MiG-29 Fulcrum fires
The Romanian MiG-29 Fulcrums stationed at Mihail Kogălniceanu AFB, 25km of Constanta, fired A/A missiles for the first time since they entered in active service with the Romanian Armed Forces !
Romania signed a contract with the USSR in 1989 to pursue the buying of 21 MiG-29 Fulcrum fighter aircraft, in majority MiG-29A single seater interceptors but also some MiG-29UB Fulcrum two-seater trainers. The contract begun at the end of 1989 and the delivery was between 1989 and 1990. The Revolution came in the mean time (22nd of december 1989) and the regime that ordered these once top secret fighters from the Soviet Union was now gone. However the new regime wanted them too and adopted them very quickly. They have all entered service at the Mihail Kogălniceanu AFB, 25km N-E of the harbor city of Constanta. Mihail Kogălniceanu AFB was a part of the 57th Fighter Regiment, nowadays re-named the 57th Fighter Group. The 57th Fighter Regiment was always an elite unit of the Romanian Air Force, and they always had the newest aircraft. That's why they are flying the top fighter of Romania today, the MiG-29, which will also be updated soon to meet the standard of the most advanced MiG-21 version in the world today, the MiG-21 Lancer, also in service only in Romania.
It's an interesting fact that since they have entered service, the MiG29s were never used in combat and have never been used in live-fire exercises. This is the first time when romanian MiG29s fired live and real air to air missiles.
Keep on the cool job, dudes
august 1999
hits for this news page alone