The CEO of Russia’s Mikoyan aircraft company recently made some wild claims about the MiG-41 — the successor to the MiG-31 — saying it would fly in space, reach speeds of 2,800 mph, carry lasers, and more.

Despite these predictions, the MiG-41, if it’s made, would not be ready for deployment until between 2035 and 2040, which means the MiG-31 will be Russia’s main interceptor well into the 2030s.

And while these predictions are rather fanciful, they’re not impossible, given the MiG-31’s impressive capabilities.

Take a look at what the MiG-31 can do.

The MiG-31, which NATO calls Foxhound, made its first flight in 1975 and succeeded the MiG-25.  As an interceptor, the Foxhound was not made for dogfights but for defending Russia’s borders from enemy bombers, able to swoop in quickly and hit targets before jetting out. Unlike the MiG-25, it has a back seat for the weapons systems officer to operate the Zaslon radar. The Zaslon S-800 Passive Electronically Scanned Array radar was made to track low-flying bombers. It originally had a range of 125 miles, which Russia has since upgraded multiple times. The MiG-31 needs about 3,900 feet to take off.

Feature image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

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