MiG -29 and F- 16, that's a pair of famous rivals under the blue sky. These two fighters are the first-class masters of the third-generation main fighters in the world today. Military fans have long been looking forward to inviting them to fight in the ring. Don't worry, Americans really set the stage for them on the other side of the ocean. \x0d\ Spread the battlefield under the red flag \ x0d \ x0d \ The "Red Flag" exercise of the US Air Force is famous for being close to actual combat, and it is also the highest form of tactical training of the tactical units of the US Air Force. \ x0d \ x0d \ "Red Flag \" actual combat simulation exercise was held at the Tactical Air Force Combat Training Center in Nelis, USA, which was dedicated to organizing the "F" series fighters of the US Army to conduct "actual combat" confrontation with the MIG series fighters of the former Soviet Union. The center organizes four "Red Flag" confrontation exercises every year for about 6 weeks. During the exercise from June 23rd to July 24th this summer, the US Air Force invited seven MiG -29 fulcrum fighters from the German Air Force to play imaginary enemies. The American pilot who came to participate in the exercise said with a smile: I wake up every morning and hear the whistle of MIG -29 echoing over Nellis base. F- 16, one of the U.S. warplanes against it, has been successfully used in local wars in recent years. As the saying goes, two tigers are not allowed in one mountain. No matter which "tiger" has the upper hand, it will have a very subtle impact on the development of US and Russian warplanes and the construction of the world air force. This is also the most attractive place of the "Red Flag" exercise. \x0d\\x0d\F- 16: Winning by electronic means \ x0d \ x0d \ f- 16 fighter is a light fighter "matched with F- 15 heavy fighter", which is mainly used to seize the air superiority on the battlefield and can also be used for ground attack. Its main features are: first, the fuselage is light, the external layout of the aircraft is reasonable, and the flight performance and maneuverability are good. The maximum speed of the aircraft is 2 120km/h, and the maximum operational radius can reach 1200km. Second, the airborne electronic equipment is advanced and has strong air combat capability. The F- 16 is equipped with advanced electronic equipment such as An /APG-66 pulse Doppler radar, head-up display, central air data computer, flight control computer, etc. Some of them are equipped with "low-altitude navigation at night and infrared target selection pod" ("blue shield") system, which further enhances the all-weather combat capability. \x0d\\x0d\ When confronting MIG -29, the pilot criterion of F- 16 is "preemptive strike is the strongest". The commander of Nellis base who conducted the exercise concluded: Because of the superior performance of the airborne electronic system of F- 16, "usually, American pilots have the advantage in long distance". Therefore, F- 16' s tactic is to try to find the target before the enemy and launch the missile before 64 kilometers away from the MIG -29 fighter. \ x0d \ x0d \ MIG -29: Close to the enemy \ x0d \ x0d \ MIG -29 fighter, nicknamed "fulcrum", is the third generation high-mobility air defense fighter developed by Mikhail Design Bureau of the former Soviet Union. MiG -29 fighters are mainly used in air combat and interception, especially in low-altitude air combat and interception. Its main features are: strong maneuverability, high-difficulty movements such as "spin" and "cobra maneuver", good acceleration performance, maximum speed of 2.3m (2,400km/h), short takeoff and landing capability, and taking off and landing on dirt runways. The MIG -29 is equipped with an "Alarm" -3 omni-directional early warning system, which can also alert the pilot once it is discovered by enemy radar. But the main disadvantage is that the cockpit layout is complex, which is not conducive to pilot operation. \ x0d \ x0d \ In the "Red Flag" exercise, what frightened American pilots most was the MiG -29' s superior maneuverability and melee ability. The F- 16 pilot who participated in the exercise said: When fighting in the air, the superior maneuverability of the MIG -29 scared him into a cold sweat, especially the helmet sight equipped by the MIG -29 pilot was simply "where can I see the missile", which made the F- 16 unable to parry. Lieutenant Colonel Hann of the German Air Force who flew the MIG -29 at 10 said, "At about 64 kilometers, American pilots have an advantage. But when we approached 16 km, the advantage began to shift to us. At about 8 kilometers, the advantage is ours. " \ x0d \ x0d \ Two tigers win in the system \x0d\\x0d\ By comparing the technical and tactical performance of F- 16 and MIG -29 fighter, it is not difficult to see that they have their own advantages and disadvantages, and it seems difficult to judge who is higher and who is lower. \ x0d \ x0d \ Americans have always claimed that their F- 16 record against MIG -29 is zero. In fact, everyone knows that the MIG -29 shot down by Americans is the MIG -29 shot down by Iraq and Yugoslavia in the Gulf War and the Kosovo War. This "record" can be achieved not because of the superior performance of the F- 16, but because Iraq and Yugoslavia are far behind the Americans in early warning command and electronic warfare. That's not F- 16 and MIG -29 at all, but F- 16 plus airborne early warning aircraft, electronic warfare aircraft and even satellites to deal with MIG -29 in space, which is a "one-sided" contest of operational environment and support conditions. This also reminds people that in the future air combat, the contest of the system is the contest that really decides the outcome.