MiG-17F

The Russian MiG-17 was an improved version of the MiG-15. It first flew in January 1951, entered production later that year, and did not see combat during the Korean War. It became the standard subsonic fighter for Warsaw Pact nations. In 1955, Poland bought a license to manufacture the Soviet MiG-17, and the licensed aircraft was designated the Lim-5. The first Lim-5 was built at WSK-Mielec on November 28, 1956, replacing production of the Lim-2 (MiG-15bis). By the end of production in 1960, 477 Lim-5s had been built, including the Lim-5R reconnaissance variant equipped with an AFA-39 camera. The MiG-17 was designed to intercept straight and level flying enemy bombers rather than engage in air-to-air combat with other fighters. This subsonic fighter was effective against slower, heavily loaded U.S. fighter-bombers still powered by piston engines, but the introduction of strategic bombers capable of supersonic dash speeds, such as the Convair B-58 Hustler and General Dynamics FB-111, rendered it obsolete in front-line service. The MiG-17 saw extensive service with the North Vietnamese Air Force and was also bought by many other countries, mainly in Africa and Asia, that were neutrally aligned or allied with the USSR. It still flies in the air forces of Democratic Republic of the Congo, Guinea, Mali, Madagascar, Sudan, and Tanzania, and through the Shenyang J-5 in North Korea. The MiG-17 was the first Soviet fighter application of an afterburner, which increased thrust on demand by dumping fuel into the exhaust of the basic engine. It had a crew of one pilot and measured 37 feet 3 inches in length, with a wingspan of 31 feet 7 inches and a height of 12 feet 5 inches. Its empty weight was 9,396 pounds, its maximum takeoff weight was 14,634 pounds, its maximum speed was 710 miles per hour, its range was 666 miles without an additional tank, its service ceiling was 54,000 feet with afterburner, and its armament was one 37 millimeter N-37D cannon and two 23 millimeter NR-23 cannon.

Vincennes, Indiana · United States