Originally posted by RogueLeader
The F-15 can't come close to outflying a MiG-29 or an Su-27. However, in a dogfight between a MiG-29 and a F-15 the F-15 would probably come out the winner. But that wouldn't really be a fair assesment because the MiG-29 is more comparable to the F-16—its not an extrmely strong aircraft but its cheap so it can be mass produced. A MiG-29 has a MUCH shorter turn rate than an F-16. In a dogfight between a F-16 and a MiG-29 the Infrared search and track system on the MiG-29 amlost guaruntees success. The MiG could detect the F-16 long before the F-16 could detect it. Your analogy to the Gulf War doesn't really work out well, because the Coalition air forces used MiG-29's too, and they consistently emerged victorious just as other fighters did. The most likely reason for the Iraqi's losing so many ships is that they had a poorly trained military with low morale, which is the reason we won the ground war, too. The F-22 would definitly overpower the Fulcrum and the Flanker (the Flanker is one of the reasons the U.S. air force needs the F-22, its at least as good as current U.S. fighters, if not better), but it will cost a pretty penny compared to the MiG-29.
