Golden Hawk in Zwick's Park needs refurbishing

By James Bowler

A Golden landmark in Zwick’s Park in Belleville is due for a facelift.

The F-86 Sabre jet or Golden Hawk was presented to Belleville by the Lion’s club on July 5, 1967, as part of Belleville’s Centennial celebration.

Since it was first mounted, the plane has not seen any type of repairs or touch ups.

At a meeting last week, Belleville city council debated on spending $25,000 to fix the jet, but settled on $12, 500, this year, as part of a two-year project.

The plane will be removed from its mount and taken away for refurbishment.

The jet was once part of the precision flying team known as the Golden Hawks. This team was the precursor to the Snowbirds of today. The plane flew in 63 shows from 1959 to 1964.

The Canadian manufactured F-86 Sabre model jet was best known for its use by the Americans in the Korean War. It was built in order to take on the Russian MIG-15’s used by North Korea.