MiG navy fighter (electromagnetic catapult)

[Sundog]

This was a picture in Koku Fan that MiG reportedly showed at an airshow in the early 90's. The Koku Fan issue was from 1993. I don't know if it was just a design study or something built and tested, but this is all I ever saw of this plane. There are a few pages showing bad drawings of the model in the issue, but this was the only actual picture of the model.

It's obvious that they are wondering if it's the MiG 1-42, based on the limited english in the text. Perhaps it was built just for dis-information regarding the 1.42?

This is a link to a large picture of it.

 

[Matej]

This is a serious research model from thousands studied during MFI development. Note that it has the same wing shape as F-15. My opinion is that it was abadoned because of the air inlets position. They are optimalised for stealthy cruise and because of LERX, they are not very usefull during hight AOA. Oblong things on the ground are part of magnetic take-off runway. This was a frequently used solution by MiG in mid 80s (see picture).

 

[Deino]

Thanks for posting as this picture reveals much more detail than the previous blurred one !

Regarding the title "MiG Stealth Fighter" it was exactly the same I thought when I saw that model some years ago as it looks much more like a fighter-bomber than a fighter esp. a concept for the MFI. The only other possibility I could think of is aconfiguration for the 1.701 long range successor to the MiG-31 ... maybe others here know more !

Deino

 

[Sundog]

Thanks for the info on the magnetic runway. I haven't heard of that before. I had just thought that was a fancy backdrop on the model!

Yeah, when I first saw the model, I thought it must not be maneuvering much because the vortex off of the LERX will be heading right down the inlet at small AOA, unless they were thinking that that vortex isn't too strong until it's at High AOA, in which case the main part of the vortex is above and outside the inlet. However, it would still change the airflow at the face of the inlet and it would be downward towards the fuselage. So maybe they were thinking the vortices would "feed" the inlets at high AOA. Either way, it's still a risky design, IMHO.

It looks very cool, though.

 

[Gavin]

it looks much more like a fighter-bomber than a fighter, esp. a concept for the MFI.

Exactly. We shouldn't automatically assume that this design had anything to do with the MFI or any other known project. To me, what's most interesting about this model is that it shows that MiG had more knowledge about stealth than was suggested by the design of the MiG-1.42.

--Gavin.

 

[paralay]

It is model of an electromagnetic catapult, that is it is a deck airplane.
And not a stealth, it is simple for activity of an electromagnetic catapult the smooth lower surface of a fuselage is necessary.

 

[hesham]

My dears,

I just ask, I see a design to MiG called MiG-55,is that a really
project or not ? and if it is real,is it a stealth aircraft or not ?.

 

[paralay]

The forecast from paralay.

Perspective fighters, black-and-white picture of 1991, forecast MiG 1.42 and the future MiG is shown.
Color picture - perspective MiG.

 

[Deino]

... but why with VG-wings ?? ... even if they look better than the F-15-like wing design !

Thanks for posting, Deino ;D

 

[Matej]

My dears,

I just ask, I see a design to MiG called MiG-55,is that a really
project or not ? and if it is real,is it a stealth aircraft or not ?.

Probably you mean this:

http://www.military.cz/russia/air/mig/Mig-56/mig-56.htm

It is a joke written by my friend.

 

[Matej]

-

 

[elmayerle]

Actually, going on some reports of Northrop wind-tunnel studies in teh seventies, with a proper tailoring of the LERX, the inlets could work at high AOA. Interestingly enough, furhter papers on that line of study stopped appearing after 1980.

 

[Matej]

Four years later, our/my knowledge goes once again one step forward. Paralay is right, its the one of the MiG studies for the naval plane for the - then proposed - new generation of the Soviet aircraft carriers. It means not specifically part of the MFI, but part of the I-90 general effort.One piece of the puzzle in the war with the Sukhoi and its Su-33 and Su-27KM. In MiG they always believed, that the MiG-29 sized fighter is much better choice for the soviet needs than the heavier Su-27. The truth always finds you - current MiG-29K suggests, that they were finally right.

 

[Grey Havoc]

I wonder if MiG has done any work on Lithium-Aluminium alloys recently, like the one used in the original MiG-29M?

 

[flateric]

found some traces
R&D program has rather unconventional name - Shampun' (Shampoo)

 

[The Artist]

This was a picture in Koku Fan that MiG reportedly showed at an airshow in the early 90's. The Koku Fan issue was from 1993. I don't know if it was just a design study or something built and tested, but this is all I ever saw of this plane. There are a few pages showing bad drawings of the model in the issue, but this was the only actual picture of the model.

It's obvious that they are wondering if it's the MiG 1-42, based on the limited english in the text. Perhaps it was built just for dis-information regarding the 1.42?

This is a link to a large picture of it.

Funny that this thread popped into my view today. I have this issue (December 1993) and I was just looking at this picture this morning. I don't think this was a real concept model and here's why. When I look at this picture I see an inverted, heavily modified F-18 (Early - maybe ESCI) with the cockpit placed over the nose gear well and wings from a smaller scale F-15 kit added. The forward section might even have an F-16 nose grafted on in place of the F-18 cockpit and nose. From what I can see of the verticals, they could be F-16 horizontals. To my eye, the drawings in the article are only suggestive of this model. I'll try scanning those drawings sometime in the next few days.