MiG-3s with standard temperate camouflage profiles summary

updated on April 13, 2023

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The introduction of bands camouflage painted on in factory looks to have been more or less contemporary to the war outbreak and to the introduction of the late type MiG-3.
While the aircraft were probably painted AII green and light blue when still disassembled, the darker bands were painted on already assembled planes, and don't show interruptions on panel lines; the quick fading of the AII green visible on German photos of solid-green painted aircraft is not visible on camouflaged aircraft, perhaps because it is covered by camo bands, and/or because few operative MiG-3s had a life long enough to fade.
Two colors are known to be used to paint darker bands:

It is difficult to distinguish black bands from dark green bands on bw wartime photos; this is probably due to the quick fading of the black, to dust or to the use of thinned black paint over green background.
Some wrecks (not of MiG-3s) in Finnish museums seem to show the use of black green paint, unknown on Soviet sources and possibly made by mixing black with green paint.
The use of dark green looks to have been more common during the summer of 1941, while the use of black looks more common during fall and winter 1941.
The camo bands on the wings appear forthemost longitudinal from the leading to the back edge; few images show different, Spitfire-like oblique and interrupted bands.
The red stars were forthemost in six positions: fuselage sides, tail, wing undersurfaces.
Originally the red stars were plain or with a thin black outline; occasionally white outlines were seen in 1941/42; the use of wide white outlines was generalized in 1943/44, when MiG-3s were no longer used on first line units.

Click on each profile to see a bigger drawing with photos and comments
 

 

MiG-3s of 7 IAK, Leningrad front

 

MiG- early No. 04, Cap. Polyakov, 7 IAP, Leningrad front, June 1941

MiG-3 early No. 40(?)-6, probably 7 IAP, Leningrad front, summer 1941

MiG-3 early No. 42 of 7 IAP,  Leningrad front, October 1941

MiG-3 early No. 67 of 7 IAP,  Leningrad front, summer 1941

MiG-3 late No. 67 of 34 IAP, Leningrad 1941/42

MiG-3 late No. 19 (?) of 162 IAP, Leningrad 1941/42

MiG-3 early No. 77, unknown unit, PARM No.1, Leningrad 1941

 

MiG-3s '14 and over' , unknown unit on the Western front, summer-fall 1941

MiG-3 early White 14, unknown unit, 1941

MiG-3 early White 19, unknown unit, 1941

 

MiG-3s of 72 SAP/2 GSAP of VVS-SF at Vayenga airport

MiG-3 White 31 of 72 SAP/2 GSAP VVS-SF, Vayenga, 1941/42

MiG-3 White 77 of 72 SAP/2 GSAP VVS-SF, Vayenga, 1941/42

 

Moscow front

MiG-3 early of 177 IAP, summer 1941

MiG-3 early of capt. Lipilin,  41 IAP, July 1941

MiG-3 early of 38 PAE

MiG-3 late "smert nemetskim okkupantam!" of 162 IAP

MiG-3 late Blue 1 of 162 IAP

MiG-3 early 'Zebra' of Lt.Baikov of 34 IAP, March 1942

 

MiG-3 late n.4, unknown unit, Moscow front

 

MiG-3 late n.46,unknown regiment of 6 IAK, Moscow 1941

MiG-3 late White 64 of 11 IAP PVO, June 1943.

 

42 IAP, Moscow Front

 

MiG-3 late 'ZA RODINU' of 42 IAP, Moscow front, 1941

MiG-3 late 'ZA STALINA' of 42 IAP, Moscow front, 1941

 

120 IAP/12 GIAP

MiG-3 73-5 of 120 IAP, late 1941

MiG-3 of Capt. Kryukov, 12 GIAP, 1942

 

122 IAP, spring/summer 1942

'Za Rodinu' of 122 IAP, summer 1942

'Za Partii Bolshevikov' of 122 IAP, spring 1942

 

351 IAP, 1943

 
 
   

 

Black Sea Fleet (ChF)

 

 MiG-3 white 1 of Black Sea Fleet 62 IAP VVS ChF

MiG-3 white 5 of 8 IAP VVS Chf,  1942.

MiG-3 white 12 of 7 IAP  ChF, Gelendzhik airfield, 1943

MiG-3 white 28 of 7 IAP  ChF, Gelendzhik airfield, 1943

MiG-3 white 28 of 7 IAP  ChF, Gelendzhik airfield, 1943

 

 

Miscellaneous

MiG-3 late Blue 5, perhaps 34 IAP, late 1941

 

MiG-3 late Blue 5, unknown unit, spring 1942

MiG-3 late rough 28, unknown unit, fall 1941.

MiG-3 late n.4, unknown unit, probably spring 1942

MiG-3 late, Red 1, with tail skid, unknown unit, winter 1941-42