1/48 Eduard MiG-21MF

Gallery Article by Yoav Efrati on Jan 24 2012

 

Photos of this model may be familiar to some of the viewers of ARC. 

When Eduard announced the release of the MiG-21MF, I was contacted to assist with the colors used on the box art.

As a result, Edurd MiG-21MF box art showing a pair of Egyptian MiGs is not only pretty, it is also accurate.

For my efforts, I was rewarded with a review sample of the kit, who's build up review appeared in Scale Aircraft Modelling magazine.

Photos of the kit's build up process also appeared in the Hebrew language internet sight – www.degem.net.

 

Click on images below to see larger images

My model depicts the MiG-21MF as it appeared in the summer months of 1970 when flown in the defense of Egypt by Russian pilots.

During the War of Attrition, Russian pilots, equipped with the brand new third generation MiG-21MF, took an active part in protecting Egyptian air space from IAF F-4E's that struck deep into the Egyptian's Nile delta.

To avoid direct confrontation with the world's second largest "cold war" super power, the government of Israel ordered the IAF to avoid combat with the Russians.

Seeing this as a sign of weakness, Russian pilots of the 35th and 135th regiments intercepted and chased IAF aircraft into Israeli air space.

On July 25th, 1970, the Russian boldness resulted in an attempted shoot down of a Flying Tiger A-4H. 

The Skyhawk was struck by an Atoll 2 air to air missile that forced its pilot to make an emergency landing at Rafia air base in the Sinai.

The following day, Russian flown MiG-21MF's tailed a pair of IAF Mirage jets on their way to land at Rafiah air base in the Sinai.

Israel could no longer avoid direct confrontation and a trap was laid for the Russians.

On July 30th, 1970, a pair of IAF recon Mirages made a high altitude recon run over the Egyptian Delta.

As two pairs of Russian MiGs reached 26,000 feet, the Bat squadron Mirage pair turned into the MiGs in a finger four head on pass, yes there were four Mirage IIIC jets at high altitude, not two as seen on Egyptian radar screens on the ground.

Within seconds, the first MiG was downed by an AIM-9D launched from Mirage 778. 

As a second formation of four MIGs made their way into the scene, two F-4E's of the Hammer squadron came up from below.

The Russian pilots were sandwiched between Mirage jets from above and Phantoms from below. 

Within two minutes, 5 of the brand new MiG-21MFs were downed.

Soon after the event, it became known to the IAF that the Egyptian pilots were as happy as the Israeli pilots with the result of the air combat with the Russians.

For the duration of the Russian intervention in the War of Attrition, the Egyptian pilots were ostracized for being poor pilots. 

After the "Texas" show down over the Nile Delta, Anwar Sadat told the Russians to leave Egyptian soil.

The responsibility for the defense of Egypt was returned to the pilots of the Egyptian Air Force, who prepared for the 1973 Yom Kippur War.

Yoav Efrati

      

Photos and text © by Yoav Efrati