The Mikoyan MiG-29 (NATO reporting name: Fulcrum) is a twin-engine jet fighter aircraft designed in the Soviet Union. Developed by the Mikoyan design bureau as an air superiority fighter during the 1970s, the MiG-29, along with the larger Sukhoi Su-27, was developed to counter new U.S. fighters such as the McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle and the General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon. The MiG-29 entered service with the Soviet Air Forces in 1982.

While originally oriented towards combat against any enemy aircraft, many MiG-29s have been furnished as multirole fighters capable of performing a number of different operations, and are commonly outfitted to use a range of air-to-surface armaments and precision munitions. The MiG-29 has been manufactured in several major variants, including the multirole Mikoyan MiG-29M and the navalized Mikoyan MiG-29K; the most advanced member of the family to date is the Mikoyan MiG-35. Later models frequently feature improved engines, glass cockpits with HOTAS-compatible flight controls, modern radar and infrared search and track (IRST) sensors, and considerably increased fuel capacity; some aircraft have also been equipped for aerial refueling.

Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the militaries of a number of former Soviet republics have continued to operate the MiG-29, the largest of which is the Russian Air Force. The Russian Air Force wanted to upgrade its existing fleet to the modernized MiG-29SMT configuration, but financial difficulties have limited deliveries. The MiG-29 has also been a popular export aircraft; more than 30 nations either operate or have operated the aircraft to date. As of 2013 the MiG-29 was still in production by Mikoyan, a subsidiary of United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) since 2006.

Pictured here is a 1:72 scale replica of a Ukrainian MiG-29UB 'Fulcrum-B' multi-role fighter then deployed to Vasylkiv Airbase, Ukraine, during 2021. Pre-order! Ship Date: June 2024

Dimensions:
Wingspan: 9-1/2-inches
Length: 13-3/4-inches

Release Date: ?

Historical Account: "Hero of the Russian Federation" - Sulom-Bek Susarkulovich Oskanov (January 8th, 1943 - February 7th, 1992) was an Ingush pilot and Major-General in the Soviet and later Russian Air Forces who headed the Lipetsk Center of Combat Training. After his death in a plane crash in which he chose not to eject from the plane which would save himself in order to prevent casualties on the ground, he was posthumously awarded the title Hero of the Russian Federation; he was the second person awarded the title after cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev and the first posthumous recipient of the award.

Oskanov entered the Soviet military in 1961. In 1966 he graduated with honors from the Kacha Higher Military Aviation School of Pilots and was assigned to work as a flight instructor with the rank of Lieutenant. Three years later he was made the deputy commander of a flight training squadron. He then served in Germany and before being appointed as deputy commander of a center of military education in Lipetsk in 1987 while he was a colonel. On 6 May 1989 he was promoted to the rank of Major-General of Aviation, and later that year he became the commander of the training center. In 1990 he defended his thesis and became a Candidate of Military Sciences. The next year, he graduated from the Military Academy of the General Staff.

Oskanov had met with Dzhokhar Dudayev and was friends with Ruslan Aushev.