Chapter 367 Upgrading the MiG-23

Now, the avionics system of the Iraqi version of the MiG-23 has also been severely reduced. It can be said that it is actually just a slight modification of the MiG-21MF. It only includes a simple beacon/instrument navigation system, a UHF radio communication system and an SRO-3IFF friend-or-foe identification system. It does not even have a radar warning device!

Therefore, when the MiG-23 was exported to Iraq, the Iraqi Air Force Air Defense Command, which was in charge of air combat, did not initially use the MiG-23MS as fighters. Instead, it sent them together with the MiG-23BN attack aircraft to the support command to perform ground support missions.

The performance of this batch of fighters was also quite poor. From April to November 1974 alone, 6 aircraft were lost: 4 were shot down by Iranian air defense missiles; 2 were caused by operational errors.

However, Iraqi pilots began to like this attack aircraft because the MiG-23's payload was very large! Moreover, Iraq did not have much choice, so the Iraqi Air Force followed up with a large order for 60 MiG-23BN attack aircraft and 10 MiG-23UB trainer aircraft. By 1976, Iraq had formed 15 "Flogger" attack aircraft squadrons.

Now, Andrei proposed to transform these MiG-23s according to the standards of the Soviet Army! On the battlefield in Hokkaido, the MiG-23 of the Soviet Air Force performed very well and was able to suppress the fighters of the US Air Force!

Hearing this, Saddam was extremely excited: "General Andrei, your proposal is great! Regardless of whether General Secretary Andropov agrees to the MiG-25 project, I hope the improvement of the MiG-23 can be carried out immediately."

"President Saddam, there is a prerequisite for improving to the same standard as the one used by the Soviet Union now, which is proper confidentiality measures!" Andre said, "We need to arrange for our personnel to supervise the squadron operating the MiG-23 fighters, such as in the form of consultants, so as to prevent Western spies from stealing secrets. This is also a last resort, please understand."

Of course, there are prerequisites for improving the aircraft to the same standard as the Soviet Union's own fighter jets. If the secrets are stolen by the West, the Soviet Air Force will be in big trouble!

Saddam frowned when he heard Andrei's words. Would it mean losing the autonomy of his own air force if he invited Soviet personnel to station in his air bases to serve as consultants?

"Of course, the army will always belong to Iraq. To be frank, if you turn to the West one day and expel our personnel, we actually have no other countermeasures. We will also take a great risk if we export our advanced fighter jets. The reason we do this is that we want to help our Arab friends. After all, there are American running dogs there. Moreover, the political situation in Iran is also quite unstable now." Andre continued.

Saddam blushed when he heard Andrei say that. "General Andrei, you are too polite. We in Iraq will never do anything treacherous! You are right. We have American lackeys in the Middle East. We strengthen our armed forces because the Western world supports these lackeys! We must be strong! I completely agree with your suggestion. Please modify our advanced fighter jets as soon as possible."

This temptation was irresistible to Saddam, who longed for power. Andre knew that the Middle East plan he proposed was about to be completed.

Iraq's performance in the Iran-Iraq War was too bad. If the Soviet Union wanted to realize its Middle East strategy, it had to strengthen Iraq! Exporting MiG-25 and improving MiG-23 were both necessary in this plan. Iraq had to be able to defeat Iran's Tomcat fighter!

As for the modification of MiG-23 with the standard of Soviet fighter planes, it doesn't matter. Replace the new radar, improve the automatic control of variable swept wings, and operate by wire, so that the MiG-23 can achieve rapid performance improvement. Among them, the most important is the radar! If in the past, the radar of MiG-23 was still advanced, but now, with the success of the Far East and the acquisition of advanced electronic technology, the Soviet Union is about to replace the flat slot radar on a large scale! Not only the new MiG-29 and the Su-27 that continue to fly, but also the early fighter planes will be modified, and MiG-23 is no exception. In this way, the things that were originally thought to be advanced are about to become outdated. Why not use them to replace Iraq and earn a lot of foreign exchange?

Among them, the more important thing is to control the Iraqi Air Force! In the name of confidentiality, insert your own personnel into the Iraqi Air Force! In the Iran-Iraq War, the Soviet command was definitely a hundred times better than Iraq itself!

Using advanced weapons to fight a war like the First World War is how later generations evaluated the Iran-Iraq War. The blood of Iraq and Iran was shed dry, and there was no winner in this war.

And now, history is about to change!

"The General Secretary agreed." At this moment, Ustinov came back with a smile on his face: "However, the General Secretary instructed us to keep it confidential and not let our enemies get our planes."

"Yes, we will keep it confidential, and we welcome your personnel to help us." Saddam said, "Marshal Ustinov, can you help us upgrade our MiG-23 to the same standard as yours?"

Ustinov was delighted. Sure enough, while he went out to smoke a cigarette, Andrei had already completed the upgrade of the MiG-23. The offer given to Iraq should be at least several hundred rubles cheaper than the brand new MiG-23, right?

"We can upgrade it to the same standard as ours, but the price will be much higher." Ustinov said, "Although our MiG-23 looks the same as the exported ones, the inside is completely changed. Our radar, fire control, and control all use the latest electronic technology, and the price is also quite expensive. Even our own Soviet aviation regiment has already scheduled the upgrade of the MiG-23 until around 1985."

"We Iraq can offer a higher price, but we hope that we will be given priority in upgrading." Saddam said, "Marshal Ustinov, you also know that the Middle East has been in turmoil recently. Iran in the east has been occupied by a group of extremists. This group of people not only wants to rule Iran, but also wants to export revolution to us. Our national strategy is very dangerous. We must strengthen our strength as soon as possible."

Ustinov nodded: "Okay, we in the Soviet Union are willing to fully support Iraq. President Saddam, I mean, we are willing to fully support Iraq to play a greater role in the Middle East."