United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) has delivered the “first batch” of the MiG-31BM fighter jet to the Russian Air Force in 2024. The short statement did not list the number of aircraft, but only provided an image of the massive fighter plane.
Developed in the 1970s as a replacement for the MiG-25 ‘Foxbat’, the MiG-31 ‘Foxhound’ is not as fast as its predecessor, but it had a much greater combat capacity as well as greater autonomy.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the MiG-31 was still in production until 1994, with just over 500 aircraft completed.
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Born for the Cold War theater, the MiG-31 found new missions as a long-range attack aircraft, in addition to having its primary role, interception, improved with the introduction of the MiG-31BM variant.
The upgrade program began in 2008 with the addition of a new, more capable radar, more modern avionics and more efficient missiles, especially the R-37M, with a range of 400 km.
As there is no longer an assembly line, UAC has been recovering old aerostructures previously stored to reinforce the Russian Air Force.
In the conflict with Ukraine, which began after the Russian military invasion of the country in February 2022, the MiG-31 has been responsible for in-depth attacks on targets on the ground.
A derivative of the MiG-31BM, the MiG-31K, is used to launch the Kinzhal hypersonic air-to-ground missile.
