Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15bis 'Fagot' | Planes of Fame Air Museum

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Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15bis 'Fagot'

HISTORY

The prototype of the MiG-15 (NATO code name "Fagot") made its maiden flight on 30 December 1947. The first production aircraft flew exactly one year later.
It was in the frozen skies of Korea that the MiG-15 proved one of the most formidable fighters of its generation. On 8 November 1950, MiGs tangled with USAF F-80Cs. Lt. Russell Brown downed one of the communist fighters in history's first jet-to-jet dogfight. Despite this initial success, the performance of the swept-wing MiG was far superior to that of straight-wing aircraft like the F-80 and the Navy's F9F Panther. The 4th F.I.W. with its F-86A Sabres was rushed to the Far East, clashing with MiGs for the first time in December.
For the next two and a half years Sabres and MiGs (frequently flown by Soviet and other Eastern Bloc pilots) dueled in the skies over the Yalu River in an area called "MiG Alley." At the end of the Korean War, Sabre pilots claimed a 14:1 (later revised to 7:1) kill ratio over their opponents. This lopsided total is usually attributed to the superior training given to USAF pilots.
The West got its first close-up look at a Mig-15 in September 1953 when a North Korean pilot defected. MiG 15s served with virtually every air force in the communist bloc, including those of Soviet client states in Latin America, Africa and the Middle East. Some soldiered on into the 1970s. Over 17,000 aircraft were built in the USSR, Poland and Czechoslovakia. Thousands more were built in China.

The Museum’s aircraft is an early model MiG-15bis. All parts (including engine) were manufactured at State Aircraft Factory 1 at Frunze airfield (Moscow) in the Soviet Union and delivered in 1951. The parts were shipped to the People’s Republic of China for final assembly at their Shenyang facility. While serving with the People’s Liberation Army Air Force (as a J-2), several modifications were made to the aircraft. It may have participated in the Korean Conflict. It was exported to the United States in the 1980’s and was acquired by the Friedkin family. They generously donated it to the Museum. It’s one of only a few remaining MiG-15 aircraft that actively flies. The Museum owns three MiG-15s, one airworthy and two on static display.