" Is that an answer? Probably not. But it all comes Down to the fact that there are so many scenarios. "
just some spice
Steve Davies - Red Eagles: America's Secret MIGs
page 289. >
" The MiG-21's slow speed capability was incredible, but not as good as that of the F/A-18...."
" Phelan explained what "treeing" someone meant:
You treed someone by getting them to run out of airspeed so that they could no longer pull a loop. If they tried to, you knew they would fall off to either side, or they would bob their noses up and down. The Soviets had a terrific airplane in the MiG-21. Hands down, I could kill anyone other than an F-16 or an F/A-18 in that airplane. The F-16 could fly over the top of me and get in behind and the F/A-18 had even better low-speed handling. As for the others, I would do the tree. Taking the F-14 as an example, I would try and get them to go vertical a couple of times and then park right behind them. "
page 295. >
" I had just treed this F-15 and am pulling up right behind this guy with less than 100 knots of airspeed. All of a sudden, this huge F-15 just starts falling back down towards me, out of control. He had completely run out of airspeed. "
" back on the ground the Eagle pilot told to Phelan: I got lost in myself. For a minute I thought I was fighting a real MiG."
" Even the mighty F-15 Eagle had no solution in dogfight below 150-250 knots against
MiG-21 in US Aggressor hands. At the beginning of dogfight, at the speed of 400-500
knots MiG-21 will turn at max g loosing 70 knots per second, ending at the speed of 70
knots in less than 90º of turn (deceleration of 3.5 g, more intensive than Harrier’s VIFF
turn). Reportedly, no other aircraft can do that. This way MiG will remain behind every
opponent still having sufficient controllability for gun tracking using rudder rolls.
Opponents would think that at this speed MiG-21 can only bring down the nose and dive, but
the MiG at less than 100 knots has sufficient pitch authority to raise the nose at enemy. If
F-15 tries to follow, ’21 should execute 'barrel-roll ' to remain behind the Eagle.
It is obvious that MiG-21 'Aggressor' pilots pulled full aft stick in turn regardless of the
lateral oscillations, roll-off and temporary loss of control. "