Fred Gilham wrote:

The plane this post is talking about was the Mig-25. It was a
"Mach-3" plane that had the US scared for a while until they got hold
of one. They found that it was an interceptor, not a fighter (heavy
and poor maneuverability). It could also not maintain its Mach-3
speed because it would over-stress its engines.

A little googling on the subject reveals that the speed was limited by
'controllability problems', though the engines would blow at March 3.2...


It was mostly used
for reconnaissance (as was the US's Mach-3 plane, the SR-72). It was
not a fly-by-wire plane and the vacuum tubes were not used to control
the plane (at least not in the sense of fly-by-wire). They were used
as part of a very powerful radar that could penetrate jamming. Since
the plane was so heavy, it didn't matter as much that it used vacuum
tubes.

It came in a special radar version, as well as numerous other variants.


The technology was described as "surprisingly capable" if I
remember correctly.

I think it an example of excellent engineering (considering the crude
construction), describes as 'lacking refinement' but still capable of some
records:

(from http://www.spaceadventures.com/steps/edge)

Breaking Records:

In September 1967, a MiG-25 set a world speed record at 1,853.61 miles per
hour (2,982 kph). It stood for more than a decade, until broken by an
American SR-71 Blackbird in July 1976. It reached 2,016 mph (3,244 kph).
On July 25, 1973, a Ye-266, using the same airframe as the MiG-25 but
equipped with more powerful engines, set the world’s absolute altitude
record for a ground-launched air-breathing aircraft, reaching 118,867 ft.
(36,230 m). On August 31, 1977, the record was broken by a modified MiG-25
(E-266M) and taken to 123,524 ft. (37,650 m).


Pretty good for a handwelded steel-hulled jet with tubed avionics, eh? 8)
But it does seem it had its share of problems and limitations.


This is in contrast to something like the F16, which is a fly-by-wire
plane. It was designed to be deliberately unstable so that it would
be extremely maneuverable.

The MiG-25 is a high altitude interceptor, it wasn't build for
maneuverability. Seems like it was developed to counter the US B-70 bomber
(which was cancelled.) It does seem that NATO overrated the MiG-25 by a
large margin...

Regards,
Kimjand