MiG-23 MF in the colours of the People's Republic of Bulgaria

Stanislav Petkov and his truly inspirational build of the MiG-23 MF in the colors of the People's Republic of Bulgaria is a truly stunning work Production of the MF began in 1978 and Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, the GDR, Hungary, Poland, and Romania began receiving the subtype that year.

Adie Roberts continues his inspirations to help inspire modellers of all abilities to work out of their comfort zone building dioramas or just trying new builds. 

Mikoyan-Gurevich’s MiG-23 was notorious initially for its underpowered engine, poor avionics, and, in the case of the export MS-variant, poorly trained pilots.

However, it was upgraded during the course of its service career into a stable, pilot-friendly, and potent multi-role fighter and interceptor, with phenomenal acceleration when required. More than 4,500 Floggers (NATO code name), including the MiG-27 ground-attack variant, were manufactured in the USSR, with series production commencing in 1969 and concluding in 1985.

During 1976-78, Bulgaria’s air force underwent a large-scale modernisation programme, which ensured the introduction of MiG-23BN Flogger-Hs and -MF Flogger-Bs. In 1982, a further delivery of MiG-23MLA Flogger-Gs (pictured here, distinguished by its smaller dorsal fin) followed. The introduction of this improved interceptor variant allowed Bulgarian pilots, for the first time, to engage targets head-on beyond visual range, with AA-7 Apex missiles.