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Midland Publishing |
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MiG-23/27 Flogger |
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by Yefim Gordon and Keith Dexter |
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Reviewed By Charles Landrum, #26328 |
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MSRP: $36.95 USD 176 pages with over 280 B&W and color, a softbound edition Review copy provided by Specialty Press and can be ordered directly at: 1-800-895-4585 This latest offering by the team of Yefim Gordon, Keith Dexter and Midland publishing is yet another important monograph in the growing series of books covering aircraft design in the Soviet Union, the Eastern block and the successor states. The MiG-23/27 fighter-bomber was one of the unheralded workhorses that came out of the Soviet Union. Its true swing-wing, developed after the F-111, was equally innovative. While it suffered its fair share of developmental troubles, the MiG-23 eventually proved versatile enough to be developed into a capable fighter-bomber – the MiG-23BN/MiG-27. Along with the swing-wing, its ventral stabilizer, low canopy and narrow wheel track the MiG-23/27 was unmistakable in appearance. It is ironic that it is no longer in service in Russia and the countries of the former Warsaw Pact, while its predecessor the MiG-21 still is. This volume is another in the AeroFax series that provides the modeler and armchair aviators with a wealth of information on the featured aircraft. Because the MiG-23BN and MiG-27 are significantly different in their function as fighter-bombers than the pure fighter MiG-23, this is in many respects two separate monographs with the author treating the MiG-23BN/27 fighter-bomber separately in the latter half of the book. Rich in photographs, color and black and white, the book also has excellent 3-view drawings and color profiles in the back. The monograph provides a nice mix of historical and contemporary photos of the aircraft - I always enjoy the Soviet-era action photographs of pilots scrambling to an intercept. For those of us with advanced modelers’ syndrome there are even separate chapters of detailed photos of a walk around variety devoted to both the MiG-23 and MiG-27. For the armchair aviator, along with the detailed photos, there are detailed descriptions of the aircraft’s numerous systems. This book focuses on the variant and service life of the aircraft more so than on the development of the aircraft. While I always get lost in the mind-numbing number of variants that Yefim Gordon is able to document, what I enjoy in these series is the cataloging of the air forces that in one way or another operated the MiG-23 and the MiG-23bn/27. This is again done in separate chapters by aircraft type with each section summarizing the operation of each variant in the respective Air Force and giving a detailed listing of the known aircraft that were carried in inventory. Noteworthy under the MiG-23 is a listing for the U.S. which throughout the cold war and immediately thereafter was a collector of Soviet hardware for intelligence exploitation. In the operational history chapter, the author presents a good overview of the MiG-23 in Soviet operations in Afghanistan, with some interesting anecdotes. Also covered are MiG-23 operations in other conflicts around the world including the Arab-Israeli conflict and the US confrontation with Libya. There is a separate chapter that compares/contrasts the MiG-23MLD to the F-4E, F-15A, F-16A and Kfir C.2 with most of the data coming from the experience of the Syrians against the Israelis. Some of the results are extrapolations by the Soviet military of the plane in experienced hands since the Syrians ultimately did not fare all that well. There is a similar chapter for the MiG-27 where the authors compare and contrast the MiG-27 to the Jaguar and Soviet Block’s less technologically advanced but longer-lived contemporary the Su-17/22. The chapter breakdown of the book:
Surprisingly a large number of MiG-23/27s have survived and the authors provide an exhaustive list of museum specimens in an appendix. I really enjoyed this latest book in the Aerofax series because the edition was well balanced in its treatment of the MiG-23/27 series. Overall this is a good summary of the aircraft types and its place in the latter half of the 20th century. Highly recommended. |
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