At the end of August I had the possibility to spent a day with the Jagdgeschwader (fighter squadron) 73 at their homebase Laage near Rostock. Only one month later the first 5 MiGs were transferred to Poland, so this visit has been one of the last possibilities for me to capture impressions of the jet with certainly the most unusual history of all the fighters that have ever served within the Bundesluftwaffe.
The MiG-29s are the only jets of the former GDR that have been taken over into service within the Luftwaffe after the reunification of Germany. After adoption to western standarts they served served well under the designation MiG-29G until today. The Fulcrum also made the JG73 worldwide known as it is the only 'western' squadron flying a jet from the 'east' [speaking in pre-1990 terms]. This fact gave the possibility to many foreign pilots to train combat tactics against a real Russian fighter flown by highly experienced pilots and to execute air-air-combats against 'the real thing'. Thus the JG73 was a warmly welcomed participant at NATO exercices in Deci and even numerous times in the United States. When the last MiG-29 will finally be handed over to Poland by the middle of next year Laage will be the first base to transition to the Eurofighter Typhoon, and the pilots and enthusiats will miss their MiGs for sure...!!!
MiGs in the Shelter Area at Laage
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Last Chance Checks
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Take-Offs
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Views from the Tower
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Maintenance Hangar
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inside the No.1 Squadron Building
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During my visit at Laage the Fliegerstaffel 11 from Switzerland with their F/A-18s was guest in Laage and flew daily missions with and against the Fulcrums. The advantage of these squadron visits from the photographers point of view is not only that there are more jets to take photos of but also increased fliying activity. Being already the second week the German and Swiss pilots knew them already very well and were used to the airspace. Therefore two missions were flown every day, with 4 Hornets and 4 MiGs every time. On the following photo pages you can have an inside view into the everyday business of the JG 73, including views of the shelter area, the last chance, of the tower and the maintenance hall.
Finally I would like to express my deepest thanks to the S1-Info and all the staff at Laage for their hospitality and the opportunities given that day!
What? German MiG-29 Fulcrums
The MiG-29s are the only jets of the former GDR that have been taken over into service within the Luftwaffe after the reunification of Germany. After adoption to western standarts they served served well under the designation MiG-29G until today. The Fulcrum also made the JG73 worldwide known as it is the only 'western' squadron flying a jet from the 'east' [speaking in pre-1990 terms]. This fact gave the possibility to many foreign pilots to train combat tactics against a real Russian fighter flown by highly experienced pilots and to execute air-air-combats against 'the real thing'. Thus the JG73 was a warmly welcomed participant at NATO exercices in Deci and even numerous times in the United States. When the last MiG-29 will finally be handed over to Poland by the middle of next year Laage will be the first base to transition to the Eurofighter Typhoon, and the pilots and enthusiats will miss their MiGs for sure...!!!
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