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WARPAINT SERIES No.120
Mikoyan-Gurevich
MiG-15
The SV aircraft during factory testing. The third aircraft in the first batch, designated the SV at OKB-155, this airframe was used to eradicate all the defects that came to light at factory No.1. In accordance with a government decree issued in April 1948 it was proposed that this aircraft be presented once again for state testing at the Air Force Scientific Research Institute by June 1949
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All artwork by Andrey Yurgenson
MiG-15bis of the 234th Fighter Air Regiment, 9th Fighter Air Division of the Moscow Military District Air Force, which participated in the Tushino Air Parade, 1952
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Mikoyan-Gurevich
By Nikolay Yakubovich Translated by Kevin Bridge
T
he second half of the 1940s was marked by a huge shift in military aviation towards gas turbine engines. The newly emerging aircraft however were characterised by a subsonic wing layout as well as rounded air intake cowlings, which prevented them from reaching transonic speeds. At that time the Soviet Union only had the RD-10 and RD-20 engines at its disposal, which were copies of German
BMW004 and Jumo004 power plants. The thrust these engines generated did not exceed 1,000 kg and their reliability and service life left much to be desired. An engine capable of producing 1,500 kg of thrust, which was being developed under the leadership of Arkhip Lyulka, was a long way from completion. Calculations proved that an engine capable of producing around 3,000 kg of thrust would be needed for an advanced aircraft. No such engine was to be found in the U.S.S.R. although faith was placed specifically in a gas turbine engine produced at factory No. 36 in Rybinsk. At that time however there were no guarantees that
Above: The Yak-23 was a jet fighter with a straight wing and a Derwent V engine, but although it was in service with the Armed Forces of the USSR and other nations it was not widely used
aircraft manufacturers would take delivery of an engine with the required parameters. Apart from that it would be necessary to either reduce the relative thickness of the wing by up to 5-6 % or to introduce a sweep angle of greater than 30°. Germany’s preference for developing aircraft with jet engines including those with swept wings that delayed the onset of shock stall is indisputable. Equally there is no sense in arguing against the influence of the German school of aerodynamics on global aeronautical engineering either. It was these same achievements by German specialists that were to form the basis for the advent of transonic aircraft both in the USSR and overseas. It would be wrong though to denigrate the achievements of Soviet specialists. Back in the war years academician Vladimir Struminskiy used calculations to prove that the system of boundary layer equations for flow over a yawed wing could be broken down into two independent groups. The first of these defines the flow perpendicular to the leading edge while the second defines the flow along the leading edge. Strictly speaking the yawing effect is contained within this distinction. Therefore the standard velocity components for an oncoming airflow also define the critical Mach number, delaying the onset of shock stall. These same calculations subsequently led to the advent of wing fences on swept Left: The first Soviet experimental swept wing aircraft the La-160
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wing aircraft. The results obtained in theoretical work needed to be proven experimentally and the necessary recommendations for an aerodynamic configuration suitable for swept wings passed on to Experimental Design Bureaux. At the time research using wind tunnels did not provide a decisive answer to the question of which was the best wing layout: Therefore a full-size experiment was required to decide the future course of the development of aircraft technology. The S.A. Lavochkin Experimental Design Bureau led work in this field. The Soviet Union was the first to produce a swept wing jet fighter, the La-160 after the war. Just a little over two months later a similar aircraft had taken to the skies in America. The speed this aircraft attained of 1,050 km/hr at an altitude of 5,700 m (which corresponds to Mach 0.92) in a nose down attitude did not give rise to any serious changes in its stability or handling. This aircraft did not display any tendency towards an involuntary wing stall. If the stick were pulled hard over the stall would be favourable in nature, and accompanied by the aircraft falling onto its nose without entering a spin, after which it would easily return to a normal flight regime. Despite this success Lavochkin made a final attempt to create the La 174TK fighter
with a straight wing designed according to a tried and tested pod-and-boom layout. The Yak-23 fighter, which employed a similar layout, was developed at Experimental Design Bureau No. 115 under the leadership of A.S. Yakovlev. A comparison of the 174TK aircraft with the Yak-23 fighter, which had emerged for flight testing a year earlier, shows that for the same engine the designers at the Semyon Lavochkin Experimental Design Bureau succeeded in attaining a maximum speed that was 50 km/hr faster than a heavier aircraft. Moreover the maximum Mach number in horizontal flight reached 0.86 (for the Yak-23 this was 0.807). A higher Mach number could only be attained by drastically increasing the power-to-weight ratio of the aircraft. Nevertheless Aleksandr Yakovlev did not lose faith in a straight winged aircraft and after the Yak-23 he produced the Yak-25, which employed the Derwent V engine. However despite its outstanding manoeuvrability its maximum speed did not exceed 972 km/hr, which for the end of the 1940s was considered patently inadequate. Thus aircraft designers were left with only one option if they were looking to achieve the maximum possible speed - to continue to develop swept wing aircraft.
Above: A Yak-25 fitted with a Derwent V engine and a straight wing demonstrated excellent flight performance characteristics, but it was not able to approach the sound barrier
The start of the ‘story’ The history behind the development of the MiG-15 fighter aircraft is inextricably linked to the English aero-engine manufacturer Rolls-Royce, or to be precise to its Nene engine. In the summer of 1946 the Soviet trade representative in Great Britain sent a sensational message to Rolls-Royce about the feasibility of acquiring a batch of what were for that time powerful Derwent and Nene centrifugal compressor turbojet engines. It is said that when Stalin learnt of this he could not believe it and announced: ‘What fool would sell us his secrets?’ They were not fools however but businessmen who knew the value of money, and the birthplace of centrifugal compressor turbojet engines was not about to sell its latest technology. To the British these engines were not new but were ‘old stock’ and they were naturally very keen to sell them off. On 17 June 1946 the Government of the USSR issued a decree giving permission for a batch of 10 examples of these engines to be purchased in Britain. The third paragraph in the document called upon the Ministry for the Aviation Industry to put forward a proposal for the manufacture of two experimental aircraft using these gas turbine engines. First on the Ministry’s list was OKB-155 (Experimental Design Bureau155) headed by Artyom Mikoyan – the brother of Anastas Mikoyan who up until 1947 had been the Soviet Minister of Trade. It was through his Ministry of Trade that the English engines had been purchased in the first place. Following on from this a sizable delegation was sent to Britain and from their report it is clear that not only did British specialists educate the Soviet representatives about their achievements, but also laid on a relatively long course of study on the design and operation of gas turbine engines. Although the British gas turbine engines Left: The La-174TK experimental fighter fitted with a Derwent V engine and a thin, straight wing
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Right: Thanks to the RD-45F engine Soviet aviation technology reached a new qualitative level
were characterised by a commonly large diameter centrifugal compressor, which complicated the engine layout especially in fighter aircraft, this truly was a gift to Soviet aircraft designers. Indigenous engines capable of developing a similar thrust remained on the drawing board. On 17 June 1946 a decree was issued by the Council of Ministers giving permission for the Ministry for the Aviation Industry to purchase 10 examples of both of these engines in the UK. The third paragraph called upon the Ministry for the Aviation Industry to put forward a proposal to manufacture two experimental aircraft using these engines, including the future MiG-15. British workers were still assembling the engines destined for the Soviet Union when in a decree dated 15 February 1947 the Council of Ministers decided on the issue of their manufacture at indigenous engine plants, in contravention of customary norms and rules, that is to say without acquiring a licence. This decision was to reflect very favourably on the indigenous aircraft industry. It is said that when the British discovered this they instituted legal proceedings against the USSR for copying their gas turbine engines illegally. The Soviets however had envisaged this, the point being that in an attempt to increase the thrust of the Nene, Soviet specialists had expanded the air passages within it, increasing the airflow. When the company specialists found out they
were in a hurry to get home. The matter however did not end at this confrontation and the press added fuel to the fire. In June 1948 the British newspaper the Daily Mail under the headline ‘Sale of 50 Rolls-Royce Engines Helps Red Scientists’ wrote: ‘Intelligence information presented to the heads of British and American Armies testifies to the growing strength of Soviet jet aviation. This information shows the colossal scientific and theoretical efforts aimed at creating the world’s most powerful air force. Information the paper has obtained from behind the Iron Curtain testifies to the following fundamental facts:
1. The number of military jet aircraft already runs into the hundreds and production continues to grow. 2. It is possible that 500 fighter aircraft alone are in service with the red Air Force. Many people on both sides of the Atlantic think Britain made a mistake in selling 50 Rolls-Royce jet turbine engines, the majority of which were the Nene model, to the Russians around a year ago. These engines were not the most up-to-date versions but Soviet technicians are adept at copying and like the Japanese they can study and no doubt learn a great deal from these engines.’ The development of the MiG-15 (or the I-310 as it was known, with the factory designator S) began in autumn 1946. The basis for this work was decree No. 493-192 dated 11 March 1947 and issued by the Central Committee of the Communist Party Soviet Union and the Council of Ministers of the USSR This government document specified that an aircraft capable of developing a speed of 1,000 km/hr at low level and 1,020 km/hr at an altitude of 5,000 m be presented for testing. The aircraft was required to climb to 5,000 m in 3.2 mins with a service ceiling of 13,000 m and a maximum range of 1,200 km. Furthermore the take-off run was not to exceed 700 m, and the landing roll 800 m. The aircraft’s armament was to consist of a single 54-mm and two 23-mm cannons. The specification envisaged the possibility either of increasing flight range using external fuel tanks or of accommodating a 200 kg bomb load. These requirements reflected the role for this new aircraft: active engagement of enemy fighter and bomber aircraft in air combat, countering raids by enemy aircraft, as well as striking ground targets and engaging in aerial reconnaissance. That being said the future MiG-15’s principle adversaries were thought to be bomber aircraft, capable of inflicting a Above left: The designers of the MiG-15, from left to right: Mikhail Gurevich, Artyom Mikoyan, Dmitriy Kurguzov, Anatoliy Brunov, Nikolai Matyuk
Left: To replenish the armament in the MiG-15's cannons all that was required was to lower the gun carriage down with the help of a tap wrench
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MiG-15 of the first series. This aircraft belonged to the 234th Fighter Air Regiment and was flown by Captain V.S. Lapshin during the Tushino Air Parade on 8 July 1951
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MiG-15 of the first series. This aircraft belonged to the 234th Fighter Air Regiment and was flown by Major V.M. Fokin during the Tushino Air Parade on 8 July 1951
MiG-15bis of the Red Falcons aerobatic group of the Moscow District Air Defence Forces, 1954
MiG-15bis of one of the Soviet Air Force units in China, June 1951
MiG-15bis, Czechoslovakia, 1955
I-310 (S-1), beginning of 1948
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Avia S-103 of the Czechoslovak Air Force Fighter Air Regiment based in Ostrava, Northern Morava
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Avia S-103 of the Czechoslovak Air Force
MiG-15bis of the German Democratic Republic Air Force, 1957
MiG-15bis of the Hungarian Air Force, Pecs (HQ) Military District, 1960
MiG-15bis of the Polish Air Force, flown by pilot F. Jarecki, 1953
MiG-15bis of the Romanian Air Force
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Above: A MiG-15 bis fighter-bomber fitted with S-1 rockets and 400 litre drop tanks
Left: A MiG-15bis fighter-bomber with four FAB250 aerial bombs
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bombarded a notional enemy’s positions shortly after the nuclear explosion. An attempt to lengthen the ‘service life’ of the MiG-15 was made in 1958 with the MiG-15bis (ISsh) fighter-ground attack aircraft. The aircraft was distinguished by its twin pylons with six attachment assemblies for aerial bombs, and unguided rocket projectiles. One idiosyncrasy of this aircraft was the attachment pylons for the rocket projectiles that could be angled downwards. This enabled the aircraft to strafe targets without the need to enter a shallow dive. Four aircraft were converted to this configuration. The aircraft passed all the tests but the project was not brought forward to encompass conversion of all the obsolete fighters into ground attack aircraft. In the summer of 1959 testing concluded of a modified MiG-15bis aircraft in the fighter-bomber variant. This aircraft was capable of carrying up to 250-kg aerial bombs, 212-mm S-1 (ARS-212) rocket projectiles, and additional 400 l fuel tanks. Testing showed that bombing both in a dive, and in level flight was conducted ‘bysight’ with a low level of accuracy. As far as firing the S-1 rocket projectiles were concerned they could only be fired after jettisoning the drop tanks. On the other hand they could explode and take the remainder of the fuel load with them. Taking this danger into account the S-1 projectiles were not used. It is worth noting that by that time the supersonic Su-7B fighter-bomber had not yet undergone testing; the capabilities of this aircraft, including its payload, were considerably greater than those of the MiG15bis, therefore further work on this aircraft was stopped. ‘Tugs’ It was decided to adopt two approaches for the creation of an aircraft designed to escort transport aircraft, and bombers. The first of these envisaged the development of a specialised aircraft, or the refinement of Above left: The ‘SD-UDB’ – a MiG-15bis (factory No.135001) with 400 litre standardised drop tanks. 1954
Left: A line-up of MiG-15bis aircraft fitted with the Harpoon system
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Right: The harpoon in the deployed position
Below right: The pilot’s cockpit of the MiG-15bis aircraft, this aircraft has been fitted with control equipment for the attachment system enabling it to dock with bombers in flight: 1. Release button; 2. Emergency harpoon release button; 3. Mechanical release lever; 4. Emergency vent 5. Harpoon stowed position indicator light; 6. Illumination light on switch
production examples by expanding their functional idiosyncrasies. By the beginning of 1950 the MiG-15 was the only production aircraft for which there were sufficient reserves in its production that enabled, specifically, an enhancement of the flight range using 600 l external drop tanks. Furthermore although the aircraft did become noticeably heavier it remained sufficiently manoeuvrable, in the case of increased fuel consumption even more so. This variant turned out to be the most basic one. During the course of testing the aircraft, which was designated SD-UPB, the maximum indicated air speed reached 820 km/hr, but the practical ceiling reduced to 13,400 m because of the increased weight. On the other hand the flight range increased to 2,200 km, which was more than enough for the military. Eventually, in the spring of 1951 the aircraft with the designation MiG-15Sbis was accepted into service. The flight range attained by the MiG15Sbis was the furthest of this type of aircraft. At the same time all other attempts to increase this range were not successful. Specifically the towing system that was designated ‘the Tug’, and represented a system designed to tow up to three fighters behind a Tu-4 bomber, did not stand up to testing. It seemed it would be much easier for a bomber to tow a fighter via a cable, the fighter detaching at the right moment and
then moving to escort the bombers to protect them. In practice however this turned out to be a complicated task as a certain level of comfort for the pilot was required, the point being that the fighter’s engine would be switched off and the pressurisation, and air conditioning system in the cockpit would not work. In addition flight on the end of a towing cable was linked to extreme turbulence on the part of the fighter in the bomber’s wake. While the aerial connection between the Tu-4 and the MiG-15 was being developed a new long-range bomber, the Tu16, appeared, which sealed the fate of the ‘Tugs.’ It was much more viable to create an in-flight refuelling system for two MiG-15bis aircraft using a Tu-4 tanker with a probeand-drogue arrangement. Moreover two drogues were used, one for the automatic connection between the fighter and the tanker, and the other to transfer the fuel. Development and testing of such a complex system, which incorporated technical solutions inherited from the ‘Tugs,’ began in August 1951 and only concluded in 1953. Test-pilot Aleskey Solodovnikov recalled how as a specific skill connecting the two aircraft was not especially complex, but it did nevertheless require a heightened level of concentration on contact and to maintain Above left: A pair of MiG-15bis trailing behind a Tu-4 bomber Left: Ground based drill for connecting the inflight refuelling system drogues
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Right: Drawing a fighter up to the refuelling drogue
position in the formation as the fuel was transferred, particularly at night. For the MiG to be fully refuelled, some four to five minutes were required, and moreover two fighters could do this simultaneously. This technical solution however did not find favour at that time with the military, who had placed their hopes in the MiG-15bis. It has to be said however that development of the system of in-flight refuelling for fighters in the USSR continued for almost ten years, and only in the 1990s was this challenge finally solved.
Flying laboratories and targets The considerably increased take-off and landing characteristics of jet aircraft stimulated a search for ways to reduce their take-off run, and especially their landing roll. Research carried out after the end of the war demonstrated that a significant reduction in the landing distance could be achieved using brake parachutes. In connection with this a PT-2165-51 parachute was accommodated on the MiG-15bis (this aircraft was given the designation SD-P at the Experimental Design Bureau) with a canopy area of 15 m2. The aircraft passed testing in 1951 including state testing, and in the following year a small series of fighters was produced. After the VK-1 a variant of this engine with an afterburner chamber appeared, the VK-1F, which developed 3,380 kg of thrust on take-off. Use of this engine enabled a significant enhancement in the MiG-15’s take-off, and high altitude speed characteristics. One MiG-15bis was allocated
to prove the capabilities of this modernised fighter. The refinements, which were carried out in 1951 on this aircraft, were subsequently realised in the MiG-17F. The VK-5 engine was tested in the MiG-15bis, this engine becoming a further development of the VK-1, producing 3,100 kg of thrust, but the aircraft and the turbojet engine itself remained just a prototype. In 1952 military pilots tested a g-suit, and in
1953 – a pressure suit, but a partial pressure suit (VKK - Vysotno-Kompensiruyushchiy Kostyum) was used more widely in aviation in place of this full pressure suit, as it was easier to use. There is also a reference to be found in the archives about the SDK-5 aircraft, which was a flying laboratory for the development of guidance systems for Kometa anti-ship rockets, and was converted in 1955 from a MiG-15bis. The SDK-5 would take-off straight after a missile carrier and on connecting to the beam from this aircraft’s radar it was automatically guided onto the target. Aircraft were converted to MiG-15M target variants as they were taken out of service. These were used both for testing new hardware, and for training crews on antiaircraft rocket systems across quite a broad range of altitudes. By the end of 1950 it had become clear that high altitude was no longer a reliable defence against Air Defence System weapons and aviators began to develop approaches to flying at low, and very low altitudes, following the contours of the terrain. The development of Air Defence System weapons was not abandoned either. In order to test the new anti-aircraft rocket systems and first and foremost the S-125, a low altitude version of the MiG-15MNV target was developed. In view of the fact that back then automated, low-level aircraft flight control systems did not exist, the UTI MiG-15 was modified into the KP variant to control the MiG-15MNV by radio. Subsequently the MiG-15MNV target was modified, and not only could it take-off independently, but where necessary it could also land independently on an airfield. Above left: NII VVS UTI MiG-15 flying laboratory, designed to test the emergency aircraft evacuation system, these aircraft were used by parachute instructors in frontline units to demonstrate ejection
Left: A fragment of a film of an ejection from the rear cockpit of a UTI MiG-15 LII flying laboratory
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Right: An experimental rescue system with protection for the pilot from the oncoming airflow using the canopy: a. A diagram of the detachment system to detach the canopy from the seat; b. The pilot’s position; 1. The lower canopy fixing lock; 2 Seat; 3. Stabilising flap; 4. The pilot’s cockpit canopy
Aside from using the MiG-15 as a target the aircraft was converted into a target tug to tow targets using a cable. This was designed for aircraft to fire at the targets on the cable, and to train anti-aircraft artillery crews in place of the cones previously used. Several two-seat aircraft at the Flight Research (LII), and the Air Force ScientificResearch Institute (VVS NII) were used to test emergency aircraft evacuation systems. In April 1954 the EI3 ejection system was presented to the modelling commission for the I-3 interceptor-fighter, which was developed at the LII to protect the pilot from the oncoming airflow using the cockpit canopy. Flight tests of this experimental system were undertaken at the LII in December 1955 using a UTI MiG-15 (designated ST-10) No.3410. The tests were flown by pilot Amet han Sultan, and parachutist Valeriy Golovin. Subsequently on the basis of the EI3 the SK system was developed at Experimental Research Institute 155, designed for the MiG21 fighter.
On the road to supersonic flight During the course of flight testing the MiG15 fighter a maximum speed in level flight that corresponded to a Mach number of 0.911 was achieved. Very little remained to reach the sound barrier. ‘There were instances..’ recalled the decorated test-pilot Aleksey Solodovnikov ‘..when several pilots, evidently imagining that this was a priority, affirmed that they had reached the speed of sound in the MiG-15, and moreover they pointed to the readings on the instruments that Below: A prototype example of the SI fighter - the prototype MiG-17
at times reached up to Mach 1.25–1.26.’ However this did not mean that the sound barrier had actually been broken. These readings were a consequence of errors in the instruments themselves that occurred as a result of changes in barometric pressure in a rapid loss of altitude.
The desire to reach this fabled speed was so great! It seemed all that was needed was to reduce the wave drag slightly, and increase engine thrust – and the sound barrier would be ours! The MiG-15 however suffered from a series of shortcomings that manifested themselves at high speeds. At low, and
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Right: The MiG-15 assembly line at aircraft manufacturing plant No.1 in Kuybyshev (Samara)
medium altitudes owing to insufficient rigidity in the wing an ‘involuntary banking’ would occur, and at high altitudes a roll reversal would happen in the event of any deflection of the rudder. In connection with this the maximum speed that could be achieved at altitudes from 900 up to 5,000 m was reduced to Mach .92, and above 7,500 m this was set at Mach 1. Only a highly qualified test-pilot however could attain the speed of sound in the MiG-15, and there could never be any question of exceeding it. It is true that in October 1949 test-pilot A.M. Tyuterev in a specially adapted MiG-15 had overcome this sacred boundary in a shallow dive. The term ‘shallow dive’ refers to a dive at an angle of between 40–50°, and only in this case by overcoming the enormous forces on the stick was it possible to accelerate to the speed of sound from an altitude of 12,000 m. Analogous research with the MiG-15 in 1950 at the NII VVS was conducted by test-pilot Andrey Terentyev. Diving from an altitude of 14,000 m he had reached the speed of sound on several occasions. It seemed that the road was open to breaking the sound barrier in a military aircraft. A little more thrust, and a little less drag…..the designers’ calculations were ostensibly confirmed by data from advanced aircraft models tested in wind tunnels. However in practice it was different. Fitting the VK-1 engine designed by V. Klimov to the MiG-15 with a thrust of 430 kg more than its predecessor had produced, enabled an increase in the maximum Mach number of just 0.008. In order to increase the speed still further a cardinal solution would be needed and this was achieved by increasing the angle of sweep of the wing to 45°. In 1949 a new aircraft, the MiG-15bis45 or the I-330, with the angle of sweep of the wings increased by 10°, was rolled out of the workshop at the experimental factory, this aircraft became the prototype for the future MiG-17. This machine had another designation, it was known as the SI. The first flight of this SI aircraft took place on 14 Right: The MiG-15 power plant. All that is needed to complete the assembly of the fighter is to join the aft section of the fuselage to the forward section Below: A MiG-15s in the paint shop at one of the aircraft manufacturing plants in the USSR. (Gennadiy Petrov collection)
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Above and left: A wheels-up emergency landing in a UTI MiG-15. Judging by the fact that the ‘soldatika’ is in the deployed position the aircraft landed on the port undercarriage leg, which folded under in the landing roll
January 1949, and was flown by I.T. Ivashchenko, and on 20 March an accident occurred with this prototype aircraft taking the life of the test-pilot with it. The reasons behind this catastrophe began to emerge in the course of factory testing of the second example of this aircraft. Grigoriy Sedov who was later to become a decorated test-pilot and Hero of the Soviet Union started the test programme. On one of the flights a stabiliser flutter set in suddenly, practically destroying the control surfaces, only around 40% of their area remaining. After all this had happened the aircraft flew normally and even began to ‘lift the nose’ a little. The pilot tested the control surfaces – the aircraft behaved accordingly, although on approach to land when the speed reduced there was a danger that the area of the remaining surfaces would be insufficient. Everything operated normally however and the prototype aircraft was saved. During the course of testing, which concluded in 1951, it also emerged that given an almost identical rate of climb as the MiG15bis the horizontal speed of the SI had increased, and reached 1,114 km/hr. The maximum Mach number in this flight reached 0.97 at an altitude of 11,000 m, which was 0.059 more than a similar value for the MiG15, and 0.051 more than the MiG-15bis, At the time this was considered a relatively high achievement. The stability and handling
characteristics differed only slightly from those of the MiG-15bis. For all its apparent similarity to the MiG15 the SI aircraft was nevertheless a new aircraft, and as such it was accepted into service with the designation MiG-17. This however is another story.
Series production Series production of the MiG-15, as discussed above, began in 1949 initially at factory No.1 in Kuybyshev. Moreover it was in four stages. It all began with the preparation of the S-1 aircraft for series production, then the S-2, and after the first fighters had left the enterprise’s workshop, the S-3 was accepted as the standard but not for long. In the course of production a series of innovations was introduced into the production aircraft that had been tested on the MiG-15 SV. This process also involved a further seven assembly workshops, which produced in total 13,131 aircraft of various modification standards. The manufacture of the engines continued up until 1959. The first production MiG-15s fitted with RD-45F engines began to leave the workshop of factory No.1 at the beginning of 1949. From July 1951 the MiG-15bis aircraft began to be manufactured that were fitted with NR-23 cannons in place of the NS-23s. The MiG-15 was constantly being updated, and new weapons and equipment
for the pilots would appear. From September 1952 larger airbrakes began to be fitted on MiG-15bis aircraft, this was as per the example of an aircraft manufactured at factory No.21 (No.53210668), which had undergone testing in March of that same year. It is worth saying a few words on the location of the landing light. To begin with this light (designated FS-155) was fitted on the air intake baffle. Subsequently it was replaced by the AFSV-45, and this was made to retract after take-off into the port wing section. It was in this form that it migrated onto the MiG-17. In accordance with a decree issued by the Government dated 26 January 1952 research was carried out into the prototype systems used by the F-86 Sabre. Specifically this related to the new telescopic ejection seat firing cartridge and the pilot’s cockpit canopy with its soft glass edging. Some of these were introduced on the MiG-15bis. The first production UTI MiG-15s began to leave the workshop of factory No.1 in 1950. Then the two-seat ‘sparki’ began to be manufactured in Kharkov at factory No.135, Ulan-Ude and Novosibirsk at factory No.153. Production of the UTI MiG-15 continued the longest at factory No.99 in Ulan-Ude (up until 1959). Apart from that from 1953 onwards in Czechoslovakia some 835 MiG-15s were manufactured under the designation S-102, and 2,013 UTI MiG-15s under the designation CS-102, and 620 MiG-15bis aircraft under the designation S-103. Naturally Czechoslovakia did not need that many fighters and the majority of them were exported, particularly to Egypt, and the USSR. The MiGs were also manufactured in Poland, where 727 aircraft were produced of various modification standards, remaining in service up until the beginning of the 1990s.
Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15
WARPAINT
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B W arp i o B o n a W rp ai t B oo ks n a W rp ai t B oo ks ar a nt k C o i s p B o n 2 ar a t k C o pa int B ok s C 2 o 0 i s B o n 1 2 ai t B o ks C 0 o nt 1 2 k 9 C o 0 s B o 1 2 t B oo ks C 01 9 2 k
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MiG-15 versions 1/72 Scale Plans
I-310 (S-1)
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I-310 (S-2)
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MiG-15bis (SD) of the later series
MiG-15bis (SD) s/n 2315393 with increased air brakes
MiG-15Rbis (SR) (‘izdelie 53’) s/n 55210101 with 600-litre underwing fuel tanks
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Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15
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B W arp i o B o n a W rp ai t B oo ks n a W rp ai t B oo ks ar a nt k C o i s p B o n 2 ar a t k C o pa int B ok s C 2 o 0 i s B o n 1 2 ai t B o ks C 0 o nt 1 2 k 9 C o 0 s B o 1 2 t B oo ks C 01 9 2 k
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MiG-15M (SDM)
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SP-1
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MiG-15S bis s/n 53210114
MiG-15bis Sh (‘izdelie Sh’)
UTI MiG-15P s/n 2626
1:72nd SCALE
Feet Metres
Scale drawings by Andrey Yurgenson
Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15
WARPAINT
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B W arp i o B o n a W rp ai t B oo ks n a W rp ai t B oo ks ar a nt k C o i s p B o n 2 ar a t k C o pa int B ok s C 2 o 0 i s B o n 1 2 ai t B o ks C 0 o nt 1 2 k 9 C o 0 s B o 1 2 t B oo ks C 01 9 2 k
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Right: The speed and altitude characteristics of the MiG-15, and the F-86
Below right: The influence of altitude on the rate of climb of the MiG-15, and the F-86
the results of the work carried out by the Ministry for the Aviation Industry, and the Air Force to research the idiosyncrasies of the Sabre (F-86A), which have been recommended by the aviation institutes, and the Experimental Design Bureau for assimilation in the indigenous aviation industry, and the Air Force: 1. Interlinking the optical sight with the radio range finder provides for the introduction of accurate firing with enhanced accuracy from a distance of 1,800 m from guns, rocket projectiles, and also bombs in a dive. The ASP-3N optical sight fitted on the MiG-15bis ensures that gun armament can be fired from 800 m. In accordance with a decree issued by the Council of Ministers production of the ‘Sneg’ optical sight and the ‘Grad’ radio range finder will be resurrected as they are. 2. Research has shown that defrosting the weapons, and ammunition increases the firing accuracy at low temperatures by 24%. 3. Enlarged air brakes provide the capability to dive from high altitudes without exceeding the permitted speed on the MiG-15bis they should be enlarged from 0.5 m2 to 0.8 m2. 4. A hydraulic actuator should be fitted on the elevator. 5. An all moving tailplane that enhances the effectiveness of the operation of the horizontal tailplane. 6. A slotted flap, fixed at any angle of attack. 7. A telescopic ejection seat firing cartridge. 8. Dual elevator control. 9. A cockpit pressurisation and air temperature control system. 10. Sealing the glass in the pilot’s cockpit. 11. A g-suit with a built in air feed control device. 12. An increase in the capacity of the MiG-15bis drop tanks is proposed from 250 to 400 l. This would enable range to be increased by 230 km at an altitude of 10,000 m. 13. A protective mesh near the engine intake. 14. A higher pressure jet turbine hydraulic system. American Military Command also made several attempts to acquire examples of Soviet military hardware. The Americans succeeded in acquiring their first MiG-15, or to be more precise its remains, in July 1951. This example was shot down by the United States Air Force over the western coast of North Korea. Similarly in summer of the following year the Americans were able to salvage the remains of a MiG-15 fuselage, which had made an emergency landing in the mountains of North Korea. The next attempt in September was successful when North Korean pilot No Gim Sok ferried a MiG-15bis to the American airfield at Gimpo for $100,000. During the war with Korea after the fighters with radio range finders had arrived there, losses among aircraft fighting on the
PAGE 38
Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15
WARPAINT
North Korean side dramatically increased. Then in accordance with a suggestion proposed by engineer Vadim Matskevich the fighter was fitted with a radio receiver to protect it from behind. The first use of the ‘tail protection device’ was in 1952. The effect was astounding. After that in Korea alone some 500 fighter aircraft were fitted with the ‘Siren’ system. It has historically been the case that in any war each side inflates and elevates their victories whilst playing down their own losses and defeats. Without wishing to enter into an argument with the USA the author notes that according to Soviet information over the
course of the war with Korea the pilots of the 64th Fighter Air Corps conducted 1,872 air battles, shot down 1,106 aircraft, including 650 Sabres. Furthermore they lost 335 MiGs. The largest number of victories in air battles (21) were attained by Nikolai Sutyagin, Yevgeniy Popelyaev is in 2nd place with 20 aircraft shot down. Compared to the F-86A Sabre over the period of the war with Korea the MiG-15 fighters had several advantages, for the most part due to the insufficient level of equipment fitted. Powerful artillery armament (the Sabre only had six 12.7-mm machine guns to begin with) turned out to be very effective against
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B W arp i o B o n a W rp ai t B oo ks n a W rp ai t B oo ks ar a nt k C o i s p B o n 2 ar a t k C o pa int B ok s C 2 o 0 i s B o n 1 2 ai t B o ks C 0 o nt 1 2 k 9 C o 0 s B o 1 2 t B oo ks C 01 9 2 k
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Right: Unusual camouflage on a MiG-15 belonging to the Democratic Republic of Korea’s Air Force Below right: A MiG-15bis aircraft that was ferried by a North Korean pilot to an American airfield (Gennadiy Petrov collection)
bombers, but to reliably strike targets in an air battle the pilot had to shake the aircraft using the pedals. The RD-45F engine and the VK-1 stood out in terms of their high reliability, and survivability. Even when the Sabre had several turbine blades broken there was almost no discernible loss of thrust. The air brakes on the MiG-15 owing to their small size were not very effective and were virtually unused in air combat. In addition the MiG-15 had speed limitations imposed on it, which prevented it from accelerating to more than Mach 0.92 because of the onset of involuntary banking. The poor glazing in the pilot’s cockpit was noted. According to assessments made by American pilots the MiG-15 was not such a manoeuvrable aircraft. There is an untruth however in this conclusion made by the Americans. The author therefore is forced to draw the reader’s attention to the following information. For the MiG-15 depending on take-off weight the specific wing loading varied from 239.6 to 263 kg/m2, for the ‘bis’ this value varied from 247 to 278 kg/m2, while for the F-86 the range was from 232.5 to 275 kg/m2. The reduced wing loading gave the F-86 a very insignificant advantage in a horizontal manoeuvre, in this respect MiGs and Sabres were more or less evenly matched. As far as power-to-weight ratio (the relationship between the engine’s thrust and the aircraft’s weight) was concerned the MiG-15 had a clear advantage, ensuring a higher rate of
climb. Moreover it is worth remembering that any battle in the horizontal is defensive by nature, while in the vertical it is offensive. Together with a higher roll rate the advantages in combat should have been with the MiG-15 despite the affirmations made by the US pilots, which was actually confirmed in the course of all the armed conflicts that the MiG-15 participated in. The only advantages for the F-86 were the reduced acceleration, and deceleration time in flight thanks to the Sabre using an engine that was smaller in diameter with an axial compressor, as well as a higher firing accuracy from large calibre machine guns thanks to what was an excellent sight (for its time). It is worth remembering of course the pilots’ qualifications. The Americans as a rule probably had a higher number of flying hours than other countries including the USSR, let alone the Chinese. Thus if the MiGs were flown by experienced, intuitive pilots who were capable of using its tactical flight characteristics to the full then they would present a serious threat to the enemy. From the beginning of the 1950s Above left: A MiG-15 aircraft belonging to the USSR Air Force. Judging by the position of the identifying markings this image was taken in autumn 1950 (Gennadiy Petrov collection) Left: Maintenance day on a military airfield at the end of the 1950s. A line-up of MiG-15bis aircraft fitted with 250 l drop tanks (Gennadiy Petrov collection)
Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15
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Above: A MiG-15bis of the Polish Air Force with 400 l drop tanks (Gennadiy Petrov collection) Left: A MiG-15bis of the Czechoslovak Air Force
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Czechoslovak pilots also scored several NATO aircraft on their tally. Specifically on 10 March 1951 their MiGs intercepted a pair of F-84s that had taken off from the West German airfield of Bitburg. Yaroslav Shramek, who shot down in a pair with Milan Forst a single F-84 became the heroes of the day. Later Soviet specialists flew to the F-84’s crash site to examine this veteran of US jet aviation. In Bulgaria MiG-15 pilots on the night of 27 July 1955 destroyed a Constellation, one of the largest passenger airliners of its time, belonging to the Israeli airline El Al, after they had mistaken it for an American C-121 transport aircraft. The first Arab nation to receive the S-103 (MIG-15) was Egypt, which acquired 120 Below: The cockpit interior of a Czechoslovak S102 (MiG-15) aircraft
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Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15
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B W arp i o B o n a W rp ai t B oo ks n a W rp ai t B oo ks ar a nt k C o i s p B o n 2 ar a t k C o pa int B ok s C 2 o 0 i s B o n 1 2 ai t B o ks C 0 o nt 1 2 k 9 C o 0 s B o 1 2 t B oo ks C 01 9 2 k
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This page: A MiG-15bis on show at the Czechoslovak Aviation Museum in Kbely (Yulia Slinko (Yakubovich)
aircraft in the mid-1950s from Czechoslovakia. They made their move in good time, as in autumn 1956 Anglo-FrancoIsraeli troops invaded Egypt. There were approximately 900 aircraft in their Air Force, including French Mystere IVA and Ouragan fighters. The Egyptian had just 160 aircraft of various types, of those only 69 were in a serviceable condition including approximately 30 MiG-15bis fighters. We will examine just a fragment of the battles that took place in the last few days of October. The MiG pilots first went into battle on the morning of 30 October, after intercepting a flight of English Canberra reconnaissance aircraft. Later on six MiGs attacked the Israeli 202nd Parachute Brigade’s positions. At around 0900 hrs in the morning the parachutists were attacked by a flight of Vampires and a pair of MiGs – in the end 40 parachutists were killed or wounded, and six vehicles had been destroyed together with a Cub communications aircraft. In the afternoon a pair of Meteors escorted by six MiGs again attacked the Israeli brigade. This time a group of Mysteres came to the rescue. In the ensuing battle the Egyptians lost two fighters and damaged one Mistere, but the main thing was that the pilots of the ‘fifteens’ did not let the enemy disrupt the work of the Meteors. On 31 October four Vampires again attacked the 202nd Brigade. The Mysteres that had appeared shot down three ground attack aircraft, while a fourth was saved by the MiGs that had caught up with it, and sent the Israelis packing. At around 1600 hrs six MiG-15s escorted
Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15
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B W arp i o B o n a W rp ai t B oo ks n a W rp ai t B oo ks ar a nt k C o i s p B o n 2 ar a t k C o pa int B ok s C 2 o 0 i s B o n 1 2 ai t B o ks C 0 o nt 1 2 k 9 C o 0 s B o 1 2 t B oo ks C 01 9 2 k
120 Warpaint MiG-15.qxp_Warpaint Master 18/05/2019 11:58 Page 56
Mikoyan-Gurevich
MiG-15 IN DETAIL
The aircraft’s layout: 1. Oxygen bottles 2. ASP-1N sight
3. Forward armoured glazing
4. Aerodynamic strip (wing fence) 5. Forward fuel tank 6. Hydraulic tank 7. Gearbox
8. RSI-6M radio set antenna 9. Air brake
10. Aft fuel tank
11. VK-1 jet engine
12. Pilot’s ejection seat 13. Camera
14. Ammunition box
15. NS-23KM cannon 16. N-37 cannon 17. Air ducts
18. FS-155 Landing light 19. Gun camera
20. Accumulator battery
1
The location of the gun camera in the aircraft’s nose section
2
The structural composition of the fuselage
The pressurised cockpit:
1. Aircraft’s control stick 2. Feed cock 3. Pressure control valve 4. Foot pedals 5. Pilot’s cockpit canopy lock 6. Starboard console 7. Instrument panel 8. Ejection seat guide vanes 9. Aircraft control cables 10. Cold air inlet pipes
4
5
3
5. An FS-155 landing light on early series MiG-15s was installed in the air intake splitter
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Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15
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B W arp i o B o n a W rp ai t B oo ks n a W rp ai t B oo ks ar a nt k C o i s p B o n 2 ar a t k C o pa int B ok s C 2 o 0 i s B o n 1 2 ai t B o ks C 0 o nt 1 2 k 9 C o 0 s B o 1 2 t B oo ks C 01 9 2 k
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MiG-15bis, s/n 2415217 of the 3rd Squadron, 224th Fighter Air Regiment, Tapu airfield, June 1953. The aircraft was flown by Senior Lieutenant G.N. Berelidze
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B W arp i o B o n a W rp ai t B oo ks n a W rp ai t B oo ks ar a nt k C o i s p B o n 2 ar a t k C o pa int B ok s C 2 o 0 i s B o n 1 2 ai t B o ks C 0 o nt 1 2 k 9 C o 0 s B o 1 2 t B oo ks C 01 9 2 k
120 Warpaint MiG-15.qxp_Warpaint Master 18/05/2019 11:52 Page 61
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Above: MiG-15bis Black 12 at the Auto- und Technikmuseum Sinsheim (Alf Van Beem)
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Published by Guideline Publications, 6 Kensworth Gate, 200 - 204 High Street South, Dunstable, Bedfordshire LU6 3HS. Tel: +44 (0)1582 668411. Printed in the UK. Original design by Alan W. Hall, layout by Steve Page. Edited by Gary Hatcher, translated by Kevin Bridge. Colour artwork and plans by Andrey Yurgenson. All photographs from the Author’s archives unless otherwise credited. Thanks to Gennady Sloutsky for additional photographic material.