Fighter Sweep
  • Home
  • Military Aviation
  • Air Force
  • Navy
  • Spec Ops
  • Expert Analysis
  • Careers
  • Photos
  • Contact
  • Shop
Home Previous Post Next Post
Follow @fightersweep

Claiming the Arctic: Russia to begin sending intercept fighters on North Pole patrols

February 8, 2019
Alex Hollings No Comments Military Aviation, News

For the first time since the Cold War, Russia has announced plans to begin flying regular fighter patrols over the North Pole with an eye toward intercepting American military aircraft.

According to sources within the Russian Ministry of Defense, two squadrons of MiG-31BM intercept fighters will be tasked with conducting routine patrol operations over the North Pole. In a previous era, these flights were meant to provide Russia with the means to intercept and shoot down nuclear-capable bombers launched by the United States, but despite degrading tensions between the U.S. and Russia in recent years, it’s unlikely that preventing a nuclear strike is what Russia has in mind with these flights. Instead, the patrols will be launched from both eastern (European Arctic region) and western (Siberia) Arctic airstrips to enable Russia to control the airspace spanning north from mainland Siberia to the North Pole.

One squadron, hailing from Russia’s 317th Composite Air Regiment, will be stationed at the Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky Yelizovo airport in northwestern Siberia. The other, part of the 98th Guards Reconnaissance Aviation Regiment, will fly out of Monchegorsk Airfield in the Murmansk region of Russia near Finland.

The aircraft tasked with these patrols, MiG-31BM interceptors, are among the fastest fighters ever to take to the sky. They were originally built to not only engage America’s slow and steady heavy-payload bombers, but to also chase down the SR-71 Blackbird reconnaissance aircraft (the fastest military aircraft in history). As a result of these very specific goals, the MiG-31 developed into a Mach 2.83-capable platform (approximately 2,171 miles per hour). At top speed, the MiG could theoretically reach the North Pole from the Monchegorsk airfield in just about half an hour (as is widely being reported in Russian media). But theory doesn’t count for much above the Arctic Circle.

WikiMedia Commons

In truth, Russia’s aging fleet of MiG-31s are limited to Mach 1.5 by physical restrictions caused by things like the structural rigidity of cockpit canopy glass these jets have been equipped with since the 1970s. Still, that doesn’t mean their strategic value has been neutered. MiG-31s boast an incredibly long operational range. According to the Kremlin, the MiG-31 can fly more than 3,000 kilometers (more than 1,860 miles) without refueling while carrying a complement of eight air-to-air missiles, usually including at least four R-33 or R-33S radar-guided missiles.

These patrols, it’s worth noting, don’t actually offer much in the way of strategic value. If the goal was truly to counter any American bombers headed toward Russia, it would undoubtedly take far more aircraft to maintain a sufficient presence. Instead, these patrols are likely largely symbolic. Given that Russia continues to expand its military footprint throughout the Arctic and the U.S. still lacks the means to mount any sustainable presence in the region, these patrols are another way of establishing and enforcing their sovereignty over what promises to be a heavily trafficked waterway as Arctic sea ice continues to melt.

Image courtesy of the Russian Ministry of Defense

About the Author

Alex Hollings Alex Hollings writes on a breadth of subjects ranging from fitness to foreign policy, all presented through the lens of his experiences as a U.S. Marine, athlete and scholar. A football player, rugby player and fighter, Hollings has spent the better part of his adult life competing in some of the most physically demanding sports on the planet. Hollings possesses a master's degree in communications from Southern New Hampshire University, as well as a bachelor's degree in Corporate and Organizational Communications from Framingham State University.

Related Posts

  • Why the US would dominate Russia or China in an air war: It’s not the tech, it’s the trainingWhy the US would dominate Russia or China in an air war: It’s not the tech, it’s the training
  • Watch: New footage shows Russia’s advanced SU-57 fighter in a flat spinWatch: New footage shows Russia’s advanced SU-57 fighter in a flat spin
  • Russia’s foothold in the Arctic: Moscow admits to flying more than 100 patrol and recon flights from Arctic basesRussia’s foothold in the Arctic: Moscow admits to flying more than 100 patrol and recon flights from Arctic bases
  • BREAKING: Russian Tu-22M3 supersonic bomber crash lands in Arctic, at least 2 deadBREAKING: Russian Tu-22M3 supersonic bomber crash lands in Arctic, at least 2 dead
  • Watch: Shocking footage of Russian Tu-22M3 Bomber crashing in the Arctic earlier this weekWatch: Shocking footage of Russian Tu-22M3 Bomber crashing in the Arctic earlier this week

Find Us on Facebook

FighterSweep.com

Sign Up
for the Newsletter

What’s Hot

  • February 21, 2019

    Lockheed Martin pitches a new fighter to India: What exactly is the F-21?

  • December 3, 2015

    AirAsia Airbus Crash Report Released

  • February 21, 2019

    Australian pilot writes 'I'm bored,' draws two penises with flight path

Follow Us

Facebook Twitter Twitter

Follow Us On Instagram

Please enter an Access Token on the Instagram Feed plugin Settings page.

Recent Comments

  • Alex Hollings Scrambling fighters to intercept would play out really badly for China's jets [...]
  • Alex Hollings It's never a good idea to fly LO aircraft in or around enemy airspace when you [...]
  • AD I bet it was the easiest heritage formation flight ever. They both have about [...]
  • Bronze Condor Wonder what the class range of the AN/APG-81 is lol.
  • Mcjcare60 Why not prove this chinese propaganda if its true by flying a squadron of F22 [...]
Hurricane Group, Inc.
The Loadout Room
SpecialOperations.com
THE NEWSREP
TheArmsGuide.com
SpecOps Channel

© Copyright 2019 Hurricane Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

  • Comms Check
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Advertisers