Mikoyan MiG-29K / MiG-29KUB
The carrier-borne Fulcrum — folding wings, a tail hook and a second life with the Indian Navy · First flight 1988 (original) · 2007 (production) · In service 2010
The original MiG-29K first flew on 23 July 1988 at Saky, and on 1 November 1989 it made a landing on the carrier Tbilisi (today's Admiral Kuznetsov). The Soviet Navy, however, chose the Su-27K (Su-33), and after the Soviet collapse the programme survived only on Mikoyan's own funds.
India's 2004 decision to buy the carrier Admiral Gorshkov, rebuilt as INS Vikramaditya, revived it. The redesigned two-seat MiG-29KUB first flew on 20 January 2007 and the single-seat MiG-29K on 25 June 2007. The Indian Navy ordered 16 aircraft in 2004 (12 K, 4 KUB) and 29 more in 2010, 45 in all; deliveries began in December 2009 and the jets entered service in February 2010.
Indian MiG-29Ks fly from INS Vikramaditya and the home-built INS Vikrant, where one made a first night landing on 26 May 2023. The Russian Navy announced an order for 20 MiG-29KR and 4 MiG-29KUBR in 2012 to fly from Admiral Kuznetsov. Production ended in 2020.
