MOSCOW. Sept 6 (Interfax) - Hero of Russia Magomed Tolboyev, who serves as a test pilot, has said he thinks that it is too early to blame pilot error for the recent crash of a MiG-31 interceptor fighter in Russia's Perm territory.
"So far, it is difficult to give any assessment. A commission will establish what happened in the air," Tolboyev told Interfax on Tuesday.
Tolboyev has tested dozens of aircraft types and modifications, and was the commander of the space shuttle Buran.
The MiG-31 is a reliable airplane, but the problem rests with the technical state of the Russian Air Force's fleet, he said.
"It is a reliable airplane, which is easy to operate. It is a good navigation and tracking system. It is a real combat airplane for long-distance interceptions against strategic bombers. It underwent the whole cycle of trials. As far as I remember, not a single airplane has been lost since the MiG-31 was put into operation, even during the trials," Tolboyev said.
A MiG-31 interceptor fighter crashed in Russia's Perm territory on Tuesday. Both of its pilots were killed. Rescuers have already found their bodies at the site of the accident.
The MiG-31 is an all-weather two-seat supersonic long-range interceptor. It is the first Soviet fourth-generation warplane, which was designed by the OKB-155 Design Bureau, which is known today as the MiG Aircraft Corporation.
The first MiG-31 airplanes were sent to the air defense forces in 1983. More than 500 MiG-31 and MiG-31B planes had been built by 1994, when their production was stopped.