MIG 29

Real MIG 29

Features

Because it was developed from the same basic parameters laid out by TsAGI for the original PFI, the MiG-29 is aerodynamically broadly similar to the Sukhoi Su-27, but with some notable differences. It is built largely out of aluminium with some composite materials. It has a mid-mounted swept wing with blended leading-edge root extensions (LERXs) swept at around 40°. There are swept tailplanes and two vertical fins, mounted on booms outboard of the engines. Automatic slats are mounted on the leading edges of the wings; they are four-segment on early models and five-segment on some later variants. On the trailing edge, there are maneuvering flaps and wingtip ailerons.

The MiG-29 has hydraulic controls and a SAU-451 three-axis autopilot but, unlike the Su-27, no fly-by-wire control system. Nonetheless, it is very agile, with excellent instantaneous and sustained turn performance, high alpha capability, and a general resistance to spins. The airframe is stressed for 9-g (88 m/s²) maneuvers. The controls have "soft" limiters to prevent the pilot from exceeding the g and alpha limits, but these can be disabled manually. In joint USAF-Luftwaffe exercises, the MiG-29 that the Luftwaffe fielded defeated the F-16 in close combat almost every time using its highly practical IRST sensor and helmet-mounted sight, together with the Vympel R-73 (NATO: AA-11 'Archer') missile

History

The MiG-29 Fulcrum was and continues to be a highly prized and respected multirole fighter in service with Russia and a plethora of countries worldwide. The system has proven very robust, flexible and highly maneuverable in the dogfighting and strike fighter role. The number of variants has expanded from the initial design and the changes have incorporated updated and advanced avionics, a naval carrier-based version and inflight refueling capabilities.

The MiG-29 faced a long development time of no fewer than 8 years from the initial draw up. The plan called for a lightweight highly-advanced fighter capable of facing off against anything in the NATO arsenal. To that end, the twin-engine fulcrum would feature some of the best Soviet-Russian aircraft design to date.

The MiG-29 Fulcrum was designed as a single seat multirole fighter. Intakes were mounted underneath the wing systems and could be closed to prevent battlefield debris from clogging the turbojets (air was drawn in from special intakes built into the wing roots until the intakes could be safely opened again). The nose housed a powerful radar system capable of tracking up to 10 targets as far away as 150 miles. Wings were of a traditional swept-back delta formation with twin rudder and elevator systems at rear.

The MiG-29 was a popular export product - of the 1,200 or so initially produced, less that half of that was for Russian use. Customers such as Poland and Germany were given Western modifications upon their joining the NATO alliance. The United States would go on to purchase no fewer than 20 of their own MiG-29 Fulcrums from the nation of Moldova, for fear that that nation was to sell them to Iran in an effort to have the Iranian Air Forces upgrade their aging fleet. To this day, the Fulcrum remains as potent an adversary as ever and will probably remain in service for at least another decade as a frontline multirole fighter.

The famous air show footage of the malfunctioning MiG-29 Fulcrum is memorable, showing the pilot ejecting just before the system faces down and crashes into the ground. The powerplants were said to have failed during the climb, forcing the pilot to tilt the nose down and bail out before it was too late. Nonetheless, the system is about as important to former Soviet-supplied allies as the F-16 Fighting Falcon is to the West.

Model Specification