Post by Admin on Nov 7, 2019 15:40:02 GMT -5
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The Foxhound emerged as an attempt to improve on a somewhat disappointing predecessor, the MiG-25 Foxbat. The twin-engine Foxbat remains the fastest flying operational fighter, able to attain speeds over Mach 3 and fly up to 70 thousand feet in order to counter the U.S. XB-70 Valkyrie supersonic bomber, which did not end up entering production. The Foxbat enjoyed an inflated reputation in Western aviation circles until Soviet defector Victor Belenko flew one over to Japan in 1976, allowing the Pentagon to discover what the Soviets had long been aware of—for all of its speed, the Foxbat was a bit of a dog when it came to maneuverability and could not maintain supersonic speeds at low altitude. Furthermore, it could attain Mach 3 speeds only by burning its engines out beyond their heat tolerance.
The MiG-31 retains the Foxbat’s high-altitude performance, though it is a bit slower at Mach 2.83—still faster than any operation Western fighters today. More importantly, it can fly up to Mach 1.23 at low altitude—which the MiG-25 cannot. This makes it ideal for hunting ground-skimming cruise missiles and fighter bombers.
Nonetheless, the Foxhound is not highly maneuverable, and cannot safely pull more than 5Gs while flying supersonic. The MiG-31 would not fare well in air-to-air engagements against contemporary fighters such as the F-15—but that’s simply not what it was designed to do. The Foxhound is intended to close on intruders at high speeds, fire off its missiles and disengage.
The Foxhound emerged as an attempt to improve on a somewhat disappointing predecessor, the MiG-25 Foxbat. The twin-engine Foxbat remains the fastest flying operational fighter, able to attain speeds over Mach 3 and fly up to 70 thousand feet in order to counter the U.S. XB-70 Valkyrie supersonic bomber, which did not end up entering production. The Foxbat enjoyed an inflated reputation in Western aviation circles until Soviet defector Victor Belenko flew one over to Japan in 1976, allowing the Pentagon to discover what the Soviets had long been aware of—for all of its speed, the Foxbat was a bit of a dog when it came to maneuverability and could not maintain supersonic speeds at low altitude. Furthermore, it could attain Mach 3 speeds only by burning its engines out beyond their heat tolerance.
The MiG-31 retains the Foxbat’s high-altitude performance, though it is a bit slower at Mach 2.83—still faster than any operation Western fighters today. More importantly, it can fly up to Mach 1.23 at low altitude—which the MiG-25 cannot. This makes it ideal for hunting ground-skimming cruise missiles and fighter bombers.
Nonetheless, the Foxhound is not highly maneuverable, and cannot safely pull more than 5Gs while flying supersonic. The MiG-31 would not fare well in air-to-air engagements against contemporary fighters such as the F-15—but that’s simply not what it was designed to do. The Foxhound is intended to close on intruders at high speeds, fire off its missiles and disengage.