Warbird Information Exchange

Pics of US only Flying Mig 23?... or Flying Flogger Fotos
I believe yesterday was it's first ever demo flight.
Held at Del. ANG 60th Anniversary in New Castle.
Swept wing with speeds to Mach 2.35
fast, but took about 10 miles to turn
and deployed a chute to help brake on landing.
The whole place really shook on takeoff.

Bill

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Bill


Website

Wow!

Very, very nice. I had no idea there was a MiG-23 flying over here. Any more details about it?

Great photos Bill, thanks for posting.

WLS3 was standing about 3 ft from me, so most of my shots are nearly identical to his. Here are a couple that offer a little different view.

Close Taxi



Delta Wing in Flight



My impression is the Mig 23 is very fast but not very maneuverable. After the flight, the pilot was telling some nearby fans that it "takes 40 acres to turn the thing".

Thats some goofy MLG too! Look at them doors!

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"Hindsight is usually 20% off!"

Wow! Think of that flying with a MiG-15, -17, and -21!! Or possibly with an F-4?

Fox three......Fox two.....kill MiG.



With the wings swept back, there's nobody this side of the F-111 that can catch him. As for his turn rate...welll.....

Anybody know what kind of avionics he's got in that thing? Do any of the military toys (radar, etc) work?

Jeff and Bill, nice work. Must have been very exciting to see.

Eric

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The air resounds from the Rolls-Royce roar!
To an enemy the warning is dire: here only eagles soar,
and the last thing he'll see is a mirrored Spitfire!

is it privately owned?? or owned by a foundation such as collings?? either way deep pockets are a necessity in operating the russian birdski!!!

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tom d. friedman - hey!!! those fokkers were messerschmitts!! * without ammunition, the usaf would be just another flying club!!! * better to have piece of mind than piece of tail!!

The owner of the MiG-23 is Joe Gano. He owns two MiG-23's, two MiG-21's, and a Delfin trainer. All five came from the Czech AF. They are based at New Castle County Airport (ILG) near Wilmington, DE, which is also the DE ANG base (they are a C-130 unit). I shot photos of three of the four jets a couple years ago at his hangar and had them published in Air Classics.

Cheers!

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Dean Hemphill, K5DH
Port Charlotte, Florida

Is this the only swing wing ( sorry I can't spell variable geometry ) ex military jet currently flying with a civilian operator ?

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Blue Skies .....

Peter

Consolidated by US state ~ see if there's a heavy bomber tour stop coming to an airport near you ...... http://www.bomberflight.info

Warbirdapps on facebook ~ every day a new image from my personal journey thru the world of warbirds ..... https://www.facebook.com/Warbirdapps

The maintenance costs on a variable wing jet must be pretty high.

I went to this show to see the F-22 demo. After it flew over the USAF
dedication ceremony in Washington DC the F-22, B-2, and B-17
Yankee Lady flew north to Deleware.

The MIG-23 was a big surprise. I'm glad Jeff was able to get the photo
of it with the wings swept back to show a different view. The heat this
thing put off was amazing also. Here is another shot of the MIG-23 and
one of the F-22.

Bill




Few other pics from the day HERE

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Bill


Website

Wow, some great shots. That had to be a very cool surprise to see!

Tim

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www.tailhookstudio.com

That shot of the F-22 is beautiful! It might be one of the best ones I've ever seen.

This Mig 23 is for sale for $750,000. Bill Ausdtin has had it on his website for a couple of weeks at www.billaustinaircraft-yacht.com and he will take just about anything in on trade.
Can't remember any other swing wing aircraft on the civil registry unless you count Mignet's Flying Flea!
The U.S. military operated a squadron of Mig-23's in the 1980's. I think they got them through the Egyptian govt. and they were seen out west in the Nevada area.Initially they were evaluated by the Navy and Air Force, and I heard they did a few mock sorties against some american counterparts. It had an F designation. Lets see, the F-20 was made by Northrop, it might have been the F-21, does any one know?