Bill Reesman's Red Bull MiG-17F was built in Poland in 1959 and entered active service in the Polish Air Force as a Cold War warrior, patrolling the Iron Curtain for about 25 years until it was parked in an aircraft "bone yard" in Poland. The aircraft was purchased from the Polish AIr Force in 1994 but a Phoenix, Arizona-based Polish immigrant, who imported 15 MiGs and a hangar full of parts for resale in the United States. Reesman purchased the MiG in March 1994, two weeks after his first, Chinese-built MiG exploded and caught fire just after takeoff. The Polish aircraft was in terrible shape after being parked in a field for nine years, so Reesman had a team of 10 mechanics completely overhaul it over two months. Today it is meticulously maintained and is the best conditioned MiG-17F in the world.

History of the MiG-17F

During the late 1940s, the Cold War between the Free World and the Soviet Union escalated. During this period, the Soviet Union made great strides in developing new combat aircraft, which were equal in performance to those built in the West. These included the MiG-15, which flew for the first time in December of 1947 and was cleared for mass production a year later. The first production batch of the MiG-17s began leaving the factory during August of 1951. early production MiG-17s were used primarily as air superiority day fighters and escort fighters. The MiG-17 was an outstanding aircraft for its time. American fighter pilots found the MiG-17 to be a maneuverable dog-fighter not to be taken lightly. In fact, the M-G-17 was so effective against American fighter pilots in Vietnam that the Navy created the Top Gun School, and the USAF created the Red Flag school to better train U.S. pilots in air-to-air combat.

 

The MiG can pull up to 8-G's of force, putting an incredible amount of stress and stain on its pilot. Today, these warbirds are one of the prime draws at airshows across the U.S. and the world.