One secret mission in which America took part at the height of the Cold War would change how aerial combat training was done, radically improving the nation’s air superiority. This secret operation, dubbed Constant Peg, had as its objective the constitution of the 4477th TES “Red Eagles,” which would operate Soviet-designed aircraft to train US Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps fighter aircrews.
Constant Peg was initiated in 1977 as a response to the high losses experienced by US forces during the Vietnam War. Large, important parts of the USAF and USN had faced enemy aircraft, air-to-air missiles, and surface-to-air missiles, and the pressing need to correct critical deficiencies in dogfight training had been identified. The responses by the USAF and USN involved setting up specialized training programs comprising the first Aggressor squadrons, flying USAF aircraft but employing Soviet tactics. In this respect, the project Constant Peg was an evolution in which actual Soviet MiG aircraft were used.
The program was born of the initiative of a cadre of fighter pilots at the Fighter Weapons School, Nellis AFB, Nevada. Their ideas found some momentum at TAC headquarters and gained vital impetus at the Pentagon, among senior leadership including Maj Gen Hoyt “Sandy” Vandenberg, Jr., who contributed the radio call sign “Constant” for the program. Another key booster, Maj Gail Peck, finished the name off by adding “Peg,” for his wife Peggy’s nickname.
It built a secret airfield on the Tonopah Test Range in remote Nevada, where the Red Eagles flew MiGs by day, while the F-117 Nighthawk stealth fighter training took place at night. The USAF had already acquired and flown several MiGs in the classified Have Doughnut and Have Drill programs, which furnished the technical basis for Constant Peg. The MiG-17 and MiG-21 were the backbone of the fleet, joined sometime later by the MiG-23 in 1980.
Selection was held from some of the elite units such as the Air Force Fighter Weapons School, Navy Fighter Weapons School commonly known as Topgun, and Aggressor squadrons. Starting from 1977 until 1988, the squadron flew 69 pilots, each being provided with a unique “Bandit” number. The pilots studied classified sources profusely to master the MiGs and improve their training methods.
Because of the secrecy surrounding Constant Peg, many aircrew members did not know about the program until their first training mission. Initial exposure began with a radar intercept and form flight to familiarize pilots with MiG performance. Subsequent flights concentrated on basic maneuvers and one-on-one combat to emphasize MiG’s strengths and weaknesses. The final phase included two-vs-two air combat maneuvering and simulated dogfights emulating Soviet tactics.
Maintaining the MiGs was a big challenge as replacement parts were few and Soviet aircraft maintenance expertise was scarce. Unique techniques were developed by the maintainers to keep the fleet flying, treating each aircraft as a national treasure. In all, the program lost three Red Eagles: US Navy Lt Melvin “Hugh” Brown, USAF Capt Mark Postai, and USAF TSgt Rey Hernandez.
Constant Peg was stood down in 1988, and the 4477th TES was inactivated in 1990 as part of a funding drawdown at the end of the Cold War. During its ten-year operation, the Red Eagles amassed more than 15,000 sorties and trained nearly 6,000 US aircrew. Such training is, indeed, credited with contributing to the overwhelming success of American airpower during Operation Desert Storm, where USAF pilots destroyed 40 Iraqi fighter aircraft, including 12 MiG-21s and MiG-23s, without sustaining any losses from enemy aircraft.
Project Constant Peg’s legacy, coupled with that of the Red Eagles, stands finally as a tribute to the ingenuity, service, and devotion of those who served in this cloaked undertaking in which US aircrew training would pit them against defeat at the hands of Soviet-designed aerial threats.