The MiG-23 and MiG-27 family of fighter aircraft, which is also known by the NATO codename "Flogger," used to be the most important single type of aircraft in the Warsaw Pact air forces. Large numbers of Floggers were built at high production rates, and substantial quantities were exported to countries outside of the Soviet Union. The first prototype, designated Ye-231, flew in 1967, and the MiG-23 entered operational status in 1971. Many different versions have been built, but all have more or less the same airframe, designed for a load factor of 7-8g and for operation from rough airstrips. The variable geometry wing gives the MiG-23 increased lift for take-off, and with the wings swept back at 72 degrees supersonic drag is greatly reduced. The aircraft is ideally configured for either an air-to-air interception using stand-off missiles, or for a low-level attack on surface targets. 18 countries have operated the MiG-23 over the past 20 years, including Cuba, Czechoslovakia, Egypt, Libya, Iraq, India, China, Poland, and Vietnam. Over 100 MiG-23's of the former German Democratic Republic were handed over to the West German air force after the country's reunification.

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In 1991, several of these aircraft were made available to the American military for flight testing and technical analysis. The MiG-23 Flogger saw combat during the Lebanon conflict in 1982, when Syrian MiG-23's shot down eight Israeli fighters. It was also used in Angola, South Africa, and during the Iraq-Iran conflict between 1980 and 1988. During Operation Desert Storm in 1991, an Iraqi MiG-23 downed an Italian 'Tornado' fighter bomber.