A huge mistake, it turned out, as they not only were shown to be vastly inferior to the F-14, but easily mistaken for the F-5 fighter leading to a number of friendly fire incidents.
Great video, but I do have to correct one detail - the Firefox did not defect. Rather, it was stolen by an American pilot named Mitchell Gant with the backing of the CIA. Very little is known of Gant himself, or of his background, but curiously the few photographs of him that exist bear a remarkable resemblance to Clint Eastwood!
It took 3 minutes for me to go through the process of "oh... the film is based on some factual elements..." before we got to the point where I remembered the date and Ed's ever increasing more and more sci fi statements and capabilities... Great one Ed! I really enjoyed the film as a kid. Will have to find somewhere to watch it again me thinks 😄
Great Ed. Now we can look forward to a whole generation of internet pillocks insisting that this is all indisputable fact and that anyone who says otherwise doesn't know what they're talking about...
The Firefox was real! As design engineer in MiG design Bureau Badger works, I can confirm that while there was steel, the airframe used high-grade marine plywood as major component in airframe. Much radar absorbing but also much national debt to Finland.
As a kid when I saw this movie I fell in love with Russian engineering while being an American in the Midwest, with a dad that worked in black military programs for a large aircraft manufacturer. This drove my career aspirations well into my mid 30s. Thanks for bringing this memory back to me. I really wish this was a real Aircraft lol
the PERFECT April fool's joke. i give the movie a 5 out of 10 and this video a 7. rent the movie if you can find it on your favorite streaming service.
Come on mate. We're all playing the role. And we all know what the date is. You don't need to be that one guy who goes "Miss Miss Miss, I know the answer!!!"
@JZ's Best Friend Why do you think they had all those nuclear submarines up there. Of course they were 'on an exercise.' And all that thing with the Russians planting there flag at the North Pole. They were also after the Firefox. (I think I'll stop now as even as I'm starting to believe what I've written🤪)
I distinctly remember a Clint Eastwood movie from about 1982 called "Firefox". It's about a veteran American pilot who's recruited by a clandestine government agency to steal the plane. So prop plane pictures, and validation for the urban legend.
I actually built one of these in Lego's shortly after the first time I had watched the movie with my dad. I even had operational weapons bays on both sides of the aircraft. An outstanding April fools day story Ed.
Ahh... Lego.... Yep, I made a 'FireFox' in Lego too.... And it too, had internal weapons bays. But I made everything with Lego... Fireball XLV.... All the Thunderbirds inc FAB1... Capt Scarlet... UFO.... Zero X-1... USS Enterprise NCC-1701.... Commanche & Hind attack helos.... Seaking... Fokker Dr1 'Triplane' (Baron Von Richthofen]... Sup Spitfire... Avro Lanc... Saturn V and Apollo 11 payload... oh and later... Красный Октябрь ....
I seem to remember watching a documentary film about this very aircraft. I enjoyed it so much I bought a copy of it and keep it alongside other such noteworthy aviation documentaries as "Top Gun" and "Hot Shots" I understand a briefing document called "Firefox Down" was released by the esteemed noted historian Craig Thomas about a rumoured later adventures of this legendary plane
Love the video brought back a lot of childhood memories about one of my favorite movies. We used to argue about who would win between Firefox and airwolf.
Some of the design elements of the Firefox were remarkably prescient, just as the faceted nose and internal weapons bay, when real stealth aircraft wouldn't be revealed until eight years later.
This is the most EPIC military/troll job EVER for April Fools. Just found this channel and have enjoyed it immensely...up to this video. No (expletive deleted) bloody (major expletive deleted) way I'm seeing this, right? Flipped to comments and see the disclaimer. Well done, Mr. Nash, no way this flies by if I saw it 1 April, but you've left an unbelievably funny time bomb for all to enjoy.
Apparently the projected Mach 5+ speeds were somewhat “justified” by retired Soviet naval crews who were there during the trials. Flying just barely a hundred feet above the sea, the MiG-31 reportedly left some water jets akin to a jetski behind its wake, a sign of hypersonic flight if true. Once again, thank you for this excellent analysis of a Cold War relic! Shame the Soviets gave up with the radical experiment though, I’m envious that some lucky bastard got to try the unique thought-controlled weapon systems.
I did come across a reference to the incident where the Firefox accidentally flew low over a Soviet helicopter cruiser bringing down a Kamov Ka-27 which had just taken off. Apparently the helicopter hit the deck of the cruiser where it exploded. The list of casualties was never released but it is though to have included the helicopter crew and several of the sailors who were on deck at the time. This may be the Soviet naval crews you mention.
I think it's pretty obvious the airframe, whether stolen or flown by a defector, influenced the design of the F/A 37 Talon. Whilst the mind reading system would probably have been binned due to complexity and inability to service it, you can see influences in how the development of the EDI system came along. Whilst not a direct 'rip', I would be surprised if the purloined Soviet mind reading system wasn't involved in the project somehow!
A shame the Talon proved so flawed really. Still, it meant the F-302 had no competition and frankly, I'm not so sure the Talon would have fared as well against the Goa'uld.
There are several stories about what happened with the two MiG-31s. One of them is that there was a hanger fire which destroyed one or both of them. Another is that one of them was destroyed in a mock dogfight when a missile was accidentally deployed through the mind reading device, which is why it was never used again, and the second one is said to have lost control and crashed because it was too close to first one when it exploded. Something not often reported was the death of a Soviet airforce general soon after this event. It has been said that he was in someway involved in the loss of both aircraft. The second one is, of course, at Area 51. Where else would you put it. I say is. There is a rumour that it was actually lost over the North Pole because an alien from Area 51 was bored one day took it for a ride. Apparently it could not read his mind and fired the ejection seat. But that would be silly.
A number of high-level engineers also disappeared around that time. Some think they died in the hangar fire. That might have contributed to the decision not to continue the project.
Yes. It fired the ejector seat over the north pole. The plane wreckage was recovered though, by a fat old guy. He now uses it to deliver presents around the world, in December.
@@mombaassa I have a feeling this is a story put about the US to hide the fact that they have it at Area 52 (Area 51 is in fact a cover story for Area 52.) We all know that the only way that guy you mentioned can get all those deliveries done in one day is by time travel. And what he flies is kept at the secret Area 25 at the North Pole. Am I the only one getting a headache from keeping track of all these secret bases.
"Gant, can you fly that plane? Really fly it?" The plan footage you used was cool. I really loved that movie when I was a kid. Very under rated movie in my book! I must watched it 1000 times LOL!
Hahahh - I was thinking, what the hell, that 1980s gi joe Cobra Command Night Raven toy was based on a super secret Soviet jet? Great movie, but like most people, I only remember Eastwood hiding in shadows and the last 30 minutes or so.. cheers!
Outstanding! I would love to see a conceptual artist or model-maker re-imagine the aircraft (same general layout) but using modern open source information that we have on stealth.
LOL Great April Fools Day smash, Mr. Nash! I knew from the thumbnail & title what this was going to be. I was just a boy when that film came out & positively loved it. XD
I see this comment "They sould make a movie of this jet!" Well there was a movie made of this jet. It was called (surprise, surprise) "Firefox", with Clint Eastwood. I think that is the point where all these stories originate.
That's brilliant Ed, and I've no idea how you're going to top that next year. I know I'm a couple of days late but I've just showed it to my wife and... uh... she now thinks that the Firefox technology found its way to China to build that Chengdu J-20! Guess I'll have to introduce her to a couple of books in the library, or a movie with that guy that did a lot of westerns.
@@filbruce1 I introduced her to airshows about 6 years ago and she's been hooked on aircraft ever since, which was hilarious because when we went it was "oh I'm only going because you want me to come" and when we left it was "I wanna see that Grumman Avenger again!"
Thanks for reminding me what a terrific movie that was! It was based on a novel, and for once the movie stuck perfectly to the book, rather than embellish it unessecaraly. Oh, and happy April fool's day!
Blur the outlines and it becomes the T-11 version of the Su-27. Someone leaked early KH-11 photos to the model team. They must have. It's just too damn close to be coincidental.
@@blessedtraveler537 There is one parked at an air museum in Cliffton Park New York. Right next to a retired F14. I have a photo of it. Should be able to get the curator there to tell you all kinds of state sekrits. (Actually, the black F5 at that meuseum it WAS one of the F5s used in the movie, and the navy actually liked the Black paint job and red star so they left the "mig 28s" in the Hollywood livery after filming was over, and they remained that color in service till they retired the F5 from the fighter weapons school.)
@@sugarnads Hmmmmm... You don't fool me... The microfilm is hidden in the dot under the second question mark. I'll give you my reply in person at the usual location. Code phrase "The duck needs new gumboots".
I just woke up and started watching this, at first I was really confused then I remembered there being a documentary film about this aircraft back in the 80's. I couldn't believe the pilot look just like Clent Eastwood.....The would have to get his son to play the role of the pilot if they made a newer documentary on this plane.
The Firefox Aircraft was very futuristic and had its style and I prefer the Movie design's than the Original . Ok,for the special effects,they took background screens which was not realistic . But the Movie in its entirety has a great story .
Well done! I think I know what movie I want to watch this weekend! I'd forgotten all about it until partway through this when the light bulb came on and I started to chuckle!
The internet went nuts for a while with this case. One guy calling himself "Mitchell Gant" said he was the pilot who actually stole the aircraft. Also there were rumors that it had a high-powered laser and not a 23mm cannon as weapon. Anyway, it seems the Mig Design Bureau concentrated later on the Mig-28 which was a cheaper alternative and it is believed that this design was based on the Northrop F5E Tiger II. There were rumors that the US Navy shot down four of those in the Indian Ocean. Interestingly the pilot who did that had the family name of Mitchell. Maybe we will know the truth when the archives of intelligence services will disclose this in 80 years from now.
Nope, the Mig-28 was nothing like the aircraft rumoured to have been shot down by the USN, the Mig 28D Finback was a different aircraft, that also was captured by NATO after a Soviet Pilot defected in one to Alaska. Rumour has it that the Finback after evaluation was used by a British Agent to do a covert insertion into the Soviet / China boarder area near Sinkaing. Some guy called Adam Hall wrote a book about it.
@@richardvernon317 Yeah, I´ve heard about that incident. If I recall it right the name of that agent was Quiller or something like that. I´m not entirely sure though if both mentioned Mig-28´s aren´t the same aircraft. The descriptions do vary though.
What I find the most exciting about the Mig 31 Firefox is not just the speed, but the fact that it is so flexible. How many mach 6 planes have extensions like Adblock Plus or TH-cam Downloader. You can pirate videos while pirating the plane. Yes, Wonder Woman's plane is invisible (I don't think it actually exists, I think she flies like Superman, just kinda weird like), but the Firefox has Duck Duck Go - the Internet's Phased Array Radar.
Perfect! One of my favorite "could of beens"....lol. The only thing I see that makes it pure fantasy are the intake trunking top & bottom. No amount of technology U can dream up can produce that kind of performance w/ nacelles that short, never mind stealth inferences. Variable cycle, J-58 type "turbo-ram jet". They have to be near the leading edge of the wing to vaguely come close to either suggestion. GR8 vid & many thanx 👍. It did expose a lot more than I knew before. Irregardless, it's still a Beautiful bird. Be safe 🦊
Some say that the construction was of a Vibranium-Adamantium alloy and that the Avengers were involved in the sabotage,..and that the onboard computer system could perform sexual favors to the pilot, but that feature was removed because flight times to the target were deemed too short for proper pleasuring...
While doomscrolling/following news can be even somewhat depressing at times like this, it's so jolly nice 😁 of you to make us smile as it's April fool's Day - I might even dust the cupboard for the movie (I know I have/had it on a VHS.. Dirty Harry goes to Moscow;)
My favorite part of the movie is when Clint Eastwood lands in the artic to be refueled by a submarine, while he's talking to the sub commander the plane is being towed behind in the background, you can see the front canard bouncing up and down because it was a cardboard movie prop. Great way to start APRIL.
Part of the logic behind the brainwave interface was that it provided enhanced security against Western efforts to acquire soviet aircraft for study through theft or defection as it required the pilot to literally "think in Russian". This would greatly limit any ability to test the aircraft or for an opposing nation to use the Firefox against the Russians themselves. Presumably, as the technology aged, an export variant programed to accept thought commands in other languages would have been made available, or the feature dropped altogether.
Way back, in the day, I used to have a press packet, about this film. (I worked for a local newspaper, around then) In it, they claimed the aircraft design team was curious, if the airframe they designed, would actually be airworthy. They were surprised at the results, as the results showed, close performance parameters of the F-14 fighters, then in service.
Just one thing. High bypass ratio engines are for optimizing _subsonic_ performance: the big fan inherently creates a lot of drag at high speeds, which is why you typically see them in airliners and cargo aircraft rather than in fighter jets. The reported performance of the "Firefox" would have required a radical new type of engine, probably some kind of ramjet, the experimental nature of which may well have caused the difficulties that led to the project's ultimate cancellation. Also, Happy April 1st!
@@brucewelty7684 Maybe? There's been a lot of work on just how turbines and ramjets might be combined, but _as far as I know_ nobody has built a jet engine that allows the turbine blades to be feathered. I'm not sure that it's even possible, given the forces compressor fans are subjected to in operation; and I'm also not sure how effective it would be. So... I don't _think_ that's it.
@@brucewelty7684 Actually, it wasn't. It was an _espionage_ thriller - and a lot of technical details like "how do the engines work" and "how is it invisible to radar" were simply never addressed, for the excellent reason that the whole point of the story was that the US and UK had to steal it because they couldn't figure out how it worked.
That's true for the developement of fuel efficient turbofans for the commercial aircraft industry where the high bypass is used as a means for effectively turning the fan section into a ducted fan. BUT it's also true for the JF-58 engines in the SR-71 as well where the high bypass is used to bypass the entire engine's fan and compressors and use the bypass area as a ramjet which increases the engines efficiency as the airframe approaches high transonic speeds. TL/DR: You're BOTH correct.
Excellent video, especially in the current state of international relations. We need to know who has the upperhand in the technological stakes. What an amazing aircraft, I feel like we need a hero to defend against such a threat. A hero, in line with Dirty Harry, to put the bad guys in their place.
1:21 The SR-71 did not overfly the Soviet Union. They flew in international airspace and used Side Looking Airborne Radar to peer into Soviet territory.
The cold war had some cool items that were made, like that government organization that developed that super sonic helicopter. It's not as fast as the Firefox but both were cool. I'm not sure I believe the LAPD had a supercopter as well, I am pretty sure that was just fabricated. They did make a few documentaries on both of them which were pretty cool to watch.
There was also that car with artificial intelligence that drive itself, was indestructible and used after burning turbo boost to jump 200m. It was developed by Knight Industries. The guy who drive it was a bit of a prat though!
Wasnt there some bloke who bothered a cello who swiped a black project helicopter with "speed to rival the fastest jets" who operated it from a hollow mountain out in the desert as well? Apparently a CIA operative called Archangel oversaw the operation.
Ed, Love your videos. They are the most interesting and entertaining aviation videos available. _but_ 1) Mach rhymes with "mock", not "mack". I shan't quibble about the "ch" being not quite the same as the english "k" or "ck". Don't take just my word for it. Ask any german speaker. 2) I can't believe you dismissed the idea of a mig-31 being in US custody. Joe Biden personally flew that plane out of Russia. "not a joke" Also +1 on your videos on the russia/ukraine conflict.
As a native English speaker, I got immedately offended by that first sentence, re Mach not being pronounced like Mack, or Mark if you want to elongate your a, as we interchangably do in the english language. Then I realised what day it is, and you're having a laugh.
@@venners4288 "the war"? Don't be so ignurnt. Ernst Mach died in 1916. Beside who won the war doesn't change the language. zum beispiel "Putin" is not prounced "puttin" which would offend golfers the world over. Maybe pronouncing "mach" as "mock" is british thing like "aluminium", "colour", etc.. As George Bernard Shaw(doesn't rhyme with "shoe") said "two people separated by a common language" (:-)
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Before you comment, this video published on April 1.
Funnt yhe photos are from the movie Firefox with Clint Eastwood in the 80's
@@tazz58penticalzone43 you don't say...
You got me! I was just about to leave a negative comment. Then again, it came across my feed for the first time just now. Good one!
Thanks for that. Clint's movie on the subject was NOT one of his best...
@@tazz58penticalzone43 u might b rtrded
They should make a movie about that jet!
@Aqua Fyre Of course they're kidding. Why else would someone say this?
@@skepticalbadger I think you should check today’s date
Bahahahaha
I would watch that movie! Maybe with a "state of the art" aerial dogfight! to make it even more awesome! :D
🤣👍
as a former soviet test pilot, i can confirm that all this is 200 % accurate.
A former Soviet test pilot that doesn't use capital letters in the right places.🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
The Firefox had a fatal flaw: it could not perform a negative-G dive, so the Soviets went with full production of the MiG-28.
float carburetors strike again, mk1 spits look on in horror
MIGs only come in Odd numbers.
@@xadrikxaulxu it's a joke. They were talking about the fictional fighter in top gun film
A huge mistake, it turned out, as they not only were shown to be vastly inferior to the F-14, but easily mistaken for the F-5 fighter leading to a number of friendly fire incidents.
@@xadrikxaulxu Never change, slugger!
It’s been 40 years since Firefox, the movie is still fun to watch.
“I’m persecuted because I’m a Jew.”
Hollywood...
The books are better in my humble opinion.
@@williamdobbin7827 I totally agree 👍
it's still one of my favorite Clint Eastwood movies after Escape From Alcatraz and The Outlaw Josey Wales
@@bdr32965 I wish they had filmed Firefox Down
Great video, but I do have to correct one detail - the Firefox did not defect. Rather, it was stolen by an American pilot named Mitchell Gant with the backing of the CIA. Very little is known of Gant himself, or of his background, but curiously the few photographs of him that exist bear a remarkable resemblance to Clint Eastwood!
I was thinking the very same lol.
I remember seeing a highly classified Pentagon briefing about this in the early 1980's. Or was it Blockbuster and not the Pentagon?
It wasn't a defection, it was a special relocation operation !😉👍
I heard he went back to being a cop and then joined the Secret Service.
I recall seeing a few documentaries of when he was a police detective.
no it did defect as the scientists tested the interface on themselves and the plane formed a personality and close Clint Eastwood as it pilot
You have to admit, the story could make for a good movie.
Maybe with Clint Eastwood as the lead?
It would make a good movie but it may be too far fetched even for Hollywood.
@@bigblue6917 yea, u have a point.
I was thinking more like Tom Cruise or Val Kilmer
IF Clint Eastwood's the *lead* any chance they could get Jada Smith for the dog?
Clint is too old. Maybe his son.
It took 3 minutes for me to go through the process of "oh... the film is based on some factual elements..." before we got to the point where I remembered the date and Ed's ever increasing more and more sci fi statements and capabilities... Great one Ed! I really enjoyed the film as a kid. Will have to find somewhere to watch it again me thinks 😄
I was going, but, but, but....Oh!
I recognised the prop plane as soon as it appeared. Although it does look like something Dirty Harry might fly.
But.. it had six missiles. So it is probably real. With twin 30mm cannon.
Great Ed.
Now we can look forward to a whole generation of internet pillocks insisting that this is all indisputable fact and that anyone who says otherwise doesn't know what they're talking about...
Read the books
The Firefox was real!
As design engineer in MiG design Bureau Badger works, I can confirm that while there was steel, the airframe used high-grade marine plywood as major component in airframe. Much radar absorbing but also much national debt to Finland.
I can't vouch for the airframe, but I CAN tell you that the man-machine thought interface consisted of the mother-in-law in the back seat.
Can you confirm that the man machine thought interface only works if you “think in Russian “?
There was a real MIG 31 ITS THE FOXHOUND THE DESIGN IS AN ENLARGED MIG 25.
As a kid when I saw this movie I fell in love with Russian engineering while being an American in the Midwest, with a dad that worked in black military programs for a large aircraft manufacturer. This drove my career aspirations well into my mid 30s. Thanks for bringing this memory back to me. I really wish this was a real Aircraft lol
Mach 6 tho. We are all in this.
Black military programs?! That’s racist! 😂😂
Just a reminder to not cheap out on snow tyres for your state-of-the-art stealth fighter. You never know when you're going to hit ice.
The Russians already realized in the early phase of testing that "Firefox" would not stand a chance against International Rescue's "Thunderbird 1".
Now you got me thinking about Lady Penelope...
Or captain scarlet and the angel interceptors. Or even better yet the skydiver from SHADOW.
Thunderbird 1 was so advanced it's a wonder Elon Musk never tried to copy it .
Thunderbirds ARE GO!!!
I always preferred thunderbird 2 with the replacable pods!😁😁😁
Clint Eastwood. Best Russian pilot ever.
the PERFECT April fool's joke. i give the movie a 5 out of 10 and this video a 7. rent the movie if you can find it on your favorite streaming service.
HAH! I had this Docu' on VHS!
Thank you for delivering this in perfect deadpan fashion. It made the thing all the more fun even though I knew what it was
Happy April 1st Ed & too all :-D! Great stuff here..
Come on mate. We're all playing the role. And we all know what the date is. You don't need to be that one guy who goes "Miss Miss Miss, I know the answer!!!"
@@venners4288 I wasn't first to mention so..
I hear the first prototype sunk in a frozen lake after a forced landing and was later recovered and taken to the west.
Source, original historical documents, Firefox and Firefox down
It was then that Gant allowed himself to smile.
@JZ's Best Friend It's classified.
@JZ's Best Friend Why do you think they had all those nuclear submarines up there. Of course they were 'on an exercise.' And all that thing with the Russians planting there flag at the North Pole. They were also after the Firefox. (I think I'll stop now as even as I'm starting to believe what I've written🤪)
I distinctly remember a Clint Eastwood movie from about 1982 called "Firefox".
It's about a veteran American pilot who's recruited by a clandestine government agency to steal the plane.
So prop plane pictures, and validation for the urban legend.
Extensive use of stalinium also caused all incoming canon rounds to bounce off. War Thunder will be releasing this as a higher tier special soon :-)
I actually built one of these in Lego's shortly after the first time I had watched the movie with my dad. I even had operational weapons bays on both sides of the aircraft. An outstanding April fools day story Ed.
Ahh... Lego.... Yep, I made a 'FireFox' in Lego too.... And it too, had internal weapons bays. But I made everything with Lego...
Fireball XLV.... All the Thunderbirds inc FAB1... Capt Scarlet... UFO.... Zero X-1... USS Enterprise NCC-1701.... Commanche & Hind attack helos.... Seaking... Fokker Dr1 'Triplane' (Baron Von Richthofen]... Sup Spitfire... Avro Lanc... Saturn V and Apollo 11 payload... oh and later... Красный Октябрь ....
I heard there’s a guy somewhere in California who has some more info on this, just be careful around his Gran Torino, he’s kinda precious about it
Amazing
And STAY OFF HIS LAWN!
Is it the same guy who taught a young lady how-to be a professional female boxer?
I seem to remember watching a documentary film about this very aircraft.
I enjoyed it so much I bought a copy of it and keep it alongside other such noteworthy aviation documentaries as "Top Gun" and "Hot Shots"
I understand a briefing document called "Firefox Down" was released by the esteemed noted historian Craig Thomas about a rumoured later adventures of this legendary plane
A worthy April video! Further reading can be found in `Firefox` and `Firefox Down`,by Craig Thomas. Nice one Ed!
Love the video brought back a lot of childhood memories about one of my favorite movies. We used to argue about who would win between Firefox and airwolf.
Such a glorious shape, I often wonder if anyone has ever put that in a proper wind tunnel.
Brilliant video Ed, released at exactly the right time! “Go ahead, make my day.”
Some of the design elements of the Firefox were remarkably prescient, just as the faceted nose and internal weapons bay, when real stealth aircraft wouldn't be revealed until eight years later.
This is the most EPIC military/troll job EVER for April Fools. Just found this channel and have enjoyed it immensely...up to this video. No (expletive deleted) bloody (major expletive deleted) way I'm seeing this, right? Flipped to comments and see the disclaimer. Well done, Mr. Nash, no way this flies by if I saw it 1 April, but you've left an unbelievably funny time bomb for all to enjoy.
Your videos are so naturally flowing, that I´ve let myself dream about a world where this was a reality. I even remember the TV document about it...
Apparently the projected Mach 5+ speeds were somewhat “justified” by retired Soviet naval crews who were there during the trials. Flying just barely a hundred feet above the sea, the MiG-31 reportedly left some water jets akin to a jetski behind its wake, a sign of hypersonic flight if true.
Once again, thank you for this excellent analysis of a Cold War relic! Shame the Soviets gave up with the radical experiment though, I’m envious that some lucky bastard got to try the unique thought-controlled weapon systems.
If it could hit mach five at sea-level, then God knows what it could do at altitude. In light of that, the claim seems a bit suspicious
I did come across a reference to the incident where the Firefox accidentally flew low over a Soviet helicopter cruiser bringing down a Kamov Ka-27 which had just taken off. Apparently the helicopter hit the deck of the cruiser where it exploded. The list of casualties was never released but it is though to have included the helicopter crew and several of the sailors who were on deck at the time. This may be the Soviet naval crews you mention.
Thought control seems like a good idea until the pilot thinks, to himself in Russian, "I've got to take a dump"
@@jamestoby1149 You mean you’re suspicious of Russian claims..? 😂
Jetski?
Is that like a brewski?
I think it's pretty obvious the airframe, whether stolen or flown by a defector, influenced the design of the F/A 37 Talon. Whilst the mind reading system would probably have been binned due to complexity and inability to service it, you can see influences in how the development of the EDI system came along. Whilst not a direct 'rip', I would be surprised if the purloined Soviet mind reading system wasn't involved in the project somehow!
A shame the Talon proved so flawed really. Still, it meant the F-302 had no competition and frankly, I'm not so sure the Talon would have fared as well against the Goa'uld.
Well Played, Ed! I Was About Seven Minutes In & Then I Realized It Was Your April Fools Special! Hope You Had A Good One! 8-)
There are several stories about what happened with the two MiG-31s. One of them is that there was a hanger fire which destroyed one or both of them. Another is that one of them was destroyed in a mock dogfight when a missile was accidentally deployed through the mind reading device, which is why it was never used again, and the second one is said to have lost control and crashed because it was too close to first one when it exploded.
Something not often reported was the death of a Soviet airforce general soon after this event. It has been said that he was in someway involved in the loss of both aircraft.
The second one is, of course, at Area 51. Where else would you put it. I say is. There is a rumour that it was actually lost over the North Pole because an alien from Area 51 was bored one day took it for a ride. Apparently it could not read his mind and fired the ejection seat. But that would be silly.
I heard it was lost in a dogfight against a supersonic prototype attack helicopter run by a secret US government agency called the firm
A number of high-level engineers also disappeared around that time. Some think they died in the hangar fire. That might have contributed to the decision not to continue the project.
Yes. It fired the ejector seat over the north pole. The plane wreckage was recovered though, by a fat old guy. He now uses it to deliver presents around the world, in December.
Winner
@@mombaassa I have a feeling this is a story put about the US to hide the fact that they have it at Area 52 (Area 51 is in fact a cover story for Area 52.) We all know that the only way that guy you mentioned can get all those deliveries done in one day is by time travel. And what he flies is kept at the secret Area 25 at the North Pole.
Am I the only one getting a headache from keeping track of all these secret bases.
That time of year again lol
You had me up until the point when you put the movie plane on the screen. I looked at the date and sure enough. You got me! Nicely done.
Why are these "what ifs" so damn exciting?
Can't get enough of them lately.
You sir have made my day👍
Great tale innit?
Top Video Gun Ed.
"Gant, can you fly that plane? Really fly it?" The plan footage you used was cool. I really loved that movie when I was a kid. Very under rated movie in my book! I must watched it 1000 times LOL!
Check the date
i hate you
Hahahh - I was thinking, what the hell, that 1980s gi joe Cobra Command Night Raven toy was based on a super secret Soviet jet? Great movie, but like most people, I only remember Eastwood hiding in shadows and the last 30 minutes or so.. cheers!
Watching this on May 6th was confusing, until I heard a slight smirk, and then checked the date of upload :P
Outstanding! I would love to see a conceptual artist or model-maker re-imagine the aircraft (same general layout) but using modern open source information that we have on stealth.
LOL Great April Fools Day smash, Mr. Nash! I knew from the thumbnail & title what this was going to be. I was just a boy when that film came out & positively loved it. XD
Outstanding! You should really do more speculative videos on fictional aircraft!
I see this comment "They sould make a movie of this jet!" Well there was a movie made of this jet. It was called (surprise, surprise) "Firefox", with Clint Eastwood. I think that is the point where all these stories originate.
That's brilliant Ed, and I've no idea how you're going to top that next year.
I know I'm a couple of days late but I've just showed it to my wife and... uh... she now thinks that the Firefox technology found its way to China to build that Chengdu J-20!
Guess I'll have to introduce her to a couple of books in the library, or a movie with that guy that did a lot of westerns.
Holy crap!!!!! You have a wife who knows what J-20 is?????? LUCKY GUY!!!!!!!!!!
@@filbruce1 I introduced her to airshows about 6 years ago and she's been hooked on aircraft ever since, which was hilarious because when we went it was "oh I'm only going because you want me to come" and when we left it was "I wanna see that Grumman Avenger again!"
Thanks for reminding me what a terrific movie that was! It was based on a novel, and for once the movie stuck perfectly to the book, rather than embellish it unessecaraly. Oh, and happy April fool's day!
For a movie plane the Firefox actually looks really good!
Blur the outlines and it becomes the T-11 version of the Su-27. Someone leaked early KH-11 photos to the model team. They must have. It's just too damn close to be coincidental.
SR-71 Blackbird America's Firefox.
The MiG 28 would have been the lower cost option as well.
Ed should do a video on this mysterious aircraft. It's said to look like an F-5.
@@blessedtraveler537
There is one parked at an air museum in Cliffton Park New York. Right next to a retired F14.
I have a photo of it.
Should be able to get the curator there to tell you all kinds of state sekrits.
(Actually, the black F5 at that meuseum it WAS one of the F5s used in the movie, and the navy actually liked the Black paint job and red star so they left the "mig 28s" in the Hollywood livery after filming was over, and they remained that color in service till they retired the F5 from the fighter weapons school.)
Certainly the best plane ever from it's designer, Comrade Humpavich Applebyski.
and the Engine designer Warrenski Clarkeovic
Always suspected he was a Russian agent
He must have gone to cambridge??
@@sugarnads Hmmmmm... You don't fool me... The microfilm is hidden in the dot under the second question mark.
I'll give you my reply in person at the usual location. Code phrase "The duck needs new gumboots".
@@AnthonyHandcock and the reply is 'My hovercraft is full of eels'
I just woke up and started watching this, at first I was really confused then I remembered there being a documentary film about this aircraft back in the 80's.
I couldn't believe the pilot look just like Clent Eastwood.....The would have to get his son to play the role of the pilot if they made a newer documentary on this plane.
Loved this film as a kid, Still a beautiful looking aircraft.
Isnt it just...
If sinister, was given sleek lines, and a bit of attitude, to intimidate others....itd be this.
The Firefox Aircraft was very futuristic and had its style and I prefer the Movie design's than the Original .
Ok,for the special effects,they took background screens which was not realistic .
But the Movie in its entirety has a great story .
A friend of my uncle served with the US Airforce in the 1980s and swears he saw this aircraft at a secret test facility in New Mexico.
He probably did- when they showed "Firefox" on movie night.
Well done! I think I know what movie I want to watch this weekend! I'd forgotten all about it until partway through this when the light bulb came on and I started to chuckle!
Well done sir
I admire your magnificent and utter lack of shame for April the 1st!
The internet went nuts for a while with this case. One guy calling himself "Mitchell Gant" said he was the pilot who actually stole the aircraft.
Also there were rumors that it had a high-powered laser and not a 23mm cannon as weapon.
Anyway, it seems the Mig Design Bureau concentrated later on the Mig-28 which was a cheaper alternative and it is believed that this design was based on the Northrop F5E Tiger II.
There were rumors that the US Navy shot down four of those in the Indian Ocean.
Interestingly the pilot who did that had the family name of Mitchell.
Maybe we will know the truth when the archives of intelligence services will disclose this in 80 years from now.
Nope, the Mig-28 was nothing like the aircraft rumoured to have been shot down by the USN, the Mig 28D Finback was a different aircraft, that also was captured by NATO after a Soviet Pilot defected in one to Alaska. Rumour has it that the Finback after evaluation was used by a British Agent to do a covert insertion into the Soviet / China boarder area near Sinkaing. Some guy called Adam Hall wrote a book about it.
@@richardvernon317 Yeah, I´ve heard about that incident. If I recall it right the name of that agent was Quiller or something like that.
I´m not entirely sure though if both mentioned Mig-28´s aren´t the same aircraft. The descriptions do vary though.
These channels are always so entertaining on April 1st.
I'd like to see a modern version of this movie. The modern take on hypersonic low level flight would be interesting.
Was fascinated with the wing shape of the Firefox and amazed when it was later realized as the twisted wing washout in the F-22.
My friend Clint Eastwood verified this video to me.
When I Retire This is Going to be the First Model I'm Going to Get and Start My Model Collection Again.
The Clint Eastwood among planes ;)
When you think: «Is Ed drunk?» and then you realize TH-cam has decided to make an April's Fool with almost a month of delay. 🤣
I believe _all_ of this, and I'm no fool.
What I find the most exciting about the Mig 31 Firefox is not just the speed, but the fact that it is so flexible. How many mach 6 planes have extensions like Adblock Plus or TH-cam Downloader. You can pirate videos while pirating the plane. Yes, Wonder Woman's plane is invisible (I don't think it actually exists, I think she flies like Superman, just kinda weird like), but the Firefox has Duck Duck Go - the Internet's Phased Array Radar.
Perfect! One of my favorite "could of beens"....lol. The only thing I see that makes it pure fantasy are the intake trunking top & bottom. No amount of technology U can dream up can produce that kind of performance w/ nacelles that short, never mind stealth inferences. Variable cycle, J-58 type "turbo-ram jet". They have to be near the leading edge of the wing to vaguely come close to either suggestion. GR8 vid & many thanx 👍. It did expose a lot more than I knew before. Irregardless, it's still a Beautiful bird. Be safe 🦊
Well done ... and Happy April 1st to you too
I know what you're thinking. 'Did he fire six missiles or only five'?
Nice one
Took me longer than it should have. Nice one Ed!
I always wanted them to make the sequel as that book was just as good….
Some say that the construction was of a Vibranium-Adamantium alloy and that the Avengers were involved in the sabotage,..and that the onboard computer system could perform sexual favors to the pilot, but that feature was removed because flight times to the target were deemed too short for proper pleasuring...
While doomscrolling/following news can be even somewhat depressing at times like this, it's so jolly nice 😁 of you to make us smile as it's April fool's Day - I might even dust the cupboard for the movie (I know I have/had it on a VHS.. Dirty Harry goes to Moscow;)
My favorite part of the movie is when Clint Eastwood lands in the artic to be refueled by a submarine, while he's talking to the sub commander the plane is being towed behind in the background, you can see the front canard bouncing up and down because it was a cardboard movie prop. Great way to start APRIL.
I Wish They Would Do a New FX / CGI of Firefox Liked They Did Star Trek.
Ha, nice one Ed, loved the movie.
I love this, Ed you did an exceptional job on this date. 😆🥰
Part of the logic behind the brainwave interface was that it provided enhanced security against Western efforts to acquire soviet aircraft for study through theft or defection as it required the pilot to literally "think in Russian". This would greatly limit any ability to test the aircraft or for an opposing nation to use the Firefox against the Russians themselves. Presumably, as the technology aged, an export variant programed to accept thought commands in other languages would have been made available, or the feature dropped altogether.
Great Movie, one of my favourites. Happy April 1st from Australia 🇦🇺
It's an April 1st video. Well, done sir! Well done!
If any movie should get a reboot, its this one! With todays effect tech available, it would be amazing IF done right.
Way back, in the day, I used to have a press packet, about this film. (I worked for a local newspaper, around then)
In it, they claimed the aircraft design team was curious, if the airframe they designed, would actually be airworthy.
They were surprised at the results, as the results showed, close performance parameters of the F-14 fighters, then in service.
Go ahead Mr. Nash, you made my day.
Just one thing. High bypass ratio engines are for optimizing _subsonic_ performance: the big fan inherently creates a lot of drag at high speeds, which is why you typically see them in airliners and cargo aircraft rather than in fighter jets. The reported performance of the "Firefox" would have required a radical new type of engine, probably some kind of ramjet, the experimental nature of which may well have caused the difficulties that led to the project's ultimate cancellation.
Also, Happy April 1st!
Weren't the fans featherable to allow ram jet function?
@@brucewelty7684 Maybe? There's been a lot of work on just how turbines and ramjets might be combined, but _as far as I know_ nobody has built a jet engine that allows the turbine blades to be feathered. I'm not sure that it's even possible, given the forces compressor fans are subjected to in operation; and I'm also not sure how effective it would be. So... I don't _think_ that's it.
@@Philistine47 YZou seem to not realize this is ALL a SciFi fantasy adventure?
@@brucewelty7684 Actually, it wasn't. It was an _espionage_ thriller - and a lot of technical details like "how do the engines work" and "how is it invisible to radar" were simply never addressed, for the excellent reason that the whole point of the story was that the US and UK had to steal it because they couldn't figure out how it worked.
That's true for the developement of fuel efficient turbofans for the commercial aircraft industry where the high bypass is used as a means for effectively turning the fan section into a ducted fan.
BUT it's also true for the JF-58 engines in the SR-71 as well where the high bypass is used to bypass the entire engine's fan and compressors and use the bypass area as a ramjet which increases the engines efficiency as the airframe approaches high transonic speeds.
TL/DR: You're BOTH correct.
Took me an incredible 4 and a half minutes. Well done.
Excellent video, especially in the current state of international relations. We need to know who has the upperhand in the technological stakes.
What an amazing aircraft, I feel like we need a hero to defend against such a threat.
A hero, in line with Dirty Harry, to put the bad guys in their place.
1:21 The SR-71 did not overfly the Soviet Union. They flew in international airspace and used Side Looking Airborne Radar to peer into Soviet territory.
The cold war had some cool items that were made, like that government organization that developed that super sonic helicopter. It's not as fast as the Firefox but both were cool. I'm not sure I believe the LAPD had a supercopter as well, I am pretty sure that was just fabricated.
They did make a few documentaries on both of them which were pretty cool to watch.
There was also that car with artificial intelligence that drive itself, was indestructible and used after burning turbo boost to jump 200m. It was developed by Knight Industries. The guy who drive it was a bit of a prat though!
Wasnt there some bloke who bothered a cello who swiped a black project helicopter with "speed to rival the fastest jets" who operated it from a hollow mountain out in the desert as well? Apparently a CIA operative called Archangel oversaw the operation.
Excellent work again. It is fortunate that such a secret airplane had so many available pictures. Makes for a good video on this first of April. :)
No mention of any elderly American pilots stealing one in 1980,,,,lol
Clint Eastwood all over again lol...Thanks Ed...!
Yup, you had to think Russian when flying this thing.
All this sounds very familiar. Almost like I've seen it in a Clint Eastwood movie back in the 80s.
Didn't Clint Eastwood get fly this?
Common misconception , it actually was Major Mitchell Gant
@@mathewkelly9968 oh yes you are correct and after retirement Grant went on to star in "East Enders" the UK soap opera
Thank you for this. With you on Firefox, and the Operations Room on the F14 Vs Mig29 fight in '86 my day is complete! 👍👍👍
Ed,
Love your videos. They are the most interesting and entertaining aviation videos available. _but_
1) Mach rhymes with "mock", not "mack". I shan't quibble about the "ch" being not quite the same as the english "k" or "ck". Don't take just my word for it. Ask any german speaker.
2) I can't believe you dismissed the idea of a mig-31 being in US custody. Joe Biden personally flew that plane out of Russia. "not a joke"
Also +1 on your videos on the russia/ukraine conflict.
1) He's not speaking German; 'mach' is effectively a loanword. 2) That's supposed to be classified.
@@skepticalbadger it does sound like "mock" though.
As a native English speaker, I got immedately offended by that first sentence, re Mach not being pronounced like Mack, or Mark if you want to elongate your a, as we interchangably do in the english language.
Then I realised what day it is, and you're having a laugh.
And, to be fair, the English speaking world won the war, but we don't mention that.
@@venners4288 "the war"? Don't be so ignurnt. Ernst Mach died in 1916. Beside who won the war doesn't change the language. zum beispiel "Putin" is not prounced "puttin" which would offend golfers the world over. Maybe pronouncing "mach" as "mock" is british thing like "aluminium", "colour", etc.. As George Bernard Shaw(doesn't rhyme with "shoe") said "two people separated by a common language"
(:-)
The reveal of that jet in the movie ...with the synth music... its hair raising. Love it.
On yer mate,lol
Fantastic! Loved the exacting detail you went into about it! Bravo!
first here
edit: christ this is fucking crazy- what could've been!!!
Yeah, you're going to want another edit there dude.
A story told with his tongue in his cheek and Clint in he's eye...