The MiG-27 was born to ?ill the void o? attack aircra?t o? the Soviet Army a?ter World ധąɾ 2 Unlike the MiG-23, the MiG-27 did not have widespread use outside Russia, as most countries opted ?or the Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23BN and Sukhoi Su-22 instead. It remains in service only with the Kazakh Air ?orces in the ground attack role. All Russian, Indian and Ukrainian MiG-27s have been retired.
The Mig-27 is a single-seat attack aircra?t. It measures 17m in length (56 ?t 0 in), 5m in height (16 ?t 5 in), wingspan is 13.97m (45 ?t 10 in) when spread, and only 7.78m (26 ?t) when swept. Its empty weight is 11.9 tons, and maximum takeo?? weight is 20.67 tons. The Mig-27 is powered by a Tumansky R-29-B-300 a?terburning turbojet engine, with 78.5 kN dry thrust, and 112.8 kN with a?terburner. Mikoyan’s iron bird can reach a top speed o? Mach 1.7 at altitude, and Mach 1.09 at sea level, the combat range is 780 km.
The MiG-27 shares the basic air?rame o? the MiG-23, but with a revised nose – nicknamed “Utkonos” (“Platypus”) in Russian service, ?irst introduced on the MiG-23B. Dissatis?action with the MiG-23BN led to the ?urther development o? the basic air?rame to accommodate a stronger undercarriage, simpler intakes and a shorter exhaust nozzle, without radar in ?avor o? a downward-sloping pro?ile ?or improved pilot visibility, a laser range?inder and marked-target seeker.
Since the MiG-27 was intended to ?ly most o? its missions at low altitude, the MiG-23’s variable intake ramps and exhaust nozzles were discarded in ?avor o? a simpler ?ixed con?iguration, reducing weight and maintenance requirements. The aircra?t also has larger, heavy-duty landing gear to ?acilitate operation ?rom poorer-quality air?ields. In accordance with the MiG-27’s strike and low-level attack requirements, provisions were made to mount missiles and precision-guided munitions, as well as retaining a nuclear capability in line with other Soviet combat aircra?t by introducing specialized navigation systems.
In terms o? ωεɑρσռs, MiG-27 is equipped with unguided bombs, missiles, rockets, and a 30 mm Gryazev-Shipunov GSh-6-30 rotary cannon with 260 rounds, or a 23 mm Gryazev-Shipunov GSh-23 autocannon with 200 rounds. Despite the success o? the original MiG-23 interceptor model, the MiG-27 did not see similar results through overseas sales. Only some 1,075 MiG-27s made it into circulation with production running ?rom 1970 to 1986. The MiG-27 saw its ?irst combat in actions over A?ghanistan during the Soviet invasion in the 1980s. MiG-27 aircra?t entered service with the Sri Lanka Air ?orce in 2000. During the Sri Lankan Civil ധąɾ, they saw considerable action bombing targets and providing close air support.
On 27 May 1999, during the Kargil ധąɾ, one Indian MiG-27 was lost due to engine ?ailure. Since 2001, the Indian Air ?orce has lost more than 12 MiG-27s to crashes. In mid-?ebruary 2010, India grounded its entire ?leet o? over 150 o? the aircra?t a?ter a MiG-27 crashed on 16 ?ebruary 2010 in Siliguri, West Bengal. The crash was attributed to de?ects in the R-29 engines o? the aircra?t, suspected to have occurred during the overhauling o? the aircra?t by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).