Mig fighters - mig -15 , 17, 19 ,21,23 1:48

[hyair]

Some pictures of the mig-21 F-13 that deserted to Israel in 1966 from Iraq .

Yair

[Mike1158]

It would be interesting to see what the Israeli pilots who flew it, thought of it.

[hyair]

Dear Mike

The Israeli pilot that flew the Mig was a very talented test pilot named Dani Shapira.
He flew the Mig 21 against the Mirage 3c of the IAF and found the following :
The mig was lighter and therefor had a better rate of climb and faster accelration.
The main drawback was the rear vision.
If the mirage was seating behind and low the mig driver was unable to see anything.
Also the handling of the mig was not as good as in the mirage and the controls had a tendency to become hard at high speed.
The mig was free of problems and only the tyres were replaced.

Yair

[Mike1158]

Thanks mate.

[hyair]

The mig 21 just arrived and the IAF was anxious to fly it against the mirage III.
Moti Hod the air force chief of staff called Dani Shapira who was the IAF test pilot and told him to learn to fly it ASAP . Dani was briefed by Monier Radfa about how to fly the mig. The russian dials were calibrared to knots and feet instead of kph and meters of the russian dials.
Dani completed the ground tests and did a ground run first and then a complete takeoff.
After he felt comfortable with the mig a series of dogfights with the mirage started.
It was found that the mig had better acceleration and climb but had some serious limitations
at speeds above 450 knots at low levels and the controls lacked sensitivity. Also the view of the pilot backwards was very bad and restricted. If the mirage was bebind and low there was no chance for the mig pilot to see it. Also the oxygen bottle was located behind the cockpit and when it exploded a big fireball destryed the mig as proved later after the IAF pilots were briefed to aim the piper to this location. The mig flew also against
the second line super mystere to find a suitable tactic in dogfights . In the six day war that started one year later the mirages shut down some 16 mig 21's and the super mystere's 2.
In the Jerusalem Israel defence forces march after the six day war the mig 21 flew head on followed by two mirages .
Monier died in 1996 in Israel and Dani Shapira is 90 years old and still able to tell these stories today.

Yair

[hyair]

Some images of Mirage IIIc seatting on the tail of Mig -21 shortly before the Mig
explodes in a big fireball !!!

Yair

[hyair]

A very common seeing among IAF mirage pilots was the Mig 21 in 12 o'clock !!!
I don't remember the Mirage kill ratio but it was around 1:20 -25 !!!

Yair

[hyair]

The Mig 21 is the most successful of all the mig designs as it is still flying today more than 60 years after entering service in USSR in 1959 !!!
I attach here pictures of the greater family :
21 f13 21 mf 21 mongol two seats 21 bis
all together side by side in 1:48 scale.

Yair

[hyair]

The Bis was the ultimate version of the Mig -21 . The type was equiped with the latest R -300 with 7.5 ton thrust ! with excellent performance and acceleration . Also the dorsal spine was enlarged and the fuel capacity was increased for better range.

Yair

[gomidefilho]

Very fine models my friend! I Love MiG's I suspect to say!