Kraków 2007-07-07
153 Section 1957-12-03.
OKB Mikojan and Guriewicz MiG-19 P, PM.
History of the MiG-19 aircraft.
In the Polish Army, the Mikojan and Guriewicz MiG-19 were the first supersonic fighter aircraft and the first to be armed with air-to-air guided missiles.
Mikojan and Guriewicz MiG-19. 1952 year.
First, a few words about this plane.
The MiG-19 was not a logical continuation of the MiG-15, MiG-17 fighter planes. He was different from almost everything. Common features are only the frontal air grasp and oblique wings. Most importantly, because of its twin-engine powerplant and size, it was one of the heavy fighters and its predecessors the medium ones.
The MiG-19 was put into service at the express request of Moscow. This was because the USAF began to introduce F-100 C fighters into service. The F-100 C aircraft had supersonic speed and, importantly, was capable of carrying nuclear weapons. Moscow’s decision was to restore equilibrium in its technology.
The office of OKB Mikojan and Guriewicz already had several structures capable of reaching supersonic speed. But there was trouble keeping this speed constantly. The designs I-340 (SM-1) and I-350 (M) should be mentioned here. The obstacle was the lack of a suitable turbojet engine.
At this point, it is worth recalling the very promising TR-1 engine, which had high hopes. However, the engine turned out to be completely unsuccessful, and this entailed the collapse of several structures with predicted supersonic speed, for example the Sukhoi Su-17 (not to be confused with the later Sukhoi Su-17).
On May 27, 1952, the I-360 (SM-2) was flown. It was equipped with two A. Mikulin AM-5 engines with a thrust of 2 x 1,962 kG. While the engines were equipped with axial compressors and were promising, their too low thrust did not ensure supersonic flight. Additionally, there were frequent failures. For example, turbine blades broke off.
Fortunately, a revised engine was developed, which was designated AM-9 with a thrust of 2 x 2,550 kg. These engines made it possible to fly at supersonic speeds. The I-360 (SM-2) aircraft made 132 flights. G. Sedov piloted the machine in all flights.And it was at this point that the Kremlin made the decision to introduce this structure into service. The shortcomings of the structure were realized, but there was no exit. Other designs in the CCCP were even more delayed.
The SM-9/1, which made the first flight on January 5, 1954, became a direct model of the MiG-19 serial aircraft. The design had many shortcomings. First of all, in supersonic flight, the tail turned out to be ineffective. Work on the introduction of a plate-type tail has been started. Work on it lasted throughout 1954. Another drawback was the lack of sufficient stability. This problem was solved only with the MiG-19 S version.
Experimental flights on the SM-9/1 were performed by pilots K. Kokinaki, Georgia Masłow and the nephew of the aircraft designer S. Mikojan. At the same time, work on improving the engine continued. The works were managed by S. Tumański, A. Mikulin’s successor. The engine received the production designation RD-9 and already had a thrust of 2 x 3 300 kG with afterburning.
Serial production of the MiG-19. 1954.
The production of the first version of the MiG-19 was very short. A small number of copies were built, rather for propaganda reasons, as the plane still had many shortages. In July 1955, the MiG-19 plane was shown at the air parade in Tuszyn.
Soon after, the serial production of the MiG-19 S (S – stabilizer) aircraft, derived from the SM-9/3 prototype, began. This construction has already proved successful. Airplanes for various purposes come directly from this version. It was built in 1956, the MiG-19 SW (W – Wysotnyj) high-rise fighter. The MiG-19 R (R – razwiedczik) reconnaissance aircraft and a short series of MiG-19 SF aircraft reaching a speed of 1,560 km / h.
The second development line were airplanes built on the basis of the SM-7 prototype equipped with the SR (radar) RP-5, or more precisely the radar sight. Thanks to this, new interceptors were created. The SM-7/2 prototype turned into the MiG-19 P (P – pieriechwatczik) fighter. Then the MiG-19 PF was built. A version of the MiG-19 PG with the Gorizont-1 SR (radar) was also developed, which was used to guide the aircraft at the target according to the ground command post. A short series of MiG-19 PU (U – uskoritiel) aircraft with additional rocket accelerators was also built.
The SM-7/2 M prototype was equipped with a new SR (radar) marked RP-2 U (Izumrud-2) and armed with 4 k.p.r. RS-2 U (Q-5). The aircraft was mass-produced under the designation MiG-19 PM (M – moddyfikowannyj). The same plane with the "Łazur" telemetry device was designated MiG-19 PMŁ.
OKB Mikojan and Guriewicz continued to develop the SM line of experimental planes, the purpose of which was to build a new fighter. Let’s list; SM-10 – air refueling, SM-12 – new air holds, SM-30 – zero start, SM-50 – additional rocket engine.
MiG-19 for service.
MiG-19 was used by the countries of the University of Warsaw (Warsaw Pact); CCCP, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Poland, Romania and Hungary, and to China, Egypt, Indonesia, Iraq, Pakistan, Syria and Cuba. Its production was started in Czechoslovakia, but only in the MiG-19 S version, i.e. without SR (radar), under the designation S-105. China also started production. Not only licensed airplanes were produced there, but also their own versions were developed.
MiG-19 for Poland.
Why did Poland buy MiG-19 planes?
In the mid-50s it was already certain that the era of supersonic fighters was irreversibly approaching. The Polish Army already had very good Lim-5 fighters equipped with SR (radar), but they were not able to quickly scare NATO reconnaissance and reconnaissance aircraft in the form of U-2, Canberra PR and Atlantic machines. These planes systematically crossed the territory of Poland, mainly sea. Therefore, a supersonic fighter capable of day and night operations would be a good option.
The first attempts to purchase supersonic aircraft by the Polish authorities were made in the second half of the 1950s. In July 1956 and January 1957, preliminary documents were signed providing for the license production of the MiG-19 fighter under the designation Lim-7. However, the socio-political crisis in May 1957 in Poland increased the distrust of the leaders in Moscow. Already during the preliminary talks in the Kremlin on May 24-25, 1957. Khrushchev stated that the CCCP will in no way transfer Poland the license rights to produce the MiG-19. We only obtained permission to buy 33 MiG-19 machines in two versions; MiG-19 P with a radar sight and cannons and MiG-19 PM with a radar sight and RS-2 US guided missiles. These planes were planned to be used to create three pursuit squadrons in the northern direction – in Słupsk, in the western direction – Poznań Krzesiny, and in the southern direction – Mierzęcice.
There are discrepancies regarding the exact number of machines. The most likely number is 33. The number 36 comes up because of the so-called full-time workload. At that time, the fighter regiment was to have 36 combat aircraft in stock, not counting training and combat aircraft.
Deliveries of MiG-19 to Poland.
The planes in the MiG-19 P version were imported in two deliveries. On December 3, 1957, 9 brand new machines arrived in Poland. On May 17, 1958, another 10 units arrived. There were 14 planes in the MiG-19 PM version and they were delivered at the turn of 1958/1959.
The pilots were selected as the first to be trained for the new aircraft; Capt. Czesław Kantyka and Capt. Zdzisław Mickiewicz. These pilots were trained in CCCP. They were probably our only CCCP-trained pilots. The rest were trained in Poland. The necessity to conduct training in Poland was seen earlier. Modlin was chosen as the place of training. The new planes initially arrived at the Modlin airport, where the Higher School of Pilots was established. The training of pilots at WSP for new equipment began in May 1958. The first system training of a group of 9 pilots was conducted by Cpt. Czesław Kantyka.
At the beginning of 1959, the planes, as planned, set up interceptor (pursuit) squadrons and achieved operational readiness. Intercepting squadrons were created from the delivered aircraft, one in the 28th PLM at Słupsk-Rędzikowo airport, the 62nd PLM based at the Poznań-Krzesiny airport and the 39th PLM at the Mierzęcice airport.
Versions used in Poland.
MiG-19 P (also known as plane 62) – the machine was equipped with the RP-5 radar station, with two antennas. Search antenna above the inlet, tracking antenna in the partition. The fuselage in relation to the MiG-19 S version was extended by 0.9 m. The radar forced a change of armament. To preserve the weight of the plane, the cannon was removed from the fuselage. Two 30mm NR-30 cannons remained. Additionally, 2 containers with unguided missiles were suspended.
MiG-19 PM (modified. In other words, 65 aircraft) – this is an aircraft armed only with 4 K-5 missiles (RS-2US). The RP-5 radar station was replaced with the RP-2U (Izmrud-2), adapted to firing these missiles.
In the literature, you can find information that in addition to machines equipped with SR (radar), MiG-19 S also reached Poland. They were used mainly for training pilots in flights on this type of fighter. However, no photo of this version in Polish colors can be found. There were only drawings. Also, none of the pilots confirm this information. Therefore, information about the possession of the MiG-19 S version by Poland is unlikely, but not impossible. Two facts speak for this. Firstly, during the first negotiations with the Russian side, we could have proposed MiG-19 S planes, which is very likely, although this version did not satisfy us. Secondly, the MiG-19 S under the designation S-105 was produced at our neighbors, i.e. in Czechoslovakia. So it is not unrealistic that a few of them could have found their way to Poland in the second half of the 1960s.
MiG-19 in service.
Capt. pil. Czesław Kantyka was the first Polish pilot to break the sound barrier on a MiG-19 P fighter during a show for the command of the Ministry of National Defense (Ministry of National Defense) in the summer of 1958.
Cf. pil. Roman Operacz was the first Polish pilot to cross the sound barrier on a MiG-19 P fighter during a public demonstration during the parade on July 22, 1959.
In 1959, the pilot Roman Operacz experienced moments of emotion and horror. After performing periodic actions, the MiG-19 P plane took off into the air. During the evolution at an altitude of 3,100 m and at a speed of about 1,000 km / h, the ammunition belt with bullets broke off and moved to the end of the wing. When the cannons were not used, the ammunition belt was not put into the chamber, but only attached to the hooks from which it had broken. At the end of the airfoil, the tape cut the pressure relay and the relay that changed the control of the aircraft depending on the speed. The elevator automatically shifted from high to low speed causing oversteer. The slight movement of the stick caused either an almost vertical rise or a dive. Roman Operacz was losing consciousness every now and then. The overloads were so great that the seat belts broke and he hit his head against the canopy. It was thrown all over the cabin. After regaining consciousness again, he noticed that he was flying below the treetops. He finally managed to slow down. He sat shrunken in the cabin. He held the bar at its base, and the hilt was level with the face. He landed happily. He was bruised, lacerated with bloodshot eyes, but he was alive. In the hospital, he recovered. The tests showed that the plane was subjected to overloads from + 10g to -5g. The plane had deformed wings and fuselage, but it did not fall apart.
62 Fighter Aviation Regiment in Krzesiny.
In the period from May to September 1958, pilots of the 62nd PLM, captains: Skrzydłowski and Góra, and lieutenants: Makarewicz, O vacko and Sobczyk (all from the first squadron), participated in the pilot training course for MiG-19 fighters at the Higher School of Pilots in Modlin. Technical services, previously part of air squadrons, were excluded from them.
In the 62nd PLM, a technical squadron (DT) consisting of three technical squadrons was formed, and a missile reloading section (SER) was established. The engineering section of the regiment was also subordinated to the commander of the technical division, with its subordinate technical service department, established in 1957. The command of DT was taken over by the chief engineer of the regiment, Cpt. Eng. Mieczysław Niedzielski.
MiG-19 P, PM planes were used by the 1st Squadron of the 62nd PLM until 1962. As the regiment was selected to accept the newer MiG-21 F-13 aircraft, the MiG-19 P and PM in its possession were transferred to the 28th PLM and 39th PLM.
39 Fighter Aviation Regiment in Mierzęcice.
MiG-19 P planes were in service with the first squadron of the regiment from 1958. The number of MiG-19 P, PM aircraft in the regiment has changed. Most of the machines (up to 16) were in the regiment’s stock after the handover of some of the planes from the first squadron of 62nd PLM.
In the spring of 1962, a group of several pilots left for CCCP for training in intercepting with the use of guided RS-2 U missiles, which were equipped with the MiG-19 PM. The whole group consisted of pilots from the WOPK command, 28th PLM and 39th PLM, and they included: Maj. Pil. Czesław Kantyka – group commander, Capt. pil. Henryk Dańko, lieutenant pil. Mieczysław Furmanek, Capt. pil. Bogusław Jaromin, Lt. pil. Wojciech Matonóg, Capt. pil. Zdzisław Skrzydłowski, lieutenant pil. Władysław Waltoś and an armament service officer from WOPK.
On July 1, 1965, the 39th PLM was in stock: 5 MiG-19 PM, 9 MiG-19 P, 6 Lim-5, 13 Lim-2, 8 MiG-15 UTI, 2 TS-8 Bies and 1 An -2.
On August 2, 1966, a plane crash occurred in the 39th PLM. The regiment was transferred to an alternate airfield in Kamień Śląski. Pilots were preparing for the night departure. Cpt. pil. Eugeniusz Nasiorowski, on the MiG-19 P nb 727 plane. During take-off (run-up), after 100-150 m, the plane experienced asymmetry of thrust. The right engine worked at maximum thrust – "forcing", and the left one was only at "maximum" or "nominal" (the accident commission could not determine this). The plane deviated from the runway and glided along the grassy part of the airport, straight to the stator filled with planes. The pilot saw the situation and, afraid of a collision with the planes, picked up the machine. Too low speed caused the plane to disappear from a height of 5-10 m to the wing. At the time of the fall, fuel spilled and an explosion occurred. All this tragic situation was watched by other pilots of the squadron sitting in their planes prepared for take-off. The firefighters immediately started fighting the fire, trying to extinguish the burning plane, and also to prevent fire from reaching the planes in the stator. Unfortunately, Capt. pil. Nasiorowski died in a burning machine.
During the service, the regiment handed over several MiG-19 P, PM aircraft to the 28th PLM. The withdrawal of MiG-19 fighters from the 39th PLM began in 1965. The last flights on MiG-19 planes were carried out in May 1967. Also in May 1967, the last few planes were handed over to the 28th PLM.
28th Fighter Aviation Regiment in Słupsk – Redzikowo.
In 1958, in the 28th PLM, preparations for the introduction of MiG-19 aircraft began. A group of pilots and technicians was selected and trained at CCCP in Nowosiejka near Krasnodar.
The first MiG-19 P planes flew from Modlin to the 28th PLM at the beginning of December 1958. In July 1959, 5 MiG-19 PM planes were delivered also from Modlin. 1 Squadron was rearmed with new planes. The other two squadrons were still flying Lim-2 and Lim-5 airplanes.
On January 1, 1962, the 28th PLM was in stock: 5 MiG-19 PM, 7 MiG-19 P, 10 Lim-5, 7 Lim-2, 3 SBLim-1, 4 MiG-15 UTI and 4 TS- 8 Devil.
On September 15, 1962, the regiment lost its first MiG-19 PM aircraft. Unfortunately, the pilot, Lieutenant Jan Drewicz, also died in the crash.
In October 1964, the 28th PLM had in stock: 10 MiG-19 P, 5 MiG-19 PM, 8 Lim-5, 11 Lim-2, 3 SB Lim-1, 4 MiG-15 UTI and 4 TS-8 Devil.
In November 1965, another five MiG-19 PM were taken over from the 39th PLM in Mierzęcice. During 1966, several MiG-19 P.Unfortunately, in mid-1966, two MiG-19 PM planes were lost in failures. The first plane crashed on June 20, 1966, near the town of Lulemino (the pilot Major Raszewski saved himself). The second plane was lost exactly one month later, on July 20, 1966. in quite unusual circumstances. Retraining for a new plane, 2nd Lt. pil. Zbigniew Kopacz by mistake, while still on the apron, activated the lever for retracting the landing gear. The landing gear loaded with the plane did not retract immediately, but only during the take-off run. The plane started scraping its bow against the belt and caught fire. The pilot managed to leave the cabin, but the plane burned down MiG-19 PM nb 910.
On June 16, 1967, in the landing Ił-28 bomber from the 19th Towing Squadron, there was a winch failure, which caused the "Gacek" towed on a too long line to stray from the axis of the runway to the right and completely smashed the front part of the MiG-19 standing in the grass P nb 1012.
In 1970, another catastrophe took place, Lieutenant Władysław Raczkiewicz, piloting the MiG-19 P, died – he did not manage to get the plane out of a diving flight during an attack on a ground target.
In 1970, the 28th PLM hosted a squadron of the Hungarian MiG-19 S (the Hungarians were shooting at surface targets), while in July 1972, the Słupsk MiG-19 squadron was at the Rybnitz-Damgarten airport in the GDR, where the Soviet 773 PLM was stationed. , which was equipped with MiG-21 PFM planes.
On March 28, 1973, on duty in the duty pair, Capt. pil. Jan Budek took off on the MiG-19 P in order to intercept an unidentified plane that was in Polish airspace. After completing the task, he did not return to his home airport. Most likely, the plane fell into the Baltic Sea. The circumstances of the accident have not been clarified.
On December 4, 1974, the last MiG-19 night flights took place. Parting with them was not without problems, the front landing gear failed in the landing plane of Major Polta Boniface Trela.
In May 1975, engines were removed from the withdrawn MiG-19 P, PM aircraft and sold to the CCCP for the purpose of propelling La-17 flying targets. In June 1975, the disassembled fuselages of several planes were transported by wheeled transport to the training ground in Nadarzyce, where, after reassembling, they served as targets. Four planes were preserved, one remained in the 28th MiG-19 Regiment nb 908, and two went to the museums in Kołobrzeg. Świdwin, but after some time, during a very strong storm, it fell and was scrapped.
MiG-19 planes were demonstrated several times at air shows, it was usually a flight of a group of planes and individual pilotage combined with exceeding the speed of sound at high altitude.
An attempt to evaluate the MiG-19 aircraft.
The MiG-19 was the first supersonic aircraft in the Polish Aviation and despite the fact that it appeared in a small number, it allowed many pilots to learn the technique of piloting at supersonic speeds. The MiG-19, when it was put into service, was the heaviest fighter in the Polish Army. It belongs to the group of heavy fighters in general. He was the first with a twin engine drive. It had the greatest thrust, beating even the Il-28 bomber with this parameter.
In many publications there was a stereotype that the MiG-19 was used in Poland for a short period of time. The facts contradict it. The aircraft entered service in 1957 and the last flights were made in 1975, i.e. 18 years of service cannot be considered a short period. The fact is that a successor in the form of the MiG-21 fighter quickly appeared. But the first MiG-21 was in the MiG-21 F-13 version, i.e. without a radar sight (SR, radar), which limited the possibility of its use at night and in bad weather. Therefore, the MiG-19 P, PM towered above it. Only the appearance of the MiG-21 PF version changed the situation.
Four Polish pilots died while serving in the crashes. Two cases were human error, one was an engine failure, and one was unknown to this day. In three other accidents, the airmen survived. In two of them, the pilot’s life was saved by the ejection chair, and in the third, the pilot landed.
Mr. Tadeusz Góra and the MiG-19 pilot.
Mr. Tadeusz Góra, the pilot, returned to service in the military aviation in 1957, with the rank of Captain pil. and was directed to a 3-month theory course at the Officers’ Aviation School in Radom, and then he underwent training in the piloting of jet aircraft. He was assigned to the 62nd PLM (Fighter Aviation Regiment) in Poznań, where he began to fly on MiG-15, Lim-1/2 and then MiG-17 and Lim-5 planes. He was the key commander and then the squadron commander. In 1959, he was delegated to Modlin for training on MiG-19 supersonic planes. In the local regiment (in the rank of captain) he was the chief of air shooting.
During his service in the army, he did not give up flying gliders. In 1962, Maj. Pil. Tadeusz Góra became the Polish champion, winning the "Mucha-Standard" glider in the 17th Championships in Leszno. After the war, he made his longest flight on the "Foka" glider – from the western border of Poland to Hrubieszów – 630 km, improving his own pre-war record awarded with the Lilienthal Medal.
Mr. Tadeusz Góra, the pilot, flew in the Polish Army until the accident on June 30, 1960 on the MiG-19 nb 739 on June 30, 1960. At 11:56 am, one engine stopped working, the other was damaged, ended with a forced landing. The sustained injuries required long-term treatment and surgery, after which, due to his health condition, he was dismissed from the army in 1972 as a lieutenant-colonel of the 1st class.
Written by Karol Placha Hetman