The Legendary MiG-17 Fighter: A Nightmare for American Forces – Uncovering the Impact of the Soviet Plane on Cold War Battles

The MiG-17 Fighter: A Nightmare for American Forces

The National Interest newspaper spoke about a Soviet plane that represented a “nightmare” for American forces in many of the battles they fought during the “Cold War.”

Development of the MiG-17 Fighter

According to the newspaper, since the late 1940s, Soviet engineers began developing a new fighter to replace the MiG-15 fighter. They wanted the new fighter to be practical, agile, and capable of flying at speeds exceeding Mach 0.92, so they developed the MiG-17 fighter, which proved its effectiveness in many battles. North Vietnamese forces used it to launch effective attacks on American forces during the Vietnam War.

Features of the MiG-17

Although it was similar in shape to the MiG-15, the MiG-17 was longer and better in design. According to the magazine, it proved to be an effective fighter in the skies of Vietnam. The MiG-17 had a 37 mm automatic machine gun and two 23 mm machine guns. It was able to carry bombs weighing up to 250 kg and carry unguided missile launchers. It could also be provided with additional fuel tanks to increase its range.

Global Impact

The National Interest pointed out that the MiG-17, in addition to its participation in the Vietnam War, was used by almost all Warsaw Pact countries, and was used in China, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Morocco, Cuba, Cambodia and other air forces around the world until the second half of the twentieth century, and even today this plane flies in the skies of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan, North Korea, Madagascar, Guinea and Mali.

Advantages of the MiG-17

For his part, Soviet aviation expert Ilya Greenberg said that the MiG-17 fighter had important advantages, including its small size, which made it difficult to be detected by radars at the time, as well as its ability to take off from almost all types of runways. North Vietnamese pilots highly appreciated this aircraft, the simplicity of its design and the effectiveness of its weapons.

Source: Russia Weapons

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