Posted on 03/21/2007 9:13:52 AM PDT by sukhoi-30mki
Two MiG-29 fighters collide over southern Russia - 1
18:52 | 21/ 03/ 2007
ROSTOV-ON-DON, March 21 (RIA Novosti) - Two Russian MiG-29 Fulcrum fighters have collided in the Rostov Region in southern Russia, but both pilots survived the accident, a local police source said Wednesday.
The collision occurred near the Millerovo airfield in the afternoon, about 220 kilometers (130 miles) north of the regional center, Rostov-on-Don.
Both pilots have been transported to a nearby military hospital with minor facial lacerations, Air Force spokesman Alexander Drobyshevsky said, adding that the crash did not cause any injuries to anyone on the ground, damage to ground installations or the environment.
"The pilots are alive," Drobyshevsky said. "They have been picked up by two Mi-8 rescue helicopters and brought to a military hospital at the Millerovo airfield."
The spokesman also said that the aircraft did not carry any combat payload at the time of the crash.
A team of military investigators has been dispatched to the crash site to probe the causes of the accident and the Military Prosecutor's Office of the North Caucasus Military District has opened a criminal investigation into the collision.
The MiG-29 Fulcrum is as a single-seat fighter-interceptor with excellent maneuverability and basic ground attack capability.
It was one of the Soviet Union's most important combat aircraft in the last years of the Cold War, and remains an important asset for the Russian Air Force. The aircraft has been exported to 27 countries, and is being updated with improved avionics and electronics to keep it in service well into the 21st century.
Not quite blat argot, more like 5th grade boys' vocabulary. And then again, one need not to stoop that low. There is, and has always been, a premium on creative usage. For example, once during a scientific meeting [everyone present was a PhD or higher] a speaker, exasperated with some questioner, answered ad hominem: "Chto vy takoj zloj? U vas chto, s utra ne stoit?" [Why are you so pesky? Has your morning erection failed?].
That's an appropriate comparison, a MIG 29 against an out of service US Navy aircraft...
That's pretty much always been the case. Post WWII, Chuck Yeager participated in a number of mock combat flyoffs between allied fighters and captured enemy fighters piloted by Americans. He said regardless of plane, the better pilot usually won. He particupated in similar Korean War era trials using MIG's and the results were the same.
The early Israeli Air Force experience was the same. Flying ME-109's, they swept the skies clear of Egyptian piloted Spitfires.
In his book, Eric Hartmann described an encounter very late in the war betwen he and about 8 American P-51's. Because Hartmann flew over the Eastern Front, his ME-109 wasn't supercharged. Anyway, after 45 minutes of twisting and turning, his ME-109 ran out of fuel and he had to bail out. One outstanding pilot in an outclassed airplane was able to successfully evade 8 P-51's.
Yes,Mig & Sukhoi are 2 different design bureaus.Mig was more or less the superior one during the Soviet era,though in the Russian era,Sukhoi has got the edge.
The initial Mig-29s had other weaknesses-a bad radar,unreliable & very smoky engines & ofcourse poor range.It's very similar to the F-18 Hornet in it's range performance given both belong to the lighter twin engined category.Most people say that close-in,the Mig-29 would have an advantage against the larger F-15.But things would be more equal against an agile F-16.
Newer Mig-29 models like the Mig-29K & Mig-35 have (on paper) much better characteristics like improved radar,larger internal fuel tanks & better engines & radar.
Saab is Swedish,not French(their main company being Dassault).Both produce excellent aircraft,though the Swedes haven't had a great export record.The French aircraft like the Mirage-3/5 & Mirage-2000 are combat proven.
That MiG-29 pictured is Yugoslavian. It carries the now old markings of Serbia and Montenegro. They now have a new symbol since Montenegro split from their union.
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