picture 170216

Soviet tactical combat aircraft of the 1960s wore no camouflage patterns. Instead, all were painted in the factory in two layers of clear lacquer, mixed with 5% and 10% aluminium powder, respectively. This resulted in the colour colloquially known as ‘silver grey’. MiG-17F and Su-7B fighter-bombers, MiG-21 interceptors and Yak-28s deployed during Operation Danube also received two red identification stripes around their booms. The example shown here was a MiG-21PF deployed to one of the air bases in Czechoslovakia from August until November 1968. It is illustrated as armed with R-3S (ASCC/NATO-codenamed ‘AA-2 Atoll’) infra-red homing air-to-air missiles. (Artwork by Tom Cooper)