Few aircraft have intrigued, unnerved, and confused as many as the Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-25 “Foxbat” did. During the Cold War, Western espionage analysts studying grainy surveillance photos thought they were looking at a Soviet super-aircraft: tremendous wingspan, huge intakes, and a shape that seemed cut to order for blistering speed.
To U.S. officials, it appeared to be an invincible fighter, one that outranked anything in the American arsenal. Merely looking at it helped hasten production on the McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle. But under the intimidating silhouette was a vehicle with unusually targeted strengths—and glaring defects.
A Plane Designed to Counter a Particular Fear
The MiG-25 was not built to reign supreme in dogfights or spend hours prowling as a sentry. It was formed in direct response to a very particular problem: the emergence during the late 1950s and early 1960s of Mach 2-and-better American supersonic bombers, such as the B-58 Hustler and the XB-70 Valkyrie prototype.
These planes boasted a cruise speed of Mach 2 or better, far faster than the Soviet interceptors of the period. Because of this, Soviet engineers required something new: a high-speed, high-altitude intercept that would take off from the ground, destroy a nuclear bomber before it could drop its payload, and return to base in a hurry. Endurance, maneuverability, and multifunctionality were secondary considerations.
When Brute Force Meets Engineering
The Foxbat was built out of practical necessity. Rather than exotic titanium alloys, its airframe was predominantly nickel-steel, selected to resist the heat of prolonged speeds at more than Mach 2.8. This rendered the aircraft strong but heavy, and seriously restricted its maneuverability.
Two powerful Tumansky R-15B-300 turbojet engines delivered the power. They imparted the MiG-25 incredible speed—up to Mach 2.83 for long-range flight, and even above Mach 3 in emergency sprints (though this would destroy the engines). The drawback was efficiency: the plane consumed fuel at a phenomenal rate, leaving it with only a fleeting combat radius of a few hundred miles. Also, the high-speed flights took their toll on the engines.
The MiG-25 set records, reaching heights of more than 123,000 feet and speed milestones. But these statistics concealed the fact: the jet could just barely tolerate 4.5 Gs, which made it a bad choice against highly maneuverable fighters. Its RP-25 “Smerch-A” radar was impressive, but it was unable to detect low-flying targets—an Achilles’ heel once Western bombers began using low-altitude attacks.
Cold War Showdowns and Stories of Combat
Combat experience was mixed for the MiG-25 on the battlefield. Reconnaissance models were highly successful, operating at speeds and altitudes that enemy fighter aircraft were unable to match. During the Iran-Iraq War and the Gulf War, Iraqi MiG-25s were able to shoot down a few Western aircraft, including a U.S. Navy F/A-18. They also lost some, and their vulnerabilities were discovered against advanced fighters such as the F-15.
The Foxbat’s mystique was dispelled in dramatic style on September 6, 1976, when Soviet pilot Viktor Belenko defected to Japan flying his MiG-25. Skimming low to evade radar and finally landing on almost depleted fuel, Belenko brought one of the Cold War’s greatest intelligence coups.
A Shattered Myth
Examination of Belenko’s aircraft was sobering to the West. Anything but a titanium-clad super-fighter, the MiG-25 was grossly overweight, employed vacuum-tube electronics, and had engines that could not safely maintain their maximum velocities. Its radar was old, and its missiles were no match for the U.S. SR-71 Blackbird, which routinely outclimbed and outlew Foxbats. Soviet pilots, Belenko disclosed, were instructed not to fly faster than Mach 2.5 in normal operations. The SR-71, on the other hand, appeared to mock the MiG-25s dispatched to intercept it—flying higher, faster, and uncatchable.
Legacy of the Foxbat
All things considered, the MiG-25 left a lasting legacy. It was a fighter built to counter a threat—the high-altitude supersonic bomber—that never became the focus of U.S. strategy. Its weaknesses had an impact on the design of its replacement, the MiG-31 Foxhound, which addressed many of the Foxbat’s issues with better avionics and armament.