The May issue of the specialized military aviation monthly British magazine Air Forces Monthly published an article entitled "One of a Kind" (one of a kind) dedicated to the Russian heavy fighter-interceptor MiG-31, which has a maximum flight speed of Mach 2, 8. Air Forces Monthly has been published regularly in the UK since 1988 and is based in Stamford. The interest of British journalists in the MiG-31 fighter-interceptor is quite understandable, they were interested in the new life of the aircraft, which again returned to the news pages as the carrier of Russia's new "superweapon" - the Dagger hypersonic missile.
Historical reference
Back in the late 1960s, the MiG Design Bureau began to create its first (and the first in the country) 4th generation fighter, which eventually became the E-155MP double fighter-interceptor, which was put into service under the designation MiG-31. The work on the design of the new aircraft was carried out in accordance with the decree of the Council of Ministers of the USSR of May 24, 1968. From the beginning of development and until 1976, the chief designer of the project was G. E. Lozino-Lozinsky. From 1976 to 1985 this project was headed by K. K. Vasilchenko, after him A. A. Belosvet, E. K. Kostrubsky, A. B. Anosovich, B. S. Losev.
Initially, the future interceptor was required to defeat a fairly wide range of air targets flying at low and high altitudes, including against the background of the earth in simple and difficult meteorological conditions, as well as when the enemy used maneuvering and active counteraction. The combat capabilities of the new fighter-interceptor were planned to be significantly expanded through the use of the latest electronic equipment, including a phased array radar (PAR). The introduction of a radar with a phased array on the MiG-31 fighter-interceptor was a great achievement for the entire design bureau and the world aircraft industry. The MiG-31 became the first serial fighter in the world to receive an airborne radar with a phased array. The avionics and armament installed on the aircraft made it possible for the MiG-31 to successfully intercept air targets of any type in the entire range of speeds and altitudes available for aerodynamic aircraft (including cruise missiles flying in terrain bend mode), with the ability to fire simultaneously 4 targets with long-range missiles.
The E-155MP was built according to the same scheme as the MiG-25P, but its crew already consisted of two people - a pilot and a navigator-operator, their jobs were located in the cockpit according to the "tandem" scheme. Serial production of the new interceptor was launched in Gorky (today Nizhny Novgorod). A new fighter under the designation MiG-31 was adopted as part of the S-155M interception system for service with the fighter aviation of the country's air defense forces, this happened on May 6, 1981.
Key features of the aircraft
During the development period in the late 1960s, only one thing was required from the new fighter-interceptor - to protect the Soviet Union from attacks by cruise missiles from submarines and strategic bombers from the vast expanses of the Far North and the Far East. The May issue of Air Forces Monthly magazine lists the following characteristics of the Russian MiG-31 heavy interceptor fighter. The aircraft has a maximum speed of Mach 2, 8, and the range at supersonic speed is 702 miles, at subsonic speed - 1620 miles. A unique feature of the fighter is called its set of weapons - air-to-air missiles with a range of 108 miles. At the same time, the MiG-31 could be used using a ground guidance station or in an autonomous mode.
The key and very important element of the MiG-31 fighter is the RP-31 (Zaslon, S-800) fire control system, which included the 8BV (N007) radar, the world's first airborne radar equipped with a passive phased antenna array (PFAR), as well as the APD-518 data exchange system, the 8TK heat direction finder and the 5U15K ground command system (Raduga-Bort-MB). The fire control system installed on the aircraft allowed pilots to simultaneously track up to 10 air targets and simultaneously attack up to 4 of them, regardless of their location. One of the targets could fly near the ground, the other in the stratosphere, and the missiles could be aimed at both targets. The crew included an armament navigator who sat behind the pilot and worked with the interceptor's armament and radar. The R-33 missile with a firing range of 65 miles was developed for the aircraft; a modification of this R-33S missile ("product 520") was equipped with a nuclear warhead. At the same time, the R-33 rocket was specially created for the MiG-31 interceptor; no other fighter could use this rocket.
Modernization of the MiG-31BM
In the first half of the 2000s, the Russian Air Force, together with RSK MiG, modernized the interceptor, which received the designation MiG-31BM and received improved missiles and radars. The first modernized MiG-31BM (tail number "58") made its first flight in September 2005, after which in December of the same year it was sent to Akhtubinsk for further tests. It was followed by the second (side number "59") and the third (side number "60") aircraft, in the design of which some modifications were made.
The first stage of state tests of the modernized interceptor was completed in November 2007, after which permission was obtained for the serial modernization of aircraft. The first to modernize the most recent MiG-31B, followed by the older MiG-31BS, which, after modernization, became known as the MiG-31BSM. In turn, the MiG-31BS were themselves a modernized version of the MiG-31 or MiG-31D3, which were in operation simultaneously with the later MiG-31B aircraft.
The first contract for the modernization of supposedly 8 MiG-31 interceptor fighters was placed by the Russian Ministry of Defense on April 1, 2006. On March 20 of the following year, two MiG-31BM aircraft were prepared at the Sokol plant in Nizhny Novgorod, which were transferred to the Air Force and were used to retrain pilots in Savasleika. A truly large contract for the modernization of 60 MiG-31B interceptors into the MiG-31BM version was signed with the Sokol plant in Nizhny Novgorod on August 1, 2011.
And on November 21, 2014, the UAC signed a second contract for the modernization of 51 more MiG-31 interceptor fighters. This contract in the period 2015-2018 was carried out jointly by Sokol and the 514th aircraft repair plant in Rzhev. At the same time, the enterprise from Rzhev was responsible for only a small part of the contract. For example, in 2014, 5 aircraft were revised here, in 2015 - two more aircraft. To date, almost all serviceable MiG-31 fighters have already undergone modernization, the rest should be modified to the MiG-31BM version by the end of 2018.
Radar
The main goal of modernizing fighter-interceptors was to increase their efficiency through the use of a modified radar (new modes and an increase in the operating range) and the use of new missiles. The modernized fire control system "Zaslon-AM" (S-800AM) includes an upgraded radar 8BM with a new processor "Baguette-55-06", which replaced the old "Argon-15A", it retained the passive phased antenna array, while the heat direction finder 8TK remained unchanged … It is stated that the detection range of targets of the "fighter" type of the updated radar is 130 miles, which is twice the capabilities of its predecessor. In addition, the radar can now track 24 air targets, and the fighter has the ability to fire at 6 air targets at the same time. The radar is being finalized by the manufacturer of the station.
The changes also affected the cockpit. So in the cockpit (front), 127x127 mm monitors appeared, which replaced the analog instruments located on the front panel. The rear cockpit received 152x203 mm monitors instead of screens on cathode ray tubes. In addition, the MiG-31BM fighter-interceptor was equipped with an upgraded R800L radio station and an improved navigation system that included the A737 satellite navigation receiver.
In the course of modernization, the airframe and aircraft engines did not undergo changes, however, the airframe life is extended to 30 years or 3500 flight hours. It cannot be ruled out that in the course of further scheduled repairs, the resource will still be extended. Externally, the modernized MiG-35BM can be distinguished from the older versions of the interceptor by the absence of a central pylon, which was previously intended for the suspension of the R-40TD missile. It was replaced by a more compact pylon for the suspension of the R-77-1 and R-73 missiles. These missiles can also be used from the second underwing pylon, which previously could only be used to suspend an external fuel tank. Another difference of the modernized version was the appearance of a periscope above the pilot's head. The maximum take-off weight of the MiG-31BM is 46 835 kg, the flight range is 1242 miles, but the conditions for achieving such a range are not disclosed.
Upgraded fighter-interceptor MiG-31BM (tail number "67 blue"), photo: April 2017 (c) Kirill M / russianplanes.net
New missiles
The armament of the MiG-31BM fighter-interceptors was supplemented with four R-37M missiles with a firing range of 108 miles. The prototype of the R-37M rocket (product 610M) was first launched from a fighter plane back in 2011, the state tests of this rocket were completed in 2014. The serial production of missiles is carried out by the Tactical Missile Armament Corporation JSC, this enterprise is located in Korolev. The missiles are equipped with the MFBU-610ShM homing head. In addition to them, the MiG-31BM can also carry four R-73 short-range missiles, which have come to replace the outdated R-60 missiles and R-40TD medium-range missiles.
It is expected that in the future, at the next stage of aircraft modernization, it will receive R-77-1 and K-77M medium-range missiles. The interceptor fighter will be able to carry four of these missiles on underwing pylons. And in the long term, the aircraft can receive missiles, so far known as "product 810", which are being developed for the fifth generation fighter Su-57. Then the software of the Zaslon radar will be updated; in addition, the possibility of installing a new heat direction finder on the aircraft is being considered. Finally, work is underway to create a new KSU-31 flight control system.
Where are the MiG-31 interceptor fighters available?
After the first flight of the prototype, which took place on September 16, 1975, the Sokol plant managed to produce 519 aircraft in 1976-1994. This number included 349 early MiG-31, 101 MiG-31D3 and 69 MiG-31B. Large-scale production of fighters continued until 1990, after which it stalled and finally ceased in 1994. The last interceptor left the plant in April 1994. The first combat unit to receive the new aircraft into service was the 786th Fighter Regiment, which was based in Pravdinsk (Gorkovskaya Oblast). It was declared fully operational in 1983.
Rocket R-37M (product 610M) - RVV-BD
Currently, about 130 MiG-31 aircraft are in service with the Russian Aerospace Forces, about 130 remain in storage, of which about 65 are located on the territory of the 514th Aircraft Repair Plant in Rzhev. The MiG-31 is in service with the regiments located in Kansk, Bolshoy Savino, Hotilovo, Monchegorsk, Elizovo, Tsentralny Uglovoe and Savasleika. In addition, about 10 more fighters are part of the 929th State Flight Test Center of the Russian Defense Ministry in Akhtubinsk.
The only operator of MiG-31 interceptor fighters outside of Russia is today Kazakhstan, which, after the collapse of the USSR, received 43 fighters in Zhana-Semey near Semipalatinsk. Currently, the Air Defense Forces of Kazakhstan have two squadrons of these interceptors, 12 aircraft each, they are part of the 610th aviation base in Karaganda. In the early 1990s, the Russian Federation was counting on the sale of aircraft to China, and the plant even started production of an export version of the MiG-31E aircraft. But in Beijing they decided to buy Su-27 fighters from Russia, after which the MiG-31E was unsuccessfully offered to Syria and Libya.
The presence of about 130 more MiG-31 aircraft in storage makes it possible to expand the number of aviation units armed with this interceptor in the future, but only if there is adequate funding. In the Russian Far East, it is planned to restore the 530th Fighter Aviation Regiment in Chuguevka. Since 1975, this regiment has flown on MiG-25 aircraft, and since 1988 - on MiG-31. The regiment was eliminated in 2009, and the squadron of serviceable MiG-31s was redeployed to the Tsentralnaya Uglovaya airfield, it was included in the unit based there. At the same time, the Chuguevka airfield is still used by the military from time to time. For example, satellite images of June 2016 recorded 11 MiG-31 fighters on it, most likely they were transferred here from the Tsentralnaya Uglovaya airfield during the exercise. Also, as part of its military presence in the Arctic, Russia is creating airfields for MiG-31 fighter-interceptors, including in Anadyr and Tiksi.
Future proposals
Several sources say that today RSK MiG is working on new modifications of the successful MiG-31 fighter-interceptor under the veiled designations "Product 06" and "Product 08". Perhaps one of these options is associated with the Dagger system. Another could be a new modification or a completely new fighter, for example, a satellite interceptor. In this regard, it can be recalled that 30 years ago, in January 1987, the MiG-31D (product 07) made its first flight. The aircraft was a carrier of the 79M6 anti-satellite missile. Together they formed the 30P6 Kontakt anti-satellite complex. In total, two prototypes of the MiG-31D fighter were produced. In 1991, work on the project and its further development of the MiG-31DM with the 95M6 rocket was discontinued. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, both prototypes of the new anti-satellite fighter ended up in Sary-Shagan in Kazakhstan, where they were examined.
Fighter MiG-31 (side number "93 red") with a missile complex "Dagger" (c) frame from the video of the Ministry of Defense of Russia
This concludes the material in Air Forces Monthly. It should be noted that the interest of foreign military publications in the MiG-31 is fully justified. The car was truly unique for its time. Considering that this was the first combat aircraft of the 4th generation in our country and the first production fighter in the world to receive a phased array radar. The combat potential of the modernized aircraft makes it possible to effectively solve the tasks assigned to them in the 21st century.
Separately, it is possible to single out the tests of the Dagger missile, for which the MiG-31 interceptor fighter became, in fact, a standard carrier. The West is interested in new Russian weapons, and hence the MiG-31BM fighter. Earlier on March 11, 2018, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced a successful combat training launch of a hypersonic aeroballistic missile of the Dagger complex from the MiG-31BM fighter-interceptor of the Russian Aerospace Forces. The launched missile successfully hit the target at the range. The Ministry of Defense noted that the MiG-31 took off from an airfield on the territory of the Southern Military District as part of an experimental combat duty (we are talking about the 929th State Flight Test Center of the Russian Ministry of Defense in Akhtubinsk).
According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, the crews of the Kinzhal aviation complex, which includes the MiG-31 fighter-interceptor and the latest hypersonic missile, have already completed 250 flights since the beginning of 2018. The personnel are ready to use these rockets in various weather conditions, day and night, the representatives of the department noted. The possibility of using such missiles significantly expands the capabilities of the MiG-31 fighter, extending its aviation life.
