Before being equipped with MiG-29 fighters in the late 1980s, Syria was the first customer to buy Soviet MiG-23 Flogger fighters in 1974
By the late 1980s, nearly 150 MiG-23 fighters had entered service with the Syrian Air Force
including the latest variants such as the MiG-23BN, MiG-23ML and MiG-23MLD
MiG-23 ceased production in 1985, the MiG-29 fighter was a mandatory replacement
Syria received the MiG-29A in the final years before the collapse of the Soviet Union
The MiG-29 was designed to counterbalance the US Air Force's F-16 and F-18 fighters
High combat performance, with the R-73 short-range air-to-air missile
gave the Mig-29 a huge advantage over Western fighters at close range
The collapse of the Soviet Union severely disrupted Syria's plans to modernize the air force
Only 5 of the 29 fighter squadrons of the Syrian Air Force were equipped with modern fighters, capable of fighting fourth-generation Western aircraft
This also ended friendly prices for new weapons and military aid to Syria
Syria's MiG-21 and MiG-23 squadrons no longer have a chance to be replaced by the MiG-29
The collapse of the Soviet Union also forced post-Soviet Russia, severely reducing its MiG-29 fleet of 700 aircraft and put most of it in reserve
halting production lines and postponing plans to modernize the MiG-23
Syria today faces significant threats from its neighbors such as Turkey and Israel, both of which rely on F-16s and F-15s
Although the MiG-29 is well-suited to confront the F-16, Syria's MiG-29A fleet is greatly outdated
Syria received its first new MiG-29 aircraft from Russia in 2020
Previously Syria also ordered MiG-29SMT fighters, before the war broke out
The MiG-29SMT is a variant of the MiG-29A with integrated Zhuk-ME radar
which provides much higher situational awareness and allows to hit more targets at once
The MiG-29SMT has a larger airframe than the MiG-29A, holds more fuel, and the range is significantly extended
Powered by the RD-33 series 3 engines, however, it does not apply new composite materials like the MiG-29M
but overall is very similar to the original MiG-29A
In addition to the MiG-29SMT, Syria has also modernized its MiG-29A fleet
The aircraft were significantly modified in the 2000s to deploy the R-77 active radar-guided air-to-air missile with 'fire and forget' capability
which has a range similar to the Israeli AIM-120C missile
Recently, the Syrian MiG-29A has integrated the Belarusian advanced Talisman Airborne defense suite
a powerful electronic warfare system designed to protect the fighter from air-to-air and surface-to-air missiles
This system has been deployed since 2019
providing an electronic warfare advantage over the Turkish F-16, and closes the gap with the aircraft in the Israeli Air Force
Syria is also considering buying more advanced Russian fighter jets such as the MiG-35
but that will largely depend on whether its economy can recover from wartime damage
Economic viability will also determine the extent of Syria's MiG-29 fleet expansion
Given the huge size of the current MiG-23 fleet, Syria is likely to place very large orders for MiG-29s in the future
Western economic sanctions, however, have slowed efforts towards Syria's post-war economic recovery