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HISTORY
This aircraft, bearing the serial number
2960518475 was manufactured in 1986. It
served with the 91st IAP at Lipeck-2. From No-
vember, 1990, the bird ew with the 2nd Flight,
115th GvIAP (Guards Fighter Unit) based at Ka-
kaydy (in today’s Uzbekistan). This unit stationed
at this base ew in the days of the Soviet Union
on a list of ghter types, including the MiG-17,
-19, -21 and -29. During Soviet involvement in
Afghanistan, Kakaydy was a key aireld in cen-
tral Asia, and MiG-29s appeared here for the
rst time in 1989. In July, 1991, this machine was
transferred to the base Mary-1, which is located
in today’s Turkmenistan, and was pressed into
service with the 2nd Flight 1521st AB (Aviabaza
- ‘Air Base’). This MiG-29A of the initial produc-
tion phase was tasked with playing the aggres-
sor role, and that explains the white cockpit fra-
ming. Inuenced by combat ops with adversary
elements and VF-178 Skyraiders ying off of
the USS Intrepid, the aircraft was adorned with
a sharkmouth, a hornet on the vertical tail, and
the letters ‘AM’ on the n top. The letters ‘AM’
denoted the home eld of the unit (in Russian,
‘Aviabaza Mary’).
MiG-29, 2nd Flight, 1521st AB, Soviet Union, Mary Air Base-
1, Soviet Union, 1991-1992
MiG-29A, 85th GvIAP, Merseburg AB, Germany, 1991
MiG-29B, Iranian Air Force, 11th Squadron,
Teheran-Mehrabad, Iran, 1990s.
This aircraft, serialed 2968520142, left the as-
sembly line in February, 1986. At the beginning
of the nineties, it served with the 85th GvIAP
(Guards) ‘Sevastopolskyi’. This unit was based
at Merseburg in East Germany. After the reu-
nication of Germany, this aircraft, along with
the others of the unit, relocated to the Soviet
Union at Starokonstantinov air base. The air-
craft carries one of a number of variations on
the standard scheme. The left side of the nose
carries the Guards emblem, and the ‘Excellence’
badge, and also the MiG OKB badge on the
intake. The right side is adorned with a drawing
of a leopard, that was also carried by another
85th GvIAP aircraft. It’s author was apparently
Capt. Yevgeniy Sadovoy.
This aircraft was part of the rst delivery batch
of MiG-29s to Iran in 1990. The actual facto-
ry type was the ‘Izdelye 9-12B’, which was an
electronically downgraded export version be-
low the standard of that which was delivered
to the Warsaw Pact. The Islamic Republic of Iran
Air Force took delivery of 24 MiG-29s between
1990 and 1991, including four ‘UB’ two-seaters.
Another four arrived from Iraq during the rst
Gulf War. Currently, Iran has two bases ope-
rating MiG-29s. The 11th Squadron is based
at Mehrabad, and Tabriz is home to the 23rd
Squadron.
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Info Eduard - July 2011