Firefox plane sighting

[Jed Cooper]

I'm hoping somebody can help me with this.  I was watching a movie recently and could swear I saw the Firefox plane in it.  The trouble is, I can't remember the name of the movie!  It's driving me crazy!  Help! 

[Jed Cooper]

I thought I'd post some more data about the Firefox aircraft.  I got this from Wikipedia: Fictional Military Aircraft



Mikoyan MiG-31 (fictional)
For the real aircraft of this designation, see Mikoyan MiG-31.
 
The MiG-31 Firefox, as seen in the movie
Firefox seen in 1982 The MiG-31 (МиГ-31 in Cyrillic script), NATO reporting name "Firefox", is a fictional aircraft appearing in Craig Thomas' novels Firefox and Firefox Down, as well as the Clint Eastwood movie based on the former.

The Firefox is an interceptor aircraft with stealth capabilities, to the point that it is invisible to radar. It is powered by two incredibly powerful "Turmansky" (a probable misspelling of Tumansky) turbo-ramjet engines that permit flight at hypersonic speeds, but their exhaust gives the Firefox a prominent infrared signature. The Firefox's most famous feature is its Thought-Controlled Weapons System, which uses signals from the pilot's brain to target enemies and fire weapons; however, it only responds to commands thought in Russian. The Firefox's weapons consist of up to four AA-6 Acrid air-to-air missiles (modified for thought guidance), two 23 mm cannons, and four Rear Defense Pods, which fire an explosive charge at a pursuing aircraft or missile.

Other capabilities of the Firefox include a 3,000-mile (4,800 km) range and a flight ceiling over 120,000 feet (37,000 m). To give the pilot full situational awareness the aircraft also includes a camera system that allows the pilot to see images ahead of, below, and directly behind the aircraft on his console. Mitchell Gant uses this system several times during his flight to keep track of missiles, and other aircraft pursuing him.

Two production prototypes were built before it was to be deployed into active service for the Soviet Air Force. The first prototype was stolen by Mitchell Gant operating on behalf of the Western intelligence community. The second prototype intercepted Gant and the two aircraft entered into combat with Gant destroying his adversary.

In Firefox Down, it is revealed the remaining prototype's fuel lines were ruptured in the dogfight that concluded the previous novel and the aircraft crash-lands in Finland. One of the plot lines of Firefox Down is the race between the Soviets and Western Intelligence to recover the aircraft submerged in a frozen Finnish lake.

The Firefox's appearance differs between the first novel and film. The version in the novel resembles a MiG-25 Foxbat, much like the real MiG-31 Foxhound.

Cockpit scenes used shots from a F4 Phantom and T-38 Talon.

[Jed Cooper]

Wow, the more I look into this the more interesting it becomes:  Mikoyan MiG-31

Firefox (novel) and Firefox (film), the premise of which is the theft of a speculated/fictional version of the MiG-31

[Christopher]

Do you remember anything else about the movie you were watching?

[Jed Cooper]

Do you remember anything else about the movie you were watching?

No, I've been trying.  I've been home sick off and on recently and have watched a bunch of dvds.  I thought it might've been one of the Sniper movies (Tom Berenger) but skimmed through those with no luck.  Man, I'm kicking myself over this!  I knew I should've just written the movie title down so I could see if there were any photos online, like on IMDB.  I hope it rings a bell with someone else.  I'll keep trying to remember and believe me, if it comes back to me I'll keep you posted.  Thanks!

[Jed Cooper]

Ok, so I'm watching tv and come across a Bruce Willis movie, 16 Blocks.  Something rings a bell and I think this may be the movie that I saw that plane in.  There's something about a chase sequence involving Willis and that plane.  Nah, this can't be the movie, so I pull out the dvd Mercury Rising, another movie I've seen recently.  I'm thinking it's more likely that chase sequence I remembered is from this movie, not 16 Blocks.  After skimming through, I realize that I'm still not quite there, yet.

Then, yet another Willis movie came to mind that I've seen recently, Live Free Or Die Hard.  Yes, I think this mystery has been solved.  I'm almost positive the plane chasing after McLain in this movie is the one that reminds me of the Russian plane in Firefox.  If someone can find a better photo, perhaps you could also post some side-by-side shots of each plane from both movies.  Also, the identity of the plane in Live Free Or Die Hard would be nice, too.  From what I've found on the internet, it appears to be an  F-35B.  This from here:  F-16.net

I'm hoping someone here can find and post a better photo, because this is the best I've been able to come up with thus far (bottom photo of these 3):

[Jed Cooper]

I just came across this clip.  I'm fairly certain this is the movie and the plane.  I think there's a scene showing the pilot getting into the plane and would like to see that again.  I believe that's where I made the Firefox connection.  If it's possible for anyone to post that here, too, it'd be very much appreciated.

Live Free Or Die Hard Clip

[The Schofield Kid]

Hey Brian, here is a couple of screencaps that I've taken from Die Hard 4.0 (They changed the title down here) DVD.

I didn't see a scene where the pilot got into the plane but I did hear one character refer to it as an F-35.

 

 

[Jed Cooper]

Hey, thanks SK!  I don't own it on dvd but checked tv listings and found it plays again Sunday night.  I'll check it out then.  There probably isn't a scene with the pilot entering the cockpit, maybe I just saw it taking off.

[Jed Cooper]

False alarm.  The plane from Die Hard With A Vengance isn't the one I thought was similar to the plane in Firefox.

"Oh well, back to the drawing board..."

[harryheath442]

GI Joe: Rise of Cobra?  I thought that when I saw the movie.

From IMDB:

The Cobra Night Raven in the film differs greatly from its comic book and TV counterparts. In the comics and the series, it's based on the SR-71 Blackbird. In the movie, it's very much like the MiG-31 from the movie Firefox (1983) (VG).

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1046173/trivia

[D'Ambrosia]

A little off topic but what the hell...  A sighting non the less...

[KC]

Thanks for the tip, Harryheath!

Gppd stuff, D'Amb!

[Southern cat]

Gppd stuff, D'Amb!

Is that Russian.

[KC]

No, that's having my fingers too far over on the keyboard and not enough light!

[Southern cat]

I knew that, I was just being cheeky.

[KC]

Actually, I think it may be Albanian. Or Basque.

[Jed Cooper]

GI Joe: Rise of Cobra?  I thought that when I saw the movie.  From IMDB:  The Cobra Night Raven in the film differs greatly from its comic book and TV counterparts. In the comics and the series, it's based on the SR-71 Blackbird. In the movie, it's very much like the MiG-31 from the movie Firefox (1983) (VG).     http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1046173/trivia 

Yes, correct!  I re-visited this movie and the Night Raven is the plane I thought was a copy of the Firefox, which came out in 1982.  Thanks to The Schofield Kid, I can post some very bad cell-phone photos.  I'm hoping someone else can do the Night Raven justice here.

[Million Dollar Tommy]

Very cool fellas, you're great.

[Jed Cooper]

Hey could someone post screen-shots of the Night Raven?  I'd greatly appreciate it!

Yes, correct!  I re-visited this movie and the Night Raven is the plane I thought was a copy of the Firefox, which came out in 1982.  Thanks to The Schofield Kid, I can post some very bad cell-phone photos.  I'm hoping someone else can do the Night Raven justice here.