F-15C Eagle vs MiG-23/25: Iraq 1991

Osprey Duel #72

by Douglas C. Dildy

Designed following the relatively poor performance of America's multi-role fighters during the Vietnam War, the F-15 Eagle was conceived as a dedicated air superiority fighter. But, having trained for 15 years in the Eagle it wasn't Eastern Bloc operated MiGs that the F-15 eventually came up against, but pilots of Saddam Hussein's Iraqi airforce.
This book analyses the combat between the American and Soviet 'Cold War fighters' in a balanced manner, examining how the technical abilities of the aircraft combined with the different levels of training available to opposing pilots and groundcrews allowed the F-15s to destroy the Iraqi offensive abilities within weeks of the First Gulf War starting. Packed with artwork, illustrations and photographs, this book places the reader in the cockpit during one of the last major dogfighting air wars in modern history.

Genres: Nonfiction

133 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 19, 2016

About the author

Douglas C. Dildy is a US Air Force Academy graduate and retired US Air Force colonel with a degree in history. He attended the US Armed Forces Staff College and USAF Air War College and holds a Master's Degree in Political Science.

Reviews

[James Crabtree · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book in the Osprey Duel series looks at the MiG-23 and MiG-25 in combat against the F-15C during Operation Desert Storm. For a small volume it does an excellent job in discussing the development of all three aircraft and their subsequent fielding by the U.S. Air Force (F-15C) and the Iraqi Air Force MiG-23/25).

At first I thought it was odd to lump the MiGs together as each is a completely different aircraft design, each bearing unique characteristics. I was unaware that there were interceptor tactics which relied upon both aircraft working in tandem in order to defeat (under ideal conditions) the F-15. The writing does a good job of making the reader almost feel as if he's in the cockpit with the pilot and the photos and artwork definitely make it feel real. I was hoping, however, that there might at least be a mention of the MiG-25 recon, or spoofing, flights during Operation Desert Shield since this practice also showed the mettle of the Iraqi pilots who flew the Foxbats. Definitely learned a lot, though.

[Norbert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really interesting, with analisys of the performance of aircrafts (Mig-23, MiG25 and F-15) and missiles.
And with a description of an F-18 "kill" by a Mig-25