The Sabre is one of the best Very Heavy Fighters in Freelancer. Community consensus on this has been stable for nearly twenty years. And the majority of first-time players never fly it, because the campaign never takes you anywhere near where it's sold.
Here's what makes the Sabre worth the detour.
Most VHF ships in Freelancer give you gun hardpoints pointing forward and turret hardpoints pointing to cover your flanks and rear. The Sabre has a turret in a forward-facing position — meaning one of your turrets can fire forward, not just defensively. In a game where sustained forward-firing damage decides fights, a forward turret is a significant advantage. Add to that the Sabre's balanced profile — solid hull points, good cargo capacity for a VHF, and power plant strong enough to run a full weapon loadout — and you have a ship that works for combat players, explorer types, and anyone doing hybrid runs.
You find it in the Omega systems. The Omega region is border world territory — no house police, no trade lane maintenance, all jump holes and pirate activity. Battleship Hood in the Omega-3 system is the confirmed location for the Sabre in the base game. Getting there requires working your way through the border worlds from Bretonian space, navigating jump holes the campaign doesn't mark, and having the right reputation to dock at a Bretonian Armed Forces vessel that's operating far outside normal patrol routes.
That rep requirement is the point. End-game ships in Freelancer are gated by access, not credits. You need to have done the work in the right factions. This is the design saying that the best equipment is earned through exploration, not just grinding money.
Most players who make it to the Sabre remember the moment they first flew it. It feels like the game finally fitting together.