06 - Farewell O' Lord of the Skies

The Indian Air Force is set to retire it's most secretive aircraft, the MiG-25R, codenamed 'Foxbat' by NATO. This is the great Cold War machine that entered IAF service in 1981 and flew many secrective reconnaissance missions over Pakistan and China. India has Eight MiG-25R variants and Two MiG-25U's for conversion training. These aircrafts made the 102 Trisonics squadron based in Bareilly.

Some interesting things about India's MiG-25 acquisition quoted fromAir Commodore Jasjit Singh's article in the Indian Express on April 16,2006.
"Two related points of interest. The MiG-25's were flown in dismantled state in the huge Antonov transport aircraft into Bareilly wee they were assembled. Western think tanks, especially SIPRI and London's IISS, promptly started to show the Antonov's as the new acquisition by India for Strategic airlift.
Worse analysis was to follow. The aircraft were assemled by Soviet engineers and tested by soviet pilots before the aircraft were formally handed over to IAF. In one of those flight tests, the aircraft crashed just after take-off, the pilot miraculously escaping with minor injuries. IAF was supplied with a replacement since legally is was still a Soviet aircraft.But word went round the western world that India was employing Soviet military advisers."

Data:------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Origin: USSR
Type:single-seat reconnaissance aircraft with limited precision bombing capability

Max Speed: 1,834 kt / 2,112 mph

Max Range: 900 km / 559 miles
Dimensions: span 13.418 m / 44 ft 0.25 inlength 23.82 m / 78 ft 1.8 inheight 6.10 m / 20 ft 0.2 in

Weight: empty 19,600 kg / 43.211 lbmax. take-off 33,400 kg /73,634 lb

Powerplant: two 11200-kg (24,691-Ib) afterburning thrust Tumanskii R-15BD-300 turbojets
Armament: four wing hardpoints for R-40, R-60, R-23 missiles
(India has the reconnaissance version without any weapons, since it did not need them. It can out-fly any fighter aircraft and is also faster than any missile.)