At the Army – 2022 exhibition, Russia will present a new MiG capable of launching spacecraft
The new version of the MiG-31I is designed to launch small spacecraft into orbit, thanks to which the Russian Air Force will receive unique capabilities, writes MWM. The MiG-31 glider has no equal abroad in carrying capacity, size, speed and altitude.
According to the Russian state agency TASS, the new MiG-31I will be presented at the international military-technical forum "Army – 2022", where advanced novelties are demonstrated. This year the forum will be held from August 15 to 22. The aircraft will appear together with the MiG-31BM/ BSM interceptor, on the basis of which it was created. To date, over 100 units are in service with the Russian Air Force. It is reported that the new version is designed to launch small spacecraft into orbit, thanks to which the Russian Air Force will receive unique capabilities.
The MiG-31 is the heaviest class of tactical combat aircraft in the world, and its long range, high payload, unsurpassed speed and altitude have long made it an ideal platform for launching both satellites and anti—satellite weapons. Work on a modification for anti-satellite warfare began in the 1980s (MiG-31D), but with the collapse of the Soviet Union stopped. In the mid-2010s, work resumed, and the first MiG-31 equipped for anti-satellite warfare was first seen in 2018. The MiG-31 airframe was also used to develop the most powerful strike fighter in the world in a number of parameters — the MiG-31K, which entered service at the end of 2017 and carries the X-47M2 hypersonic ballistic missile with a speed of Mach 10 and a range of 2,000 km. In 2022, the fighter took part in combat for the first time, hitting targets in Ukraine near NATO territory.
Following the MiG-31K and the revived anti-satellite variant, which still bears the designation MiG-31D, the MiG-31I will further expand the range of functions of this glider in service with Russia. In addition, it may increase interest in the MiG-31 abroad — both from Kazakhstan, which already operates this class, and from new customers with their own space programs. At the same time, the aircraft can potentially have both civilian and military applications. The MiG-31 glider has no equal abroad in carrying capacity, size, speed and altitude, while Russia is increasingly using its potential — partly to compensate for the lack of post-Soviet-designed aircraft in its fleet.
The MiG-31 interceptor fleet has also been significantly upgraded since the beginning of the 2010s: the aircraft has not only improved situational awareness, but also received standard weapons of unsurpassed range in the world (the P-37M with a warhead mass of 60 kg can hit targets at a distance of 400 km). In addition, new features continue to be introduced — for example, compatibility with new classes of defensive infrared missiles. This indicates a high priority of new opportunities, since MiGs provide protection of particularly important facilities in the Kaliningrad region, the Arctic and Syria. Since its immediate successors, the MiG-31M and MiG 702, were canceled in the 1990s due to lack of funds (and the first one was already in a state of readiness), a replacement is currently being developed already under the PAK DP program. However, given the expanding range of roles, the MiG-31 may remain in service until the 2030s, if not later. At the same time, the aircraft will be used to deliver ballistic missiles and conduct space warfare, regardless of whether interceptors will be replaced or not.
