Forum: Modern Military Aircraft

I read on JG.73's (the last German MIG-29 squadron) website that the US has 20 or so MIG-29's in our posession. Does anybody know why the USAF hasnt fixed them up and used them as aggressor aircraft?

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Fiendishly expensive to operate. Motors that need rebuilding every 700 hours, and that YOU can't rebuild. Questionably reliable systems..that you have no spares for. That sort of stuff would head my list.

Sniper69 wrote:

Does anybody know why the USAF hasnt fixed them up and used them as aggressor aircraft?

That's some spooky stuff...Those Fulcrums are at a certain place in Nevada...need I say more? Wink

Beers and MiGs were made to be pounded!

Hehehe, a pamphlet I got for WPAFB had one of a picture of a Mig-29 and it was a backwards engineering job. Make your own conclusions there. Now the picture means nothing, but what are really going to be backwards engineering with a military job. Oh yeah, top secret clearance as well. Smile

Quote:

That's some spooky stuff...Those Fulcrums are at a certain place in Nevada...need I say more?

Ahh negative, I figured haha, I just thought they would be valuable training aids if we could keep them flying.

Probably some safety rules have changed?.... ever since we lost Gen Bond in that ex Libyan MiG-23 some years back.

Question

Guys, I saw a special on "Paradaise Ranch" not too long ago and the guys got as close to "Watertown Strip" as they could and were able to get video of a Fulcrum performing aerobatics in the "denied airspace." I can just about guarantee that we have 'em, we're flyin 'em, and we're learning how better to kill 'em Thumb

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Enthusiast Joined: Nov 21, 2005 - 12:24 AM Posts: 65

Here's a nice histoy about a Guy who owns a couple of Mig-29:

http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/13.10/kirlin.html

Also some were I read the USAF also has few SU-27, plus the 20 moldoviam Migs

Thanks for the article VMF-214, only the author needs to get his american aircraft names down. F-16 Eagle!?!?! Shocked

'Dem's fightin words... Big No No

Yeah, we had a field day with that article a few weeks back. However, apparently this guy actually does have a couple MiG-29s. Hope he's got a big pocketbook, because he's going to NEED it!

But yes, we DO fly the Fulcrums. In what capacity? I have an idea, but can not confirm without a need to know.

Beers and MiGs were made to be pounded!

Thats fine TC, thank you! Salute

Last edited by bring_it_on1 on Dec 09, 2005 - 05:37 PM; edited 1 time in total

Talk to Tom at ACIG if you wanna learn more on the USAF operated (or once operated mig-29 fulcrums)..I tried it some months back and upon great persuation and begging all he was willing to tell me was that their are ex-moldovian examples and others from some other AF which were once operated under a top secret US airforce unit known as ""GREY BEARS""..there were around 30 mig-29's and not all were flown at once..I also beleived that some time back there was an abduction or some story that was bizare about a journalist who clicked a pic of the 29 doeing manuevers etc etc and later went missing (however i cant confirm it)

Here is one at Nellis although it no longer fly's:

Its long been known that the USAF flew Mig-21 and 23's in an agressor role out of Groom Lake (hell I have photos in books of mig-23s in full stars n bars). Not surprised really to see them flying the latest tech aswell (and if you believe russia aren't flying 16's 15's.etc it would be a tad misguided)... now lets see one in full USAF colours on the airshow circuit Wink

Andy

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Fiendishly expensive to operate. Motors that need rebuilding every 700 hours, and that YOU can't rebuild. Questionably reliable systems..that you have no spares for. That sort of stuff would head my list.

With so many poor countries that have poccession of the fulcrum it wouldnt be that hard to source the parts etc etc from the black market..The engines would be a problem though and so would the airframes as the early 29 carients had only some thing like 2500-3000 hour airframe lives...However technically speaking it would only take something like 300-600 hours to fully evaluate its perfromance and spread over 30 aircraft it should be that big of a problem...

I wonder what they are gonna do with these...maybe use them for aerodynamic testing or some other such activity as I doubt they would ever fly!!!

[img]http://forum.keypublishing.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=105343[/img]

Personally if you ask me the USAF/USN has quite a bit of experience training against the mig-29 in the various exercises over the years..

[img]http://forum.keypublishing.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=105927[/img]

[img]http://forum.keypublishing.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=105928[/img]

For some of the earlier stuff, try http://area51specialprojects.com/migs.html Smile

. Lots of neat pics and some new power point presentations of the US' evaluations of the aircraft Wink

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Forum: Modern Military Aircraft

MiG-29's in US posession?