The Tale
On the morning of October 11th, 1989, a Syrian MiG-23 landed at Megiddo airstrip - which in normal times served mainly crop-dusting planes, gliders and helicopters. The pilot, Maj. Basem Adel of the Syrian Air Force, climbed out of the cockpit, waved his hands and declared: "I wish to defect. I come in peace".
Adel had taken off from Blei Airfield in Syria, for a training mission. He flew alongside his partner for a few minutes, then changed direction and turned toward Israel.
"Crossing the border was difficult", he recalled later. "There were missiles all over the place. I flew at an altitude of less than 50 meters and at a high speed: between 1,150 and 1,250 kph. Once I crossed the border, I turned off the radio. Complete radio silence. The thought that Israeli jets might intercept me flashed through my mind - and indeed, my warning systems showed that I was being tailed. Still, I believed that I would not be shot down. I did not know where to land, or whether I would have proper conditions for landing. I was heading towards the unknown. I flew three to four minutes from the moment I crossed the border to the moment of landing - and all in all, the entire flight from Syria had taken 15 or 20 minutes".
The MiG was not armed with missiles, but had a permanent belly-mounted twin-barrelled cannon and 23 mm. shells. The MiG also employed a Syrian electronic warfare system, besides the various Soviet systems. One of its unique features was its variable geometry: the wings could be swept back to enhance high-speed flight, and reextended for low altitude flight.
"I decided to defect to Israel three months ago", Adel told the Israelis who interrogated him. "It was a personal decision: I wanted to turn over a new leaf in my life. I want to live in a democratic country, where people are free to say whatever they want". Adel, a 34 year old bachelor, was given a new identity and resettled in another country.
The MiG was transferred to Tel Nof Airbase and took off for its first 'Israeli' flight on January 29th 1990, with the IAF's chief test pilot, Lt. Col. Ofer Safra, behind the controls. Safra described the first flight as 'quite an experience': "The plane has powerful, good acceleration, but it also has some drawbacks: the cockpit is poorly planned. The canopy is small, making it difficult for the pilot to look outside. The different switches are scattered all over the cabin and they are anything but user-friendly. The Soviets seem not to have been acquainted with ergonomic planning: the Flogger pilot spends critical seconds on manipulating the plane's systems instead of focusing on the mission".
Prior to the flight, the maintenance crews thoroughly examined the planes' insides and studied its technology - which was strikingly different from that of the American systems they were used to.
Lt. Col. Safra carried out 18 flights with the MiG, and it was then transferred to Tel Nof for storage. It stayed with the Israel Aircraft Industries for a while - and was moved to the IAF Museum.