Libyan MiG-29s displayed with pilots
One of the two MiG-29s displayed at Benina Air Base with tail of the second visible behind. (General Command of the Libyan Arab Armed Forces)
The Libyan Arab Armed Forces (LAAF) that controls eastern Libya has implied that it now has pilots trained to fly the MiG-29 fighters that Russia deployed to the country more than six years ago.
The apparent pilots were seen in photographs and a video released by the LAAF on 2 November to show a visit by Khalid and Saddam Haftar, the sons of LAAF leader Khalifa Haftar, to Benina Air Base outside Benghazi.
The brothers inspected a line-up of aircraft that included two MiG-29s, two Su-24s, two MiG-23s, two MiG-21s, and at least one L-39. Men dressed as aircrew stood in front of the aircraft, including the MiG-29s.
At least two of the Su-24 crew previously appeared in a video released in May 2021 to announce that Libyan pilots had graduated on the type. One wore a badge for Squadron 1124, a unit that flew Su-24s before the 2011 civil war.
The MiG-29s arrived to support the LAAF as it retreated in mid-2020 after the failure of its offensive to capture Tripoli. US Africa Command (AFRICOM) said on 18 June 2020 that at least 14 MiG-29s and several Su-24s had arrived in Libya from Russia. AFRICOM then reported in September 2020 that two MiG-29s flown by Russian contractors had crashed in Libya.
It is unclear how many of these aircraft are in still in Libya as it is possible some of the Su-24s were transferred to Mali, where at least one has crashed and two continue to support the Russian Africa Corps.
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