When foreign military aircraft stray too close to a nation’s borders, they’re often swiftly met by the local air force’s fleet of interceptor aircraft — fast-moving dogfighters built to meet, greet, and then blow invading planes out of the sky. While the US relies on the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet and F-22 Raptor to defend its airspace, the Russian’s field the equally-capable MiG-31.
In this unique film by documentarian Artur Sarkisyan, GoPro cameras are affixed to various parts of a MiG-31 using specially designed mounts capable of enduring the massive stresses that these planes generate while in flight. And for a plane that tops out at mach 2.83, it’s a minor miracle that these cameras survived the entire flight. Skip ahead to the 1:30 mark to see these incredible aircraft cruising and banking in formation.