The MiG-23UB crew were shocked to sense a detonation on the underside or below their aircraft. A fire broke out. A…
Libyan Arab Air Force
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Cold War EraLosses and Aviation SafetyMilitary Aviation
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Cold War EraF-14 TomcatMilitary Aviation
Engaging MiG-23 Fighters and Buzzing Helicopters: Unknown Tomcat Stories Told by a Retired Vice Admiral who flew the Mighty F-14 Over the Gulf of Sidra
“I am pretty sure that was a frightful sight for those in the Mi-2 helicopter to see two Tomcats with wings…
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Aviation HistoryCold War EraMilitary Aviation
The Myth of Soviet Arms and Tactics in the Middle East, Part Three: Single-Engined F-14s and the Iran-Iraq War
by Tom CooperThe huge 1974 arms deal between Tripoli and Moscow resulted in several – outright ‘nightmarish’ – experiences with Soviet arms. ‘Worst…
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Cold War EraF-14 TomcatMilitary Aviation
When the Foxbat Feared the Bones: VF-84 F-14s Vs Libyan MiG-25s
by Dario LeoneShortly after two Libyan Su-22s were shot down by a section of F-14s led by CO of VF-41 Black Aces, Ed…
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Cold War EraF-14 TomcatMilitary Aviation
The Day Gaddafi’s Su-22s claimed to have Shot Down a US Navy F-14. And a Libyan Fitter Pilot became a “Tomcat Killer.”
by Dario LeoneCaptain Belkacem Emsik al-Zintani fired a missile and ‘destroyed’ the F-14, supposedly killing its pilot, Commander Henry Kleeman. In 2016, thirty-five…
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Cold War EraMilitary Aviation
That Time Gaddafi Scrambled 70 Fighters to Intercept US Navy Aircraft that Crossed the Line of Death
by Dario LeoneNo less than 35 pairs of Libyan interceptors, including a total of 70 MiG-23MS’s, MiG-25Ps, Mirage F.1s, and even Su-22s, Su-22Ms…
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Cold War EraLosses and Aviation SafetyMilitary Aviation
Here’s why the Libyan MiG-23 that crashed on Mount Sila was not involved in the Ustica Massacre
by Dario Leone“Captain Koal MiG-23 was unarmed and carried no extra fuel tanks. He has got a new breathing mask that day. Our…
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Cold War EraMilitary Aviation
Libyan MiG-23 pilot remembers a memorable dogfight with U.S. Navy F-14 Tomcats
by Dario Leone“I pushed my throttle to full dry power while my aircraft went through the vertical and pointed at the Tomcats while…
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Cold War EraF-14 TomcatMilitary Aviation
F-14 Vs MiG-25: when U.S. Navy Tomcats outmanoeuvred Gaddafi’s Foxbats over the Gulf of Sidra
by Dario LeoneWhen the U.S. Navy’s SAG violated what Libyans considered their territorial waters, two MiG-25 Foxbats forward-deployed at Benina AB were scrambled…
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Cold War EraF-14 TomcatMiG KillersMilitary Aviation
Tomcat 4-Qaddafi 0: how two U.S. Navy F-14s shot down two Libyan MiG-23s over the Gulf of Sidra on Jan. 4, 1989
by Dario LeoneAfter returning to the carrier, both the F-14s received single FLOGGER ‘kill’ markings above the nose MODEX, although these were removed…