MiG-17

The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17 (NATO code name: Fresco) was a Russian fighter-bomber and the replacement for the MiG-15. Russian designers began work on it in 1949; the prototype flew in 1950 and it went into general service in 1951.

Design

The MiG-17 has a blunt nose, bubble canopy, and a short, cigar-shaped fuselage. The single exhaust is overhung by a fin. The swept wings have thick wing roots and blunt tips. Most versions of the Fresco were armed with two 23 mm and one 37 cannon, the same armament as the MiG-15.

Service

Although it went into service in 1951, very few fought in the Korean War. The latest version of the aircraft was armed with four AA-1 missiles and, although nearly obsolete, served notably in the Vietnam War. Eventually, the aircraft served with over 20 countries worldwide, including North Vietnam, Afghanistan, North Korea, Sri Lanka, Cuba, Indonesia, and Cambodia, besides the Soviet Union. China received a license to build MiG-17s under the name of J-5.

Middle East

In the Six Day War, most of the Arab combatants’ aircraft were destroyed on the ground by the initial Israeli airstrikes of June 6. Syrian Frescoes did manage an offensive mission in the late morning of that day, while the IAF was still occupied with destroying the Egyptian airfields. Twelve MiG-17s, with an escort of MiG-19s and MiG-21s, attacked the oil refinery at Haifa. Damage was light however, and two Frescoes were downed by anti-aircraft fire. Syria’s and Egypt’s remaining MiG-17s flew combat air patrols, performed hit and run raids on Israeli forces, and even shot down a couple of Israeli fighters, but were by and large outclassed in air combat.

Egypt and Syria replaced their losses quickly after the war ended, and Egyptian Frescoes were active in the War of Attrition, carrying out several moderately successful strikes.

Although well into obsolescence by 1973, MiG-17s also saw heavy action in the Yom Kippur War. On the first day, Frescoes were used in airstrikes against Israeli targets, including air fields. One Egyptian force of 28 planes, bomb-carrying Frescoes and escorting MiG-21s, attacked Ophir Airbase in the Sinai, and were intercepted by two Phantoms. In what was probably the first air combat of the war, the Israeli planes downed six MiG-17s, but the remaining attackers hit the base, damaging the runway. Frescoes also served in the close-support role, their heavy armament proving effective against Israeli armored vehicles. Although relatively slow, the MiG’s robustness gave it an advantage in that type of combat environment.

Nigeria

After the region of Biafra broke away from Nigeria in 1967, the Nigerian Air Force acquired MiG-17s, its first modern fighters, from the Soviet Union. A strike by Biafran bombers destroyed some of them on the ground, but they became operational and flew their first combat sorties on August 30. The new fighters later supported a government offensive that captured Biafran airfields, and soon the NAF had air superiority.

Some of the Frescoes were flown by British mercenaries, one of whom downed a Red Cross DC-7 transport delivering aid to the Biafrans in June of 1969.

China-Taiwan

Along with MiG-15s, Chinese MiG-17s took part in several conflicts over the Taiwan Strait. The Frescoes first saw action against the Nationalists, which flew F-84 Thunderjets and F-86 Sabres, during the Quemoy Crisis in 1958. The conflict also marked the first appearance of the Chinese-built J-5. The appearance of MiG-17s in Chinese hands came as a surprise to both the Nationalists and the Americans, and prompted the United States to ship several AIM-9 Sidewinder air-to-air missiles, which had only recently become operational in American units, and the missile saw combat for the first time in Nationalist service.

In spite of several victory claims, there’s no evidence that any Sabers were shot down by the MiGs, although one Saber was lost in a collision (a “Fox four”) with a MiG-17 that also went down. Frescoes did manage to shoot down three Thunderjets. Nationalist Sabre pilots are credited with downing 25 MiG-17s (ironically, no Frescoes fell to Sidewinders).