Mig-25 vs SR-71

Specs for
1) MiG-25 Foxbat-A (Purpose built interceptor)

Max speed- Mach 3.2, probably Mach2.8 with missiles.
Combat radius- 900Miles (1450Km)
Engines- 2X27,007lb (12,250Kg) thrust Tumansky R-31 Turbojets.
Weapons- 2X Apex and Aphid or AA-11 or 4X Acrid Missiles.
Ceiling- 80,000ft
Max takeoff Weight- 82,500lb (37,425Kg)w
2) SR-71A

Max Speed- Classified but Mach3+
Range- 2982 miles (4800Km)
Engines2X 34,000lb (15,422Kg) thrust P&W JT11D-20B (J58 type) Turbojets.
Weapons- none. Proposed armed variant neversaw production.
Ceiling- Classified but 80,000ft+

Source Taylor, Micheal. Modern Military Aircraft.

My conclusion is that the Sltealthy and extremely quick SR-17A would be a difficult aircraft to intercept and engage whith much of such an engagement relying upon the control support recieved by the MiG-25 pilot.
Even if a target soluion was reached the countermeasures on board the SR-71A would stand a fair chance of frustrating it depending upon the skill of the crew. This question relies upon many factors which cannot be answered by observing the charachteristics of the aircraft alone. I hope the specs i found might fuel the speculative process however.
It is important also to remember that the MiG-25 was nowhere as sophisticated as the SR-71A. It was basically 2 huge engines ttatched to an airframe and some hardware.
Personally I woulds feel safe in the 71.

I will go on a limb and assure you that the SR-71 has overflown every adversary and with todays tech, will NEVER be shot down by another aircraft. Unknown SAM *maybe*. Who knows?????

The Mig-25 has been and will always be antiquated. I have met Victor Belenko. His opinion, The jet was built to TRY to stop overflights by the SR-71. It was a pure interceptor. It to this day could not come close enough to the Blackbird to shoot it down.

Scott Crossfield ( X-15 driver ) has a hanger next to ours at JYO, Leesburg MUNI. He and my dad are Air Force buddies and what a great source of knowledge he has. The X-15 though rocket powered proved the flight characteristics for the SR. The escape capability of the *old* ramjets on the Blackbird were close to space ( Could the scramjet test be for the public?? ) Think about it. The F-104 with a rocket could Zoom to 180k. Yeager busted up and burnt the snot out of his face because of the LOX and the seal on the mask started to burn. I am NOT a fan of General Yeager. He is full of embellished stories and if you meet him he will tell you that and that his book was the same. But, what he proved was the *sound barrier* was not a wall, deamons did not exist and Riddley had Beemans. More importaintly was the proof that a high wing tail as on the 104 with an AOA of 39degrees would stop flow and cause a flat spin. Hence delta wings on the fastest. Airflow on the wing is importaint. Colonel Tim O'Keefe proved the same thing could happen in an F-15 in the Gulf of Mexico from Eglin, flat spin with a student. They ejected, thank God. Compare the wing head on of a Blackbird to a seagull. Maybe the avian inhabitants of Earth know something????? Birds have NO CG.

I am about finished with my LancairIIP. If I knew how to change the wing to a delta design I would.

Don't forget. ORIENT EXPRESS



[edit on 11/18/2004 by just_a_pilot]

because, you don't hear the americans talking about their finds in books, only a few of them, and, using an SR-71 now is kinda dangerous now that Russia has the AA-12 Adder, ther is no way that the SR can outrun it, plus, u won't really be able to move away from it because of the SR-71's horrible maneuverability stats when flying at Mach 3(but this is common to ALL planes, including the MiG-25 and 31)the Adder goes at Mach 4.5, lol, i don't know why, but i find it kinda funny

You are ASSUUUUMING that the SR can only go Mach 3.5. I know different.

The AADER cannot outmanuever........nevermind.

End of discussion for me. Im gonna get in trouble on this web site.

[edit on 11/18/2004 by just_a_pilot]

okay, u are obviously overstating its facts, sure, it may be able to go over Mach 3.5, whoop ti do,i can just as esily say that a MiG-25 or a MiG-31 can do the same, jeeze, plz, stick to something reasonably, the insie of the plane was corrugated, andn when it went at a speed of Mach 3, the corrugations spread almost a foot, any faster, and the plane will rip apart(i mean it can go like to Mach2.3, maybe 2.4) but not over Mach 4, comon be reasonable

when u said that the Adder cannot outmaneuver..........................nevermind

really, i don't mean to be rude, but are u joking, a plane going at Mach 3.2, can barelypull 4 G's withput breaking into millions of pieces, plus, the Adder has thrust vectoring, i recently read something, it said that a MiG-25 going at Mach 3 can only take on 2 G's, and a SR.71 can only take 3 or 4, forgot now, comon, please be reasonably, i don't want to start flaming, already been kicked out of 7 forums this week for flaming

No, continue please. I agree with your position on the subject, my uncle was a U2 mechanic and for reasons I "can't mention" I believe the Blackbirds true speed and altitude might not be publicly known for some time.

I can't. Guess this costs me *points*. As for manuevering, think tilting seats.

[edit on 11/18/2004 by just_a_pilot]

This is my first post, but I have seen the SR-71 engines in real life, living next to pratt and whitney and working for one of their sister companies. And I want to say, just look at the SR-71, just look at it. Now look at a Mig-25, F-15, F-16, or anything else. They all look like airplanes the SR-71 looks like a spacecraft. Giant engines, movable spikes, ramjets, special fuel, super sleek design, who here for a minute really believes that all this was necessary to fly just as fast as any other airplane of the day or today. Bull#. That plane screamed across the sky, faster than anything built previously or since except the space shuttle. In the time it would take to get a fighter ready for launch, the SR-71 pilots would be eating lunch on the ground. End of story. Nothing has ever shot one down. In The Hunt for Zero Point he also talks about SR-71's toying with the Mig-25's. Letting them catch up, and then just giving them the shock diamond goodbye.

Well all I have to say at this point MX is BRAVO! Sierra Hotel and the SR is no way near FUBAR.

I've read in a book that an SR-71 vanished in flight during the coldwar and till this day it has NEVER been seen again has anyone read/heard about this before I'll try and find that book again?

[edit on 18-11-2004 by SiberianTiger]

[edit on 18-11-2004 by SiberianTiger]

I have never heard of that. If that was true, it would be everywhere. But let me guess, they were doing mach 2 being chased by the Russians in their inferior fighters which needed to trash their engines just to be mildly competitive, and while crossing through the Bermuda triangle were abducted by aliens because they were mad we were using their stolen Roswell technology.

An SR-71 has never been lost. Now as for the CIA planes, who really knows... but I say no. The SR-71 and its CIA sister had to be closely tracked in flight because of refueling tanker placement. If one came apart in flight we would have known exactly where it would have gone down, and its disappearence would not have been a mystery.

No SR-71 has ever been lost. Crash??

Dude do you here your self YES it IS 100% possible to keep it a secret, and you called Rus planes inferrior U.S.A. didn't spend $5 Trillion durring the "HIGHT" of the cold war to "COUNTER" an "INFERIOR" Military, so your statement is silly but keep it up AMERIKKANNA it will make it easier for MIGHTY RUS to crush you in WW3.

Turned out you were all inflatable tanks and unshielded reactors. And we were able to spend that money and come out with some usable technology. Where is the Russian SR-71? Where is the Russian (working) space shuttle? Whose space shuttle did that look like anyways... Could have at least painted it a different color. All it does is piggyback around anyways.

Great book - i'm reading that right now

I remember Cook saying that the competitor of the Blackbird was revealed to be a Mach 6 125,000+ft spy plane and it lost! I'm not an USAF insider or anything, but if that plane LOST to the blackbird, then the SR-71 must have been able to come at least close to those figures. Hell, it may not beat them and may have won the comp because of longer range or payload, but any idiot can figure out that what the SR-71 is capable of will not be known untill those capabillities can be matched by weapons and airframes of other nations.

LOL, the Russian Buran is for sale at Buran.

I wonder what the final speed numbers will show. Man what style that plane had though. Shows us how far away we are from the Aurora being uncovered. The SR-71 is still very secret. Funny. A true testament to the military men and women involved though. No real leaks in all these years and all the hands involved and knowing how fast it really went. Now that is operational security.

Wow, the Buran really is for fractional sale!! Now makes me wonder if I should stop chasing a fractional in a Cessna....

SR-71's toying with the Mig-25's. Letting them catch up, and then just giving them the shock diamond goodbye.