[UPDATE - March 1, 2024] - Gaijin is adding a new MiG-23 (the Hungarian MiG-23MF in the Italian tree). It is completely identical to the German MiG-23MF. Refer to that part of the guide for the Hungarian identical copy MiG-23MF.

@itamisk5127

3 ай бұрын

Ya saw that I want my MiG 25 at least a 31

Fun fact about the fuel tank removed between the M and ML, it wasn’t just center of mass and weight that removed that fucker. It was also because MiG-23M and MF, with over a thousand already produced, had slowly acquired a noticeable and very strange pattern of structural failure in all batches, even as standards and quality control dramatically improved batch to batch. What was that pattern? Well, at high but not exceptionally high airframe hours, which they were reaching fast owing to the MiG-23’s suitability to patrol duties, they would on occasion, without warning, suddenly fold in half mid-flight, ordinarily during gentle maneuvering. Turned out a number of phenomena literally previously unknown in structural engineering worked together alongside new welding techniques and materials in exactly the right way to turn that fuel tank, which was also a major structural member, into a literal nest of microfractures. So they start looking around airframes in service and uh, boss, it turns out the complaint literally every single maintenance crew has in the back of their service logs is that that fuel tank starts sweating fuel like a pig and it’s a pain in the ass at high airframe hours. Meaning that literally every single MiG-23M, MF, and MS in service anywhere in the world was slowly but surely building up to cleaving itself in half mid-flight with no warning Changes were retrofitted to existing MiG-23s to unretard them free of charge but it did make the first gens even heavier. Hence the decision to throw up their hands and design the tank out while working on the ML. There was also an ML derivative that added the tank back, the MiG-23P dedicated interceptor for the PVO

@andym.s.5231

2 ай бұрын

"unretard them" lmao

The long story alluded to in the video boils down to the fact the Mig-23 was not designed to fight on its own. As Soviet policymakers in the early and mid-1960s saw it, the interceptor pilot existed to get his missiles airborne, fire them, and then land the plane. He was only one piece in a much larger machine of radars, ground control intercept stations, SAMs, and other aircraft (the Integrated Air Defense System, IADS). He did not need a machine capable of individual heroics; it was a very Soviet way of thinking if you ask me. The Mig-23 as originally designed was never supposed to be operated outside of the IADS. Therefore the early Mig-23 did not have the avionics to grant its pilots an easy way to search for and engage targets that it wasn't vectored to by its IADS (this kept it cheap and simple, which was good for a country with as much airspace to defend as the USSR). It did not have the maneuverability to engage in a dogfight, that was a waste of time when it came to intercepting nuclear-armed fighter-bombers like the F-104 (the primary air threat of the 1960s, in Soviet thought). It did not have adequate short-range missiles, since the idea was to shoot down threats from long range (it turned out the R-23 wasn't an adequate long-range missile either). In the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact, the IADS to support the Mig-23 existed, and thankfully it was never tested. In the Middle East and Africa, where the Mig-23 fought the vast majority of its battles, it often did not have the IADS it was designed to operate as a part of. This is partly due to third world poverty, partly due to Soviet bureaucracy being unreliable and duplicitous about what it was actually selling its clients (for example, they'd say they'd delivered one type of radar, but it'd turn out to be a different type the customer country didn't have trained personnel for). When the Syrians and Iraqis managed to build a semblance of an IADS, it was using radars that were obsolete before the Mig-23 even entered service, with incomplete coverage too. Peer foes like Iran exploited this well (at least in the first years of the Iran-Iraq war), first world countries like Israel and the United States could jam these networks into uselessness with their cutting-edge electronic warfare capabilities and then tear them apart with impunity. The result was Mig-23 pilots going into battle with no situational awareness beyond what their eyes could see, in a plane designed to operate with heavy guidance from external systems, and getting picked apart piecemeal by enemy with massively superior EW capabilities, AWACS coordination, and better intelligence gathering. Thus the one-sided air wars of 1982 for the Syrians and 1991 for the Iraqis. Despite all this, they did get a working plane out of it. It was simple enough to keep operable (the Iraqis got their first batch without maintenance manuals, they managed to keep them working anyway), it was rugged enough to survive heavy use from third world infrastructure in sub-optimal conditions, and it was an adaptable platform (the Mig-23BN was highly successful as an attack aircraft, for example). The ML/A/D versions were no slouches in a close fight after all the air frame improvements, the R-60 and R-24 were leagues ahead of the missiles they replaced, and the plane WAS incredibly fast, even at low altitude, and it even had a look-down/shoot-down radar at last. But by the time the Mig-23 was working right, the Mig-29 and Su-27 were entering service. Funnily enough, the Libyans didn't want to upgrade to the Mig-29. They preferred the lower operating costs and fuel efficiency of the Mig-23. Better to have a fighter you can afford to use than one you can't, I suppose. TL;DR: don't buy a plane that's a missile bus if you don't have the whole system its designed to operate within

@user-if4zv5nj5m

4 ай бұрын

The whole soviet air doctrine was to give an asymmetrical answer to the strength of us air force, relying on sams rather than on fighters to carry out the most anti-air work. Fighters were there to compliment Sam network, not the other way, thus, they didn't have to be as universal and complex as western ones. As you mentioned, no middle east country ever got a whole anti air system, and fighters, designed to be just a one part of an anti-air system, never got a chance to work at their best

@sooryan_1018

3 ай бұрын

Explains why Vietnam had huge success using Soviet jets. They had a huge array of radars and air defense systems everywhere in their country, hence USAAF could stand no chance to gain total air supremacy when Vietnam basically used hit and run tactics along with Soviet doctrine of Air Defenses

@crusader4648

3 ай бұрын

Damn that is a long and informative essay

@pencilcase8068

2 ай бұрын

This is why I like the internet. I could learn about Soviet air doctrine while watching a meme guide on a plane I likely won't have while I'm on the toilet

@Apina2.0

2 ай бұрын

Wtf ​@@user-if4zv5nj5m

2 things I think are worth mentioning: 1. There is no need to micromanage the wing sweep, just set it to 0% at takeoff, turn off manual sweep. It will remember that setting. When you need the turning performance and don't care as much about going fast, turn on manual sweep again. For everything else, the automatic wing sweep is perfectly fine. 2. The MiG-23MLs have good high speed acceleration, you can go right past your rip speed. This can be used to your advantage by accelerating to 1300 - 1400 km/h IAS, then climbing so you maintain that IAS. As you're climbing, your true airspeed will keep increasing. On regular maps, I usually reach around 1800km/h at the start of the match by the time I am in missile range, which will usually catch people off guard, allowing for easy R-24R kills. It can also be useful when chasing enemies, as they will not expect a MiG-23 at Mach 1.5. Finally, there is just something special about reaching Mach 2 in a live game on an EC map when returning to base. Just watch your fuel, and don't forget that you will easily overspeed your wings if you enter a dive for any reason at that speed, even without afterburner.

Cooking this hard should be illegal

DONUT 🍩 UP ⬆️ LOAF 🍞

@battlefox7614

4 ай бұрын

no way loudward

@JimmySaulGoodmanMcGill1960

2 ай бұрын

@@battlefox7614 no way

@battlefox7614

2 ай бұрын

@@JimmySaulGoodmanMcGill1960 no way

@JimmySaulGoodmanMcGill1960

2 ай бұрын

@@battlefox7614 no way

@Loudward__

2 ай бұрын

@@JimmySaulGoodmanMcGill1960 Jimmy no way

Wow, this was an amazing guide! The editing was mind boggling in some parts, I got some weird looks for bursting out in laughter, and hopefully this blows your gambling video out of the water with viewcount

@DonutWithMustache

4 ай бұрын

thanks, its comments like this that make the months of editing worth it

@lucinator8582

4 ай бұрын

@@DonutWithMustache no problem mate

@mewhenitfriday

4 ай бұрын

nah the cock sucking is wild!!!!

@MTF-EPSILON-11-5-NULL

2 ай бұрын

@@DonutWithMustachedo the f89b its the f104 but better

I love the part where he said “It’s floggin’ time” and flogged all over the place

This is quickly becoming one of my favorite War Thudner series, keep up the great work :)

@DonutWithMustache

4 ай бұрын

@battlefox7614

4 ай бұрын

no way freezed

I love this so much because i know somebody who bomb his way to top tier with the bn and skip literally all the early cold war fighter until the Mig-29 and even then he bomb with it and completely skip over the Mig-23MLA because he thinks it's just a bn but at a higher br, so any sort of making fun against those type of players make me laugh so muc

Dude those jujutsu kaisen reference were awesome lmao na I'D win but gojo does die 💀

@cookiecraze1310

4 ай бұрын

MLD seconds before being killed by a -slice- 9M that bisects the world.

Ayo, that ultrakill bit went hard as FUCK

Flying the flogger is a art form of pure hatred and disrespect of any non flogger air frame in the sky

Bro where are this guys subs? Only 5k. This video alone should generate 5k. This editing sooo god

dude the MLD edit made me want to get that plane asap

Everyone dropped the MiG-23MF after literally a week, and so I took it upon myself to spade it. First jet I ever spaded up to that point then the Tornado IDS because both are high favorites imo. It's such a powerhouse if you know what you're doing.

Just unlocked the mld and you get the 23 and 24T for free after unlocking the R variants btw. Great guide as always

The beginning is so cursed with that flipped MiG-23 and one absolutely R O T A T I N G And especially that F-14B having collision models with the other MiGs

@DonutWithMustache

3 ай бұрын

the War Thunder CDK mission editor is a pathway to many abilities... that some may consider un-natural...

@BOEING--mh6xm

3 ай бұрын

@@DonutWithMustache yes lmfao

This video made me try the MiG-23MLD again after not touching it since they added the MiG-29 (aproximately 3000 top tier Air RB matches since) And you're damn right, it still kicks, it kicks so hard, harder than the MiG-23MLD section in this video. I love it.

I have no idea why, it shouldn't be that funny, but that F-14 trolling through the MIGs in the very beginning fucking sent me.

This is good fucking content. I’ve never actually seen a video break down the wing differences and use an amazing feature called VISUAL representation of the differences as well as side-by-side comparisons, showing the vortex generators and slats, something people on Google and 90% of other KZreadrs are entirely allergic to. Needless to say I suscribed

Legit one of my fav vids on KZread. Thank you.

Not only did i already love soviet 3rd-4th gen aircraft, now you made that love bigger. I cannot contain myself anymore and i'll buy the Mig-23ML for my birthday. Good job! (Also you cooked WAY too hard with the Mig-23MLD Section, i've never been so hyped for a plane edit.)

actually the most underrated youtube channel i've ever seen

this is insanely great editing. needs more subs

Love your videos, hope your channel blows up 💯❤

Bros who remember the grand turismo PS2 song

@ahmedmohanned9994

Ай бұрын

Yes !

I watched your F104 vid before this and both had me ROLLING! 😂 Liked and Subscribed. 😏 Also, I see you're a man of culture, Love the editing!

Thank you, thank you so much donut, yes thank you, this might just be what I need to watch

Great video! Btw have you considered making a video on the T-2? I find it the most fun when you take the rocket Zuni pods and use it for head-on / flare off missiles.

I absolutely love my MiG 23 MLA, its always soo entertaining to see those self called Mavericks with top gun syndrome cry in chat because they just got missiled by a "inferior" plane

cant wait for that whole video to be outdated next big patch since they are *fixing* the mig23 flight model to be more historically accurate

I have been waiting for this 😊

I love to hear you talk more about the real life planes and the history of them, even if it makes the video longer.

I love your videos, and I can't wait for more

It's beautiful. I've looked at this for 5 hours now

1:44 Well, thats some very nostalgic music. Moon Palace, Drift City. God I miss that game.

@DonutWithMustache

3 ай бұрын

There is a free playable community-run version today, called Drift City Remastered

What the f... did i watch here😂😂😂 I never heard of your channel but after watching this masterpiece of a video(and being a mig 23 enjoyer) im gonna subscribe IMMEDIATLY❤

as a mig 23ML buyer I gotta say it made the grind from 10.3 to 12.7 infinitely easier. Its an amazing air craft with good missiles and good preformance

That MLD edit almost convinced me it was better than the J7E, almost. Also Mig21 video plz (I want to see you suffer with the 10,000 variants)

god i love this channel

I love how you said "And tier 8 soon to follow". really predicted the future, mr. Gabr- ehr i mean mr. Donut

Those were some clean transitions 🔥

Just from this video alone, I have fallen in love.

My fav way of playing my ml is to head on with the ir r24's after turning right. Love the flogger

Great video man

Ultrakill music over WT gameplay is an unholy combination

Drift City OST? Damn, i see you're man of culture as well.

Finally some MiG-27 love. I absolutely LOVE that plane and with the BR changes it makes it even more fun to fly. People talk about the GAU-8 until I school them on who the real daddy is. The GsH-6-30. Fav gun ever. Dismantling wallet warrior F-5s and F-4s has never been better. Severely slept on plane in ARB but kinda like it that way lol. Also Area 88 edit flawless

cant wait for a guide on KA52, how to play keybind and how to kill

mom wake up the meme guy uploaded another video

you made me want the MiG-23MLD so hard now

I fw it bro keep it up 👍🏿

Absolute banger

No way he went full lobotomy kaisen with the mld segment

Now we need a mig21 or f4 family guide

And often r23t are better than r23r cuz 23r got a huge delay allmost same as aim7d/e

i came to watch a wt video, got gran turismo'd instantly with the music lmao

The mig23 MLD became one of fav top tier jet with the mirage 2000 because it fits my aggressive playstyle. Also you forgot to talk about the really good advantage of it's radar which is J band frequency afaik some top tier jets RWR can't detect it so they only realize I fired a R24 at them once they get sent to the hangar

Finally a mig23 vid

The fact that the soviets have somehow managed to figure out target handoff with their level of electronics sophistication (or rather lack thereof) in the 70s, while it only became a common thing in western fighters in the 2000s is mindboggling to me.

I'd love to see your guide to the Starfighter family, the German F-104G has been my go-to grinder for a while.

@DonutWithMustache

4 ай бұрын

Stay tuned 👀

Crazy how you only have 5K despite putting noticeable effort into your videos unlike the 90% of WT YTs who basically just make the same MLG montage over and over again with different vehicles.

Casual or competitive 4v4, air spawn, fighters only, 5 rounds. A round is won by destroying EVERY enemy aircraft. No respawns. First team to 3 victories wins. A missile limit mode is available to BR12+ aircraft, limiting missiles to 50% of total payload. E.g. F15 can carry only 2 AIM7s and only 2 AIM9s. This could change for balancing purposes, just an idea. Each game will give you rank. There is also a casual mode, with random matchmaker.

jujutsu kaisen war thunder and guilty gear in one video, this is a masterpiece

That intro killed me 😂

Fun fact mig 23 is the only plane i know with 0 rp for some modifications , when you have researched r23r/r24r, r23t/24t are 0 rp so you got them instantly

This guy didn’t hold back when memjng this video.

My experience with the MiG-23M was that the flares basically never worked. They would just fly out of the seeker’s fov and do nothing for you if you used them mid turn.

ingame modell of the Mig-23BN has actually type 2 wing

Loved the video

I have the ml and mla. And ive heard that the mld is even better. Cant wait to get it after i get the su 27 first XD

the ULTRAKILL ost slaps hard

Gambling bideo rn be like: Look what they have to do to mimic a fraction of our power. Anyways nice video. MiG-23MLDonussy so hard I slapped a talisman when I needed something to grind rank 8

Great great great video I’m subbing

What is name of the song from introduction? Please...

Best WT CC series ever. Whats the outro BGM by the way?

@DonutWithMustache

4 ай бұрын

Landyishi from the Atomic Thunder OST, from the war thunder x atomic heart official collab

6:13 take a shot each time he says radar

loved the ultra-references

DId they change the afterburner effects or something?

What is the alt code for the wheelchair chat symbol lmao, i wanna use it to troll

Oboe, spin start got meh

Im gonna go get the mig23MLD just because of that jjk reference

Should note, I believe the Syrians were allowed to buy a few new production MLDs, so not exactly non-export.

Fine, I guess I’ll play MiG-23MLD.

Its like clubbing baby seals

Would also like to mention that the AOA limits on MiG-23s is actually primarily because of their autopilots. MiG-23 was designed before certain phenomena in aerodynamics were understood and like every other fighter that tried to pull something aerodynamically clever in the third gen, especially the F-4 and F-14, this meant insanely unpredictable stall/spin/wing drop characteristics that would jump you with unpredictable bullshit and sudden unrecoverable spins out of fucking nowhere, because the SAS didn’t include an understanding of phenomena that no one knew about. The MiG-23 being such a long boi, for instance, made inertial coupling fuckery a real bitch. Because of this, a huge amount of the AOA stability changes were actually completely unrelated to structure or shape, and were literally just updated flight control systems and SAS making it actually possible for a human to achieve the AOA value without a million billion years of practice and thirty airframes to throw away while figuring it out. The ML’s version of SAU/23 is probably the most underappreciated reason it was so dramatically better than the M

What is the alt code for the wheelchair emoji in WT chat? That had me rolling on the floor when I saw it 🤣

A fucking jjk reference and ultrakill reference, bravo i say, bravo

"Who even reads the description under a video anyways? You must be really bored." Says the guy who doesn't put the music they used in the video in the description.

@DonutWithMustache

4 ай бұрын

Just ask in the comments and in more than happy to tell you.

@j100j

4 ай бұрын

@@DonutWithMustache Now I'm gonna ratio myself. Also what music did you use?

@DonutWithMustache

4 ай бұрын

- Intro: Soviet march from Command and Conquer - red alert 3 soundtrack - History section: Moon Palace Track 1 - Drift City Soundtrack - flogger basics: GT Mode track 2 - Gran Turismo 4 OST - First gen floggers: Magic Spear 1&2 Mix - Ace Combat 7 OST - Second gen floggers: Dune Eternal - Ultrakill OST - MiG-23MLD intro - Bach 369 "Fallen Angel" - Ultrakill OST - MiG-23MLD montage - "Death of Gods will" - Ultrakill OST - MiG-23MLD second montage - Smell of the Game - Guilty Gear Strive OST - Ground attackers section - "Power and Speed" - Gran Turismo 4 OST - Modifications section - "05 Frontline Base" - Area 88/UN Squadron (SNES) OST - Outro - "Landyishi" - Atomic Thunder OST (War Thunder x Atomic Heart event)

@j100j

2 ай бұрын

@@DonutWithMustache I just now got the notification. Thanks. I'll look trough the music now I guess.

What is that song at the end with the mig 23s it sounds so good

@DonutWithMustache

Ай бұрын

Landyishi - Atomic Thunder OST (from the War Thunder x Atomic Heart event last year)

@ghilliemaster5392

Ай бұрын

@@DonutWithMustache thx

god i wish theyd add a non premium intruder. one of my fav planes but i dont wanna be *that person*

J-7 said: nuh uh id win

this is exactly how i feel playing the mld lol

I think I just watched a movie❤

Lobotomy kaisen has even affected war thunder

1:47 the emblem on the rudder suggests its Czechoslovak MIG-23. The "shark mouth" is correct, the rest of the "camouflage" not so much.

@DonutWithMustache

3 ай бұрын

that is indeed a correct camofluage. The aircraft is MiG-23MF #3646 of the Czechoslovak air force. That exact plane is preserved in a museum today afaik, with many pictures of it on the internet.

13:42 IS THAT A FUCKING ULTRAKILL REFERENCE?!

Do you need to master the first generation or floggers before moving onto the second gen?

@DonutWithMustache

4 ай бұрын

not really, but it helps.

@Phage-

4 ай бұрын

Ok, then I will. Master. But only in the Russian tech tree. Because I am lazy

What is the song name in the outro