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 an Iraqi MiG-29A 'Fulcrum' multirole fighter from the Iraqi 6th Squadron that was later commandeered and employed in the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force after it was forced to flee Iraq as a result of Operation Desert Storm. Sold Out!

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

Release Date: July 2021

Historical Account: "Black Ramadan" - At least 60 of Iraq's best fighter jets streaked to safety in neighboring Iran following the Coalition's attack to liberate Kuwait from Iragi occupation in 1991. At the time, it was believed that this was a part of President Saddam Hussein's war strategy. Pentagon officials confirmed that more than 80, and possibly more than 100, top-of-the-line Iraqi fighters and transport planes were granted sanctuary in Iran.

Iran, which claimed neutrality in the war, said it would impound the warplanes until the conflict ended. But skeptical U.S. officials believed that the jets may only be sheltered temporarily and would then re-enter the fighting later, perhaps after an allied ground offensive begins.

"Many former Iraqi fighter pilots who flew sorties against Iran during the Iran-Iraq war were on Iran's hit list according to a December 14th, 2009, confidential U.S. cable.

The systematic elimination of Iraqi air force pilots by Iran was a little noticed vendetta amid the crossfire of ethnic fighting and urban combat that convulsed Iraq in the years after the U.S. invasion toppled Saddam Hussein's regime.

Iran used the chaos in the aftermath of the invasion to settle scores from the Iran-Iraq war, an eight-year slug fest from 1980 to 1988 in which an estimated 500,000 Iranians and Iraqis died. The war was largely a bloody standoff that resembled World War I at times with trench warfare, poison gas, human wave and bayonet attacks.

Iran, however, has taken a special vengeance on the pilots of the Iraqi air force and the lawlessness that followed the collapse of Saddam's regime gave Iran its opportunity.

In addition to the 182 pilots who have been hunted down and killed by Iranian agents, the assassination campaign prompted another 800 Iraqi pilots to flee the country, according to statistics released by the Iraqi Defense Ministry.

The targeting of air force pilots began in Baghdad's largely Shiite neighborhood of Karradah and reached its peak in the holy month of Ramadan in 2005 when 36 pilots were gunned down in that neighborhood.

Residents of Karradah refer to that killing season as the Black Ramadan.