| Hobby Master 1/72 Air Power Series HA2402 MiG-15bis, 351st Aviapolk (night fighters) Soviet Air Force, North Korea PDRK, Antung, China, 1953 |
| THESE ARE PRE-PRODUCTION PICTURES NOT THE FINISHED MODEL |
| The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 with its swept wings first achieved fame during the Korean War. When it first arrived it could out fly anything the Allies had in the sky. It wasn’ t long before the Allies developed the F-86 Sabre to counter this new fighter. There have been over 12,000 Mig-15s manufactured by the USSR with at least another 6,000 built under license by other countries. The new highly advanced Mig-17 was developed using the Mig-15 as the basis for its design. Suffering heavy daytime losses over North Korea the B-29s switched to night raids. The Soviets followed by training their Mig-15bis pilots for night-time warfare. Using ground based data and searchlights the B-29s were spotted and the Migs would intercept. Major Karelin’s 6th and final night victory with the 351st Fighter Aviation Regiment (night) based at Antung was a B-29. Karelin managed to land his Mig with 117 bullet strikes and 9 of them through the cockpit and Karelin was not hit. In February 1953 the 351st was rotated back to the Soviet Union. Specifications (MiG-15bis) Country of origin - USSR Manufacturer - Mikoyan-Gurevich Role – fighter/interceptor Crew – 1 X pilot Performance Engine - 1 X 5,952 pound thrust Klimov VK-1 turbojet Maximum Speed at Sea Level - 668mph (1,075km/hr) Ceiling - 50,855ft. (15.5km) Range - 1,156miles (1860km) Weight Empty - 8,115lbs. (3,681kg) Max Takeoff - 13,327lbs. (6,045kg) Dimensions Wing Span – 33ft. 0.75in. (10,08m) Length – 35ft. 7.5in. (10,86m) Height – 12ft. 1.75in. (3,70m) Armament 1 X 37-mm N-37 cannon 2 X 23-mm NS-23 or NR-23 cannon Up to 1,100 pounds of mixed stores on under-wing hard-points |