Mikoyan-Gurevich Ye-8

Mikoyan-Gurevich · Soviet Union · first flew 1962 · fighter

The Mikoyan-Gurevich Ye-8 was a Soviet experimental fighter prototype developed from the MiG-21 family, featuring a revised chin intake and modified delta wing. It was intended to evaluate improvements for a potential MiG-21 successor.

Recognition (WEFT)

W — Wings	Mid-mounted, delta
E — Engines	1 × turbojet, fuselage-mounted
F — Fuselage	16.9 m fuselage
T — Tail	Conventional

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Spot it by:

Soviet experimental delta-wing fighter prototype of the early 1960s
Single engine with large chin intake, delta wing
MiG-21 derivative with redesigned intake and aerodynamics

Resembles an elongated MiG-21 with a prominent chin intake instead of the nose intake, delta wing, and single engine — a clean supersonic prototype silhouette.

Specifications

The Mikoyan-Gurevich Ye-8 has a length of 16.9 m (55 ft).
It has a wingspan of 7.15 m (23 ft).
Its maximum speed is 1386 km/h (861 mph).
Typical crew: 1.

Figures are for the representative variant described above; marks differ. See how AircraftIQ sources figures.

History

The Ye-8 first flew in 1962 as a testbed exploring aerodynamic and intake improvements over the MiG-21. Two prototypes were built; the programme was cancelled after a fatal crash of the first prototype in 1962 and the discovery that the improvements did not offer sufficient advantages over the existing MiG-21. The type influenced later Soviet fighter intake designs.

Variants

Two prototypes were built (Ye-8/1 and Ye-8/2); there were no production variants.

Where you'll see it

The Ye-8 was purely an experimental prototype and never entered service with Soviet Air Forces.

Related aircraft

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