How many F-22 would it take to shutdown MiG-25RBS reconn flights?

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We know six MiG-31B could box in an SR-71, but how many F-22 would it take to box in the Russian MiG-25RBS counterpart? The F-14A and F-15A could both deny free access to the MiG-25R direct overflights, but the RBS has much improved slant range of it's sensor suite. The RBS is much more comparable to the SR-71, mapping wide swaths of land with each pass.

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We know six MiG-31B could box in an SR-71, but how many F-22 would it take to box in the Russian MiG-25RBS counterpart? The F-14A and F-15A could both deny free access to the MiG-25R direct overflights, but the RBS has much improved slant range of it's sensor suite. The RBS is much more comparable to the SR-71, mapping wide swaths of land with each pass.

Probably just one F/A 22 Raptor would be enough to shoot down the MiG 25RBS.

A major advantage against the MiG 25RBS of the F/A 22 over the F 15 and F 14 would be the ability to keep the super-cruise speed of Mach 1.5, which will allow the F/A 22 reach a position to launch the AIM 120 missile against the MiG 25RBS in much less time than other aircraft from 4th Generation ( F 14 and F 15) .

Beyond that the SR 71 were a long-range strategic reconnaissance aircraft, and its performance over the MiG 25RBS were much further in all parameters such as: speed, altitude and range.

The challenge had been faced by MiG 31 to intercept a SR 71 were the combination of those parameters (speed, altitude and range) with the sensor range of SR 71 that were intended to monitor high economic and strategic targets from former Soviet Union, and therefore the SR 71 could arise in any quadrant of the former Soviet Union.

Whereas the missions of the MiG 25RBS could be more predictable than SR 71, since the MiG 25RBS has been flying without air-air refueling capability, which reduces the range as possible bearings that could use this to accomplish its mission.

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Let me make a small correction , 187 :)

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Ideally, just one... It would be sad if the fifth generation fighter could not down the dated Soviet design.

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The speed difference between Mig-25 & F-22 is greater than that between SR-71 & Mig-31,
it would or at least should take many more

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1- Dash speed + high mach acceleration of pursuer,
2- Dash speed + high mach acceleration of target,
3- NEZ of missile fired at M2.5+ target.

Those are only factors matter in such scenario. Comparing with MiG-25B vs SR-71 scenario:

#1,2: SR-71 has 16% better top speed than MiG-25B (3% if MiG-25 overspeeds), where as MiG-25RBS has at least 30% higher top speed than F-22.
As for #3, I doubt there would be much difference between NEZ of R-40 and small finned AIM-120C againist a high altitude/high speed target.

So if 6 MiG-25B is required to intercept SR-71 due to 16% improvement in speed, at least 11 F-22 is needed to intercept the MiG-25RBS in the exact same scenario.

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1- Dash speed + high mach acceleration of pursuer,
2- Dash speed + high mach acceleration of target,
3- NEZ of missile fired at M2.5+ target.

Those are only factors matter in such scenario. Comparing with MiG-25B vs SR-71 scenario:

#1,2: SR-71 has 16% better top speed than MiG-25B (3% if MiG-25 overspeeds), where as MiG-25RBS has at least 30% higher top speed than F-22.
As for #3, I doubt there would be much difference between NEZ of R-40 and small finned AIM-120C againist a high altitude/high speed target.

So if 6 MiG-25B is required to intercept SR-71 due to 16% improvement in speed, at least 11 F-22 is needed to intercept the MiG-25RBS in the exact same scenario.

This would be the case if the Mig-25 were aware it were in danger. It is one thing to evade a pursuer you can detect and track, but quite another to evade one you are unaware of.

In all likelihood the F-22 would be able to fly out to an intercept point guided by off-board radars and the Mig-25 would have no cause for alarm until it was too late.

(A variation of the Iranian F-4/F-22 story that hit the press recently.)

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In all likelihood MiG-31 was able to fly out to an intercept point guided by off-board radars and the SR-71 would have no cause for alarm until it was too late, too.
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In all likelihood MiG-31 was able to fly out to an intercept point guided by off-board radars and the SR-71 would have no cause for alarm until it was too late, too.
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Sure if you want to assume the SR-71 was operating without any support of its own... speed by itself is not safety.

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Are you saying the Blackbird operates over SU territory with support?

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Sr-71 was never supposed to operate over the USSR at all.
The biggest danger to the Blackbird over the USSR was not the interceptors, but the missiles. Starting with the S-200 in the late 1960s...

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Are you saying the Blackbird operates over SU territory with support?

The US stopped flying over the Soviet Union years before the SR-71 went operational.

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The speed difference between Mig-25 & F-22 is greater than that between SR-71 & Mig-31,
it would or at least should take many more

You're assuming that it's a tail chase, rather than a headon intercept.

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This would be the case if the Mig-25 were aware it were in danger. It is one thing to evade a pursuer you can detect and track, but quite another to evade one you are unaware of.

In all likelihood the F-22 would be able to fly out to an intercept point guided by off-board radars and the Mig-25 would have no cause for alarm until it was too late.

(A variation of the Iranian F-4/F-22 story that hit the press recently.)

True, yet SR-71 had little to no means of detecting GCI directed MiG-25Bs either. The tactic was to be fast in the first place, and simply accelerate and outrun if they see any missile. It worked back then, and should work for MiG-25R too. IMHO, it should work even better, as MiG-25R has at least some agility to evade missiles.

Question comes to this: Can F-22 (or AIM-120 should I say) succesfully hit a target flying at M2.5+ and 75000+ feet? For example, what is the ceiling of AIM-120C? What is its kill range when fired to 25000+ feet elevation difference?

Sure if you want to assume the SR-71 was operating without any support of its own... speed by itself is not safety.

Yet you are assuming MiG-25 would be flying without any support?

Edit: As far as capability concerned, is AIM-120C even capable of killing such target? I mean, lets look at R-40, which is actually designed to hit M3.0+ targets at high altitudes.
-R-40 is designed to be fast in order to be able to catch its targets, AIM-120 is both slower and has less sustain time. It simply glides to target to achieve its range.
-R-40 carries 70kg warhead because the thin air at high altitude would not allow building up enough pressure to cause damage or propel fragments fast enough. AIM-120 carries 18kgs of warhead.
-R-40 has very large control surfaces to maneuver well in the thin air. AIM-120C has less draggy wings to increase glide time and range.

Sure AIM-120C is much newer missile, it has smarter algorithms to provide better guidance etc etc, but if R-40 is supposed to fail in intercepting SR-71, I question how AIM-120 is supposed to hit such target anyway?

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You're assuming that it's a tail chase, rather than a headon intercept.

Its purely a question of vector mechanics.

Different origin points and different vectors produce different results.

The OPs point is that kinematically, it would take more F-22 to intercept a MiG-25RBS (with situational awareness supplied by whatever means) relative to the MiG-31 intercepting Blackbirds. Others will ask how that situational awareness is supplied.

Of course, we should bear in mind that a number of lightly loaded F-15 might be more suited to the task (kinematically).

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Question comes to this: Can F-22 (or AIM-120 should I say) succesfully hit a target flying at M2.5+ and 75000+ feet? For example, what is the ceiling of AIM-120C? What is its kill range when fired to 25000+ feet elevation difference?

For how long/far can a Foxbat run at M3?

[I know MiG-31s can run for phenomenal distances - at over Mach 2. What about the Foxbat?]

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IMHO, it should work even better, as MiG-25R has at least some agility to evade missiles.

A MiG-25R flying at Mach 2.6 has no agility to evade missiles.

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True, yet SR-71 had little to no means of detecting GCI directed MiG-25Bs either. The tactic was to be fast in the first place, and simply accelerate and outrun if they see any missile. It worked back then, and should work for MiG-25R too. IMHO, it should work even better, as MiG-25R has at least some agility to evade missiles.

I think you are setting the bar for "some" agility very low. 4.5 Gs is the best it could do and this wouldn't have been at high altitude.

The Mig-25 was also a pretty short ranged aircraft and unlike an SR-71 couldn't cruise for long periods of time at Mach 3+ speeds. It could get there, but only at the cost of trashing its engines. An SR-71 for comparison would routinely operate at mach 3+. (The point is that even if the Foxbat was flying "fast" by its standards that would likely translate into something much closer to M2 than M3. It would only be in an extreme situation that the pilot would push the plane near M3.)

Question comes to this: Can F-22 (or AIM-120 should I say) succesfully hit a target flying at M2.5+ and 75000+ feet? For example, what is the ceiling of AIM-120C? What is its kill range when fired to 25000+ feet elevation difference?

The altitude difference wouldn't need to be that large given that the F-22 can exceed 50k ft and the Mig-25 would be a fairly cooperative target in terms of its ability to maneuver.

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Let me make a small correction , 187 :)

You didn't get the point I was making... they're just one short! ;)

but I think the F22 would need a "special" missile... maybe something like a "new phoenix" with RAMJET to intercept a MiG25/31 type aircraft... unless its in the vulnerable landing/takeoff phase of flight. Presuming that both sides have a bit of "situational awareness".

I am guessing they are not too bothered by this situation since MiG25s are going out of service with most operators, and the MiG31 is just in service with Russia...

PS. AMRAAM missiles went through multiple iterations in the 1990s due to the failure to intercept MiG23 and MiG25s flying into the "no fly zone" in Iraq (and even into Saudi and Kuwaiti airspace) unhindered... I think even aircraft like J8-II could pose some "trouble" for AMRAAM armed opponents in a pure "energy" fight... and perhaps pilots shooting missiles from too far away in order to stay out of the firing range of their opponent had something to do with the problems with these low KE modern AAMs!

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Near space the amraam agility is also totally abysmal, andraxxus question is justified