Or not, if the USAF found itself in possession of a FLANKER they could probably find themselves in possession of enough parts to fly it long enough to evaluate it I’d assume. Nobody is claiming the USAF is using FLANKER as an aggressor or anything like that I don’t think, so it’d seem to be an evaluation program, which means it doesn’t have to be flyable for nearly as long.
Nobody said it had to come from Russia.
so why you need cope india? and why you need to keep secret they got a Su-27? i do not think the Russians won`t be informed about the sale because the nations that operate Su-27s are not pro american even Ukraine and the CIS still operates as a military organization despite it is not the warsaw pact
Question, why you need cope India to pit Su-27s against F-15?
The impression from the visit at JBG-37 was right. The former GDR airspace was controlled by by the Soviets with limited GDR support.
What amazes me is the fact the GDR Air force had MiG-23S Flogger A or at least a sole example from a museum
Belyakov noted that, that the MiG-23Ms were later retrofitted with type 3 wing.
It was a comparable situation to the F-4s. Here the F-4E for example. A lot of that was built already, when a new feature was introduced, like slats in the 70s. Not all examples were retroffited with that for good reasons, like the RF-variants f.e.
A similar thing happened to the Flogger ‘M’. The PVO examples tasked for pure interception were not in need for type 3 wing.
Just look into your back-numbers of AFM. There you will find a deeper article about Bulgarian MiG-23s and the related kinds of upgrade works. If I remember well, they quoted even a 2,5 type of wing. What was done and what was not. Like the F-4s and the related Blocks you can find a lot of ‘hybrids’ of MiG-23s too. Even in small batches delivered, those differ, by standard related to factory, batch and year delivered. To claim that all MiG-23MF or ML will have the same features, will give a wrong impression about their true capabilities.
I thought you may have looked deeper in the related technology history of your favourite fighter!
By the way, there was not even one R-29-300 variant of the R-55 basic engine as such in general. Like there were a J-79-10 or J-79-17, there were different variants of the same engine too.
To claim a noted performance, you have to give the related features always.
I know, there was a lack of knowledge about that before 1990 and no intrest from the SU to give such details. But I am still surprised that the limited datas from that period were still treated as given and none shows real intrest to reveal the related details?!
Sens
The MiG-23 series 1971 or without suffix has been considered a MiG-23M or at least the early variant of the main MiiG-23M series, the leading edge flaps were introduced to improve handling and the new engine the R-29-300 enhance it further, virtually the MiG-23 without suffix and the MiG-23M are almost the same aircraft with the exception of some wing details, a newer engine and radar.
The following experimental version has been called an experimental MiG-23M, but as crossaithh said also is called a MiG-23 without suffix and MiG-23 series 1971, The fin fairing housing a camara for filming missiles fired from the new wing pylons was used during some tests flights as well as the test equipment ventral pod that looks like a fuel tank,
In the MiG-23 evolution and development the MiG-23 without suffix is considered a separate variant that usually is lumped as a early MiG-23M subvariant or ancestor, nevertheless despite being a separate variant many authors view it more like a subvariant and usually include it in the MiG-23M.
As an example we have http://www.airwar.ru
Any aircraft is improved, upgraded and modified during it`s production run but usually historians highlight the main versions
The wing type 2 was deemed dangerous and a MiG test pilot died as a result of this, the wing type 3 fixed the early defects shown by the wing type 2 the reason why the MiG-23 without suffix is called a MiG-23M is because in fact it is an early MiG-23M that was improved during it`s production run and never became the main production series and never was mass produced as the MiG-23M (23-11M/2M) in fact see that the series 1971 is also called MiG-23 (23-11/2) and the MiG-23M is called (23-11M/2M) the M denotes it is basicly a modification
… with the big difference that is not a MiG-23M, but the predecessor MiG-23 vintage 1971. This variant was the first receiving a revised wing with extended leading edge and saw tooth, called wing number 2. The item on the picture was used for airflow studies of the wings, likely to confirm design considerations.
But this all off topic. Hope “Spiteful21” original question about the MiG-24BN is answered already…
Crossiathh
That is a MiG-23M, up to what i know for example this following picture shows the first of the MiG-23ML series, the prototype MiG-23ML
The MiG-23 series 1971 was the first with type 2 wing as you previously said however this variant was produced in small numbers, what we really call MiG-23M had a wing type 3 with four sections flaps over the outer leading edge only and a different engine, the MiG-23M series was powered by the Khachaturov`s R-29-30 instead of the R-27F2M.
The fin fairing housed a camera and the wing pylons are different from the standard operational wing pylons, up to what i have read it is a experimental MiG-23M. even http://www.airwar.ru calls it MiG-23M
This is in fact the MiG-23M prototype
Up to what i know the 1971 series was basicly a MiG-23M with different wing type 2 different radar and engine.
According to what i have read, that aircraft was used for several test in the 1982-1983 period with the fin camera and several other equipment fitted in what seems a fuel tank that in reality it is not.
The MiG-23 series 1971 has been called the MiG-23-11 without suffix and sometimes these have been called MiG-23Ms because many do not distinguish between both types and only consider the MiG-23S and the MiG-23M as the early variants instead of the preseries MiG-23M named MiG-23 without suffix or series 1971
Great shots Mig-23MLD. Any info about this?
This is a very well known picture of an experimental MiG-23M equipped with a fin camera to film missiles fired from the experimental pylons, the picture is a must of any good book about the MiG-23 and a very good one where you can see a nice shot of a very beautiful MiG-23M
here is the first fighter-bomber MiG-23B, interesting to see from the begining the MiG-23 prototypes were tailored to the attack role, this MiG-23 prototype or 23-11/4 was basicly the same to the fighter 23-11 series prototypes
The MiG-23 prototype 23-11/4 was fitted with the Sokol aimming system instead of the Saphir radar and was to become the MiG-23 fighter-bomber with a dedicated striking capability, among the problems the MiG-23B faced was the limitation in warload carriage it had due to the sweep wing.
here is the first MiG-23B or (32-24)
Source http://www.airwar.ru/enc/fighter/mig23b.html
The reason why the MiG-23BN and MiG-27 have odd numbers is because they are called fighter-bombers or in Russian Истребитель-бомбардировщик, while the Su-24 is called frontal bomber or in Russian Фронтовой бомбардировщик this simply proves the title MiG-24 was basicly a user`s denomination and not a Russian one
The fact the MiG-23B was based on the 23-11/4 defienes well it was based on a fighter.
However the Su-25 is called striker and has an odd number but also it was called Su-28 and in russian denomination is called Штурмовик
here is the original MiG-27 model
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