The Mikoyan MiG-17 was built by Mikoyan-Gurevich as a high-subsonic fighter aircraft in the Soviet Union. It was introduced in October 1952 and it has been in service with different air forces around the world. It came after the MiG-15 used during the Korean War.
In 1949, the Mikoyan-Gurevich design bureau had started to develop the replacement for the MiG-15 to address the issues discovered with the aircraft while in combat. The resulting aircraft was the MiG-17 and among the most outstanding transonic fighters established prior to the arrival of the supersonic era like the MiG-19 and the F-100 Super Sabre of the United States.
The MiG-17 was equipped to be operated at higher speeds. It had a completely new slimmer and highly swept wing with a 45-degree angle, and tailplane used for speeds reaching Mach 1. The harder wing held out against the likelihood to bend its wingtips and drop aerodynamic symmetry unpredictably during high speeds and wing loads.
The MiG-17F is a single-crew fighter with an external length of 11.26 meters, an external height of 2.3 meters, a tail height of 3.8 meters, and a fuselage diameter of 1.4 meters. It has a wheelbase of 3.37 meters, a wingspan of 9.63 meters, and a wing area of 22.6 square meters. It has an empty weight of 3,919 kg, a gross weight of 5,340 kg, and a maximum takeoff weight of 6,069 kg.
A single Klimov VK-1F afterburning centrifugal-flow turbojet engine powered the MiG17F. It produces a maximum dry thrust of 6,000 lbf and an afterburning thrust of 7,600 lbf. The aircraft has a maximum speed of 590 knots at sea level and 618 knots at 9,800 feet. The range is 1,090 nautical miles at 39,000 feet with 110 US Gal drop tanks. It can fly up to 54,500 feet and can climb at a rate of 12,800 feet per minute.
It is loaded with 2×23 mm Nudelman-Rikhter NR-23 autocannons with 89 rounds per gun, 1×37 mm Nudelman N-37 autocannon with 40 rounds, two pylons with a capacity of up to 500 kg of stores with provisions to carry combinations of two UB-16-57 rocket pods for S-5 rockets and 2×250 kg of bombs. Some variants are loaded with three NR-23 autocannons and two K-5 air-to-air missiles.
Want More of This?
We'll send you our latest and best content straight to your inbox