Video: See Russia’s MiG-31 Supersonic Assassin Do What It Does Best

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Home defense and interception.

byMark Episkopos

Key point: From its inception in the early 1980’s through to the present day, the MiG-31 has been the fastest aircraft to serve in the formerly Soviet and now Russian Air Force.

From mounting hypersonic Kinzhal missiles to deploying anti-satellite technology, the Russian Air Force has big plans for their MiG-31 fighter.

Recently released exercise footage of MiG-31’s intercepting an “intruder” in the stratosphere sheds further light on the capabilities and intended role of its latest incarnation, the MiG-31BM.

The clip, released by the Russian Ministry of Defense, depicts a typical home defense scenario. An older MiG-31 variant played the role of a surveillance aircraft collecting data in Russian airspace. Two 31BM’s were then dispatched to intercept the intruder after being alerted to its presence by ground-based radar systems. The 31BM’s located and successfully targeted the intruder with “mock air-to-air missiles” at a distance of 150 km.