History of the Mig-29
The Mikoyan MiG-29 is a 4th generation jet fighter aircraft designed for the air superiority role in the Soviet Union. Developed in the 1970s by the Mikoyan design bureau, it entered service in 1983 and remains in use by the Russian Air Force as well as in many other nations. NATO's reporting name for the MiG-29 is "Fulcrum", which was unofficially used by Soviet pilots in service. It was developed to counter new American fighters such as the F-16 Fighting Falcon, and the F/A-18 Hornet.
The history of the MiG-29, like that of the larger Sukhoi Su-27, started in 1969 when the Soviet Union learned of the U.S. Air Force’s 'F-X' program, which resulted in the F-15 Eagle. The Soviet leadership soon realized that the new American fighter would represent a serious technological advantage over all existing Soviet fighters. The MiG-21 was agile by the standards of its day, but had deficiencies in range, armament, and growth potential. The MiG-23, developed to match the F-4 Phantom II, was fast and had more space for fuel and equipment, but lacked in maneuverability and dogfighting ability. What was needed was a better-balanced fighter with both good agility and sophisticated systems. In response, the Soviet General Staff issued a requirement for a Perspektivnyy Frontovoy Istrebitel (PFI, roughly "Advanced Frontline Fighter", literally "Perspective Frontline Fighter"). Specifications were extremely ambitious, calling for long range, good short-field performance (including the ability to use austere runways), excellent agility, Mach 2+ speed, and heavy armament. The aerodynamic design for the new aircraft was largely carried out by TsAGI, the Russian aerodynamics institute, in collaboration with the Sukhoi design bureau.
However, in 1971 the Soviets determined that the PFI aircraft would be too expensive to procure in the quantities needed, and divided the requirement into the TPFI (Tyazhyolyy Perspektivnyy Frontovoy Istrebitel, "Heavy Advanced Tactical Fighter") and the LPFI (Lyogkiy Perspektivnyy Frontovoy Istrebitel, "Lightweight Advanced Tactical Fighter") programs, the latter paralleling the contemporary USAF decision that led to the "Lightweight Fighter" program and the F-16 Fighting Falcon and YF-17 Cobra. The heavy fighter remained with Sukhoi, resulting in the Sukhoi Su-27, while the lightweight fighter went to Mikoyan. Detailed design work on the resultant Product 9, designated MiG-29A, began in 1974, with the first flight taking place on October 6, 1977. The pre-production aircraft was first spotted by United States reconnaissance satellites in November of that year; it was dubbed Ram-L because it was observed at the Zhukovsky flight test center near the town of Ramenskoye. Early Western speculations suggested that the Ram-L was very similar in appearance to the YF-17 Cobra and powered by afterburning Tumansky R-25 turbojets.
Despite program delays caused by the loss of two prototypes in engine-related accidents, the MiG-29B production version entered service in August 1983 at the Kubinka air base. State acceptance trials were completed in 1984, and deliveries began the same year to the Soviet Frontal Aviation. The workload split between TPFI and PFI became more apparent as the MiG-29 filtered into front-line service with the VVS in the mid-1980s. While the heavy, long range Su-27 was tasked with the more exotic and dangerous role of deep air-to-air sweeps of NATO high-value assets, the smaller MiG-29 directly replaced the MiG-23 in the frontal aviation role. The MiG-29 was positioned relatively close to the front lines, tasked with providing local air superiority to advancing Soviet motorized army units. Rugged landing gear and protective intake grates meant the MiG-29 could operate from the damaged or under-prepared airstrips Soviet war planners expected to encounter during a rapid armored advance. The MiG-29 was also tasked with escort duties for local strike and interdiction air packages, protecting vulnerable ground attack aircraft from NATO fighters such as the F-15 and F-16. Frontal aviation MiG-29s would ensure Soviet ground forces could operate under a safe air umbrella, moving forward with the troops as they advanced.
In the West, the new fighter was given the NATO reporting name "Fulcrum-A" because the pre-production MiG-29A, which should have logically received this designation, remained unknown in the West at that time. The MiG-29B was widely exported in downgraded versions known as MiG-29B 9-12A and MiG-29B 9-12B (for Warsaw Pact and non-Warsaw Pact nations, respectively), with less capable avionics and no capability for delivering nuclear weapons. Total production was about 840 aircraft.
Refined versions of the MiG-29 with improved avionics were fielded by the Soviet Union, but Mikoyan's multi-role variants, including a carrier-based version designated MiG-29K, were never produced in large numbers. In the post-Soviet era, MiG-29 development was frustrated by the Mikoyan bureau's apparent lack of political clout compared to rival Sukhoi. Some more advanced versions are still being pursued for export, and updates of existing Russian aircraft are likely. New versions of the plane called MiG-29SMT and MiG-29M1/M2 are being developed. Furthermore, development of a carrier version, the MiG-29K, has been resumed for the Indian Navy's INS Vikramaditya aircraft carrier (formerly the Russian aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov). This version was originally meant for Soviet service onboard the Admiral Kuznetsov, but the bigger Sukhoi Su-33 was preferred instead.
The Soviet Union did not assign official "popular names" to its aircraft, although unofficial nicknames were common. Unusually, some Soviet pilots found the MiG-29s NATO reporting name, "Fulcrum", to be a flattering description of the aircraft's intended purpose, and it is sometimes unofficially called "Fulcrum" in Russian service.
The MiG-29 was first publicly seen in the West during a visit to Finland in July 1986. Two were displayed at the Farnborough Air Show in Britain in September 1988. The following year, the aircraft conducted flying displays at the 1989 Paris Air Show where it was involved in a non-fatal crash during the first weekend of the show. The Paris Air Show display was only the second display of Soviet fighters at an international air show since the 1930s. Western observers were impressed by its apparent capability and exceptional agility.
MiG-29s saw combat in the Gulf War at the hands of Iraqi pilots. According to the USAF, five MiG-29s were shot down. Inadequate pilot training skills, air-defense infrastructure, and poor maintenance, rather than the quality of the aircraft, may have been responsible for this lack of success. Eight MiG-29 pilots fled to Iran where they now serve in the Iranian Air Force.
A Cuban MiG-29UB shot down two civilian Cessna 337s belonging to the organization Brothers to the Rescue in 1996, after the planes approached Cuban airspace.
In Syrian service, the MiG-29s have provided round-the-clock air defense and patrol over Syria and Lebanon. Syrian pilots have praised the aircraft's agility and weapon systems.
Indian MiG-29s saw action during the Kargil War in Kashmir. They provided fighter escort for Mirage 2000s dropping laser-guided bombs on enemy targets and played a major role in maintaining the air superiority. The Indian MiG-29s are known as Baaz (Eagle in Hindi). The Indian Air Force has modified and successfully tested their MiG-29s to fire the advanced R-77 Adder BVR missile. It is believed that all the MiG-29s in the Indian inventory are upgraded to use the Adder as standard armament. They are also being worked upon to be compatible with the Indian Astra BVR missile that is being developed. It is reported that Indian MiG-29s were even before the Kargil conflict equipped with self-defense equipment like chaff and flares and also ECM/ECCM pods. Hence when the MiG-29s were giving top cover to the Mirage 2000s strafing Pakistani positions in Kargil and other heights, it is known that they carried BVRAAM missiles like the AA-10 and AA-12 which prevented PAF F-16s from coming even 40 kilometers close to the Line of Control (LoC). The Indian Air Force currently employs the fourth-largest fleet of MiG-29s. Also during the Kargil war a pair of MiG-29s from the 47th (black archers) squadron claimed to have shot down two marauding PAF F-16s over the Dras sector where they were performing CAPs covering the Mirage -2000s that were bombing Pakistani Army positions.