F - 86 and the tactics used against the MiG - 15 . Post - Korean War . After completing his tour in Korea , Harbison was once again flying the F - 86 as commander of No . 67 Squadron of the RAF Second Tactical Air Force at RAF Wildenrath in West Germany . In 1956 , he returned home to attend the Army Staff College at Camberley , Surrey . In 1957 , Harbison was assigned to air defence operations in the Ministry of Defence and then served a tour as the commanding officer of the all - weather No . 29 Squadron RAF flying Gloster Javelin s . Harbison then attended Joint Services Staff College at Latimer , Buckinghamshire . Following graduation , Harbison served in eastern Scotland as commander of RAF Leuchars , the most northerly air defence station in the United Kingdom . He then attended the Canadian National Defence College in Kingston , Ontario followed by a tour as Group Captain Operations at RAF Fighter Command headquarters . Promoted to air commodore in 1969 , Harbison served as the director of operations of the National Air Traffic Services in London . He returned to the United States in 1972 as air attaché at the British Embassy , Washington , D . C . Harbison was promoted to air vice marshal in January 1975 and shortly thereafter appointed commander of No . 11 Group RAF responsible for the air defence of the United Kingdom . No . 11 Group was the successor to RAF Fighter Command which had defended London and the south - east of England against attacks by the Luftwaffe during the Battle of Britain . At the end of his tour , Harbison retired from the Royal Air Force . Later years . After retiring from the RAF on 31 March 1977 , Harbison joined British Aerospace ( BAe ) and returned to the United States as vice president of their Government Programs Office in Washington , D . C . He continued working as a consultant for the company after retiring from BAe . Nearly fifty years after its original publication , Harbison ' s report found new life as a training guide included in the computer game , MiG Alley . Impressed by the mix of technical and tactical analysis that applied just as much to a 1999 flight simulation as to real jet combat in 1952 , one reviewer described Harbison ' s report as , " the best game strategy guide I ’ ve ever read . " Harbison has remained active in the aviation community after his second retirement , attending reunions and speaking at symposiums including : As of 2011 , Harbison and his wife , Helen , live in the town of Falls Church , Virginia . They have two sons . Honours . In 1953 , Harbison was awarded the United States ' Air Medal for service as a fighter pilot in Korea . In the 1955 Queen ' s Birthday Honours , Harbison was awarded the Air Force Cross while serving as the commander of No . 67 Squadron RAF in Germany . In the 1965 Birthday Honours , he was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire ( CBE ) , and in the 1977 New Year Honours , Companion of the Order of the Bath ( CB ) .