MiG-17F - Syria - 1973
This is how the vast majority of SyAAF MiG-17s were painted at that time: orange sand and blue-green on the top surfaces. The blue-green appears to be darker here due to the photograph quality and exposure.
Note the new Syrian post-1972 insignia common with Egypt: no green stars on the roundels and the golden Eagle of Salahadin on the fin flash (barely to be seen here, only a small yellowish mark) . By 1973, not all SyAAF combat aircraft were repainted, with a few Syrian MiG-17s still wearing the old insignia with the three green stars and the older camouflage with olive drab (applied since after June 1967) instead of the blue-green stripes.
It's interesting to note how beautiful and clean these aircraft are looking in the color profiles of publications when compared to the worn-out and negligent look of the real machines.
The pilot appears to be Riyadh Ali Hmesheh who was later lost during air combat over Lebanon in 1982.
The very short movie, of no exceptional video quality (due to the aged magnetic band) can be found here:
Youtube Video
The first layer of paint is of orange-sand, which is a self made mix.
No pre-shading so far.
Later edit: the "blue-green" should have been more blueish.
So far I applied only the insignia. For clarity once more, Syria and Egypt shared the exact same insignia and flags between 1972 and 1980.
The decals for the large serial numbers are next. No further stencils are known to have existed on these repainted MiG-17s in SyAAF service.
A Syrian MiG-17 as seen during the October 1973 War.
Note the unusual loading, with four 4xFAB-100 bombs, with two improvised bomb racks under the fuselage.
Also to be noted, that the Syrian flag and SyAAF insignia were identical to the Egyptian ones between 1972 and 1979.
The Airfix kit includes a rather chunky overall detailing of the landing gear system (uncluding doors), with very thick parts and unclear details, but it's still usable and okish.
Comments
Łukasz GlińskiOutstanding finish mate 👍 Love the colours and the subtle shading you've got there
ClementGreat work on this little Fresco! I need to get one of these in the near future 🙂
MariusThank you all for the kind words, I am glad you like it.
Clement: be aware, the Airfix kit has plenty of issues. Otherwise, the MiG-17 from AZ Models is a short run and requires overall even more work.
ClementI had an AZ model Mig-17 in my stash but the fit and casting quality was so poor that I turned it into a paint mule. Hopefully, Eduard will one day give the Mig-17 the love it deserves 🙂
Album info
The MiG-17s entered the service of the SyAAF only shortly after the Suez War (November 1956), where Syria was not a direct participant. A previous article (MiG-17F - Syria - 1967 | Album by Redicus (1:72)) details the early service of MiG-17 in thr SyAAF until the Six Day War (June 1967). As mentioned there, Syria operated only the MiG-17F, while the MiG-17PF version, although indeed ordered by Syria from the USSRS, was operated only in the times of the UAR (United Arab Republic) by a common unit comprised of both Syrian and Egyptian pilots. After the dissolution of the UAR in 1961, the MiG-17PFs never actually returned to Syria.
Before the Six Day War (June 1967), the SyAAF is estimated to have had approximately 40 MiG-17Fs in service. While the losses during the Six Day War certainly reduced this number greatly, further airframes supplied after the war almost doubled the pre-1967 fleet. Almost immediately after the Six Day War, all Syrian combat aircraft received camouflage painting standardized as orange-sand background with stripes or areas of olive-drab (such as MiG-21PFM - Syria - 1973 | Album by Redicus (1:72)) and replaced a few years later by the known blue-green used until nowadays (such as MiG-21MF - Syria - 1982 | Album by Redicus (1:72)).
It is estimated that Syria had approximately 80 MiG-17s by October 1973. By then, most MiG-17s were repainted with the blue-green shade and received the new national insignia (post-1972, common with Egypt) with the golden eagle of Salahadin on the fin flash and no green stars on the roundels. This usually happened after overhaul at "The Factory" in Aleppo, the main maintainance center of the SyAAF. Nevertheless, several MiG-17s and MiG-21s still had the old insignia of 1961-1972 with three green stars (red strip instead of green on roundels and fin flash) and the older camouflage pattern with the olive drab by the start of the October 1973 War.
The MiG-17s were the most numerous fighter-bombers in the service of the SyAAF in the autumn of 1973, to which additional 15 Su-20s and at least 20 more Su-7s were also used for ground attack. Last minute deliveries in late September 1973 might have increased the total number of operational Su-7s, but the numbers are not certain. When compared to the enemy CAS capabilities, the MiG-17F was a mere diminutive. A single Israeli F-4E could carry approximately 3000kg of bombs, to which additional air-to-air missiles (2xAIM-9Ds and 3xAIM-7Es) and an ECM pod could be carried. In comparison, the MiG-17 could carry only two 250kg bombs and eight unguided rockets, totalling a maximum warload of 800kg. Similar to the Egyptian MiG-17s, also some Syrian MiG-17s received the two additional fuselage hardpoints for bombs. A total of 4xFAB-100M could be carried with these hardpoints and under the wings, but the external tanks had to be left out. Additionally, the MiG-17s were far slower and lacked radar or even radar warning receivers, making them very vulnerable.
On the 6th of October 1973, close to the entire SyAAF was involved in the first strike against Israeli forces from the Golan Heights, as "Operation Badhr" commenced. The entire operational MiG-17F and Su-7BMK fleet escorted by MiG-21s flew numerous sorties against ground targets from the Goland Heigths and even further, with the loss of only one fighter-bomber (according to Syrian and some Israeli sources).
During the first days of the October 1973 War, the Arab MiG-17s did fulflill their missions with more or less accuracy, but during the second part of the conflict it became clear they were obsolete machines and too few in numbers to play any crucial role. As losses started mounting, emergency deliveries from various Warsaw Pact countries replenished in the second half of October 1973 some of the MiG losses, while hostilities were still ongoing. Freshly delivered machines such as MiG-17Fs and MiG-21F-13s were hastily repainted and rushed into battle.
Some supposedly official Syrian figures released in the USSR in the 1980s and 1990s are reporting for the October 1973 War a total of at least 95 aerial victories (out of which 7 by MiG-17s) of the SyAAF during air combat against the IDF in October 1973, although Israeli sources are giving a different picture admitting far less losses.
The MiG-17F with the serial number 1029 depicted in this album is certainly a participant and survivor of the October 1973 War. A color profile of this aircraft is found at page 236 of the "Arab MiGs, Volume 5" (by T. Cooper, D. Nicolle), where very large serial numbers are seen on the nose. A Syrian propaganda movie made at some point between 1973-1979 depicts this exact machine firing it's guns during an excercise, from which some stills are saved in this album.
The MiG-17s were retired from SyAAF service in the early 1980s, when all machines were put in storage at Ksheesh air base. Some of these airframes could still be sighted there in 2013-2014.
References:
T. Copper, D. Nicolle, et al., "Arab MiGs Volume 1", Harpia Publishing
T. Copper, D. Nicolle, et al., "Arab MiGs Volume 2", Harpia Publishing
T. Copper, D. Nicolle, et al., "Arab MiGs Volume 3", Harpia Publishing
T. Copper, D. Nicolle, et al., "Arab MiGs Volume 5", Harpia Publishing
T. Copper, D. Nicolle, et al., "Arab MiGs Volume 6", Harpia Publishing
T. Copper, D. Nicolle, "MiGs in the Middle East, Volume 2", Helion and Company
B. Norton, "75 Years of the Israeli Air Force, Volume 1", Helion and Company
R. Weiss, "The Israeli AF in the Yom Kippur War", IsraDecal Publications
