MiGFlug

MiGFlug GmbH is a Zurich-based aviation and space-adventure company specializing in arranging unusual flight experiences for civilians. Its best-known offering is the opportunity to fly as a passenger in military jet aircraft, including fighter jets and advanced jet trainers, under the supervision of professional pilots and the applicable operating rules of the host country. The company has marketed experiences in aircraft such as the Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-29, MiG-31, MiG-25, MiG-23, Sukhoi Su-27 and Su-30, Hawker Hunter, L-39 and other aircraft. The precise aircraft available has varied over time according to operator availability, national regulation, maintenance status and geopolitical conditions. The business began in 2004 after Philipp Schaer and a fellow University of Zurich student became interested in the possibility of flying in a military aircraft during a visit to Moscow. According to the company’s account, the pair encountered a fighter pilot, experienced a flight in Russia and then worked toward creating a lawful commercial arrangement for similar experiences. MiGFlug initially organized flights from Ramenskoye Airport near Moscow. Its early Russian program included aircraft that were especially attractive to aviation enthusiasts, including the MiG-25 and MiG-29. The company later expanded its network through cooperation with operators and airbases in other countries. MiGFlug’s service portfolio has included several distinct categories. Military jet trainer experiences allow customers to fly in aircraft such as the Aero L-39, often with aerobatic or high-performance elements subject to safety and regulatory limits. Historic fighter and warbird flights have provided access to aircraft such as the Hawker Hunter and, through cooperation with Thunder City in Cape Town, the English Electric Lightning and Blackburn Buccaneer. The company’s subsidiary GoAviator has focused on vintage aircraft experiences, including warbirds and biplanes. MiGFlug has also arranged formation jet flights, introduced in 2015, in which as many as six passengers could participate simultaneously in coordinated L-39 flights when operationally feasible. Beyond conventional jet flights, MiGFlug has marketed weightlessness and zero-gravity experiences. These have included arrangements involving an Ilyushin Il-76 operating from Star City near Moscow and a Boeing 727 in the United States through a relationship with Zero Gravity Corporation. The company previously promoted prospective suborbital experiences involving the XCOR Lynx spacecraft, but XCOR filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2017, preventing that planned service from becoming an established MiGFlug offering. The company has also explored so-called edge-of-space or stratospheric experiences, including proposed future flights in MiG-21 and MiG-23 aircraft. MiGFlug operates in the premium adventure-travel and specialist aviation-experience segment rather than as an airline or aircraft manufacturer. Customers generally purchase an organized experience rather than scheduled transportation. The company coordinates aircraft operators, pilots, locations, booking arrangements and supporting logistics, while the flight itself is performed by the relevant licensed operator. Its commercial visibility has been amplified by television programs, documentaries, advertising projects and celebrity participation. MiGFlug-related aircraft or experiences have appeared in media associated with the BBC, Lonely Planet, ProSieben’s Galileo and other productions. The company has also supported branded content for organizations including Porsche, Mercedes-Benz Diesel, OnePlus, IGN and Emmi. MiGFlug has continued to present itself as an aviation-adventure specialist, with military jet trainer flights, historic fighter flights and zero-gravity experiences forming the core of its documented portfolio in the mid-2020s. Its history demonstrates a shift from a Russia-centered fighter-flight concept toward a broader international marketplace of specialist aircraft experiences. Availability remains dependent on aircraft operators, airfield permissions, safety requirements and changes in national policy. MiGFlug has also publicized efforts to accommodate customers with disabilities, including arranging access for wheelchair users entering L-39 aircraft with lifting equipment where the aircraft and site permitted it.

MiGFlug was established in 2004 by Philipp Schaer and a fellow University of Zurich student. The idea developed during a trip to Moscow, where the two became interested in the possibility of experiencing a fighter flight. After an initial flight arranged through a Russian pilot, they sought a lawful commercial model for offering similar experiences to other civilians. The resulting company was based in Zurich and initially concentrated on flights from Ramenskoye Airport near Moscow. During its early Russian operations, MiGFlug arranged experiences in aircraft including the MiG-23, MiG-25, MiG-29 and Su-27. The company’s proposition was unusual: it sold access to the experience of flying in a military aircraft, rather than transportation between destinations. Programs could include high-performance flight and, where permitted, supersonic operation. Between 2006 and 2010, MiGFlug also arranged MiG-31 Foxhound experiences from Sokol Airbase in Nizhny Novgorod. MiG-29 flights from the same base were documented as continuing into 2017. The company progressively built an international portfolio. In South Africa, a cooperation with Thunder City enabled arrangements involving the English Electric Lightning and Blackburn Buccaneer. In Switzerland, MiGFlug offered Hawker Hunter flights from 2005 until 2022. It also organized T-38 supersonic experiences in the United States for television-related projects. Through its GoAviator subsidiary, the group broadened its focus to vintage aviation, including warbirds and biplanes. MiGFlug’s activities expanded beyond fighter aviation. It arranged weightlessness flights using an Ilyushin Il-76 operating from Star City near Moscow and a Boeing 727 in the United States through Zero Gravity Corporation. The company also publicized a future suborbital arrangement involving the XCOR Lynx. That plan did not become an operating service after XCOR entered Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2017. MiGFlug has separately discussed returning to stratospheric or edge-of-space experiences using aircraft such as the MiG-21 and MiG-23. From 2015, the company offered formation jet flights with multiple passengers in L-39 aircraft. Its operations have also included efforts to make participation possible for wheelchair users, with customers entering L-39 aircraft using a forklift where local conditions allowed. This initiative illustrates the logistical nature of MiGFlug’s business: each experience depends on a specific aircraft, operator, airfield and safety arrangement. Media exposure has been an important part of the brand. MiGFlug experiences and aircraft have appeared in BBC programming, Lonely Planet’s adventure programming and ProSieben’s Galileo. The company has supported branded productions and advertorials associated with Porsche, Mercedes-Benz Diesel, OnePlus, IGN and Emmi. An L-39 associated with MiGFlug appeared in the opening sequence of the 1997 James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies. The company has also publicized flights involving entertainers, athletes, media personalities and other notable passengers. By the mid-2020s, MiGFlug’s documented focus had settled primarily on military jet trainer flights, historic fighter flights and zero-gravity experiences. Its offering has changed as aircraft leave service, operators change, regulations evolve and international conditions affect access to airbases. The company remains positioned as a specialist provider of premium aviation adventures rather than a conventional travel or aerospace firm.

• 2022

  Swiss Hawker Hunter offering ends

  [1]MiGFlugen.wikipedia.org

  The documented period of MiGFlug’s Hawker Hunter flights in Switzerland concludes.

• 2017

  XCOR files for bankruptcy

  [1]MiGFlugen.wikipedia.org

  The Chapter 7 bankruptcy of XCOR ends the prospects for the previously planned Lynx-related suborbital experience.

• 2015

  Formation jet flights are introduced

  [1]MiGFlugen.wikipedia.org

  MiGFlug begins offering coordinated L-39 formation experiences for groups of passengers.

• 2006

  MiG-31 and MiG-29 programs expand from Sokol

  [1]MiGFlugen.wikipedia.org

  The company arranges MiG-31 flights from Sokol Airbase and continues developing MiG-29 experiences in Russia.

• 2005

  Hawker Hunter experiences begin in Switzerland

  [1]MiGFlugen.wikipedia.org

  MiGFlug documents the start of Hawker Hunter flight offerings in Switzerland, which continued until 2022.

• 2004

  MiGFlug is founded

  [1]MiGFlugen.wikipedia.org

  Philipp Schaer and a business partner establish the Zurich-based company and begin arranging civilian military-aircraft experiences in Russia.

Premium aviation adventure and experiential tourism

• Aviation adventure · 2004

  Military jet trainer flights

  MiGFlug arranges civilian passenger flights in military jet trainers, most notably the Aero L-39. Depending on the operator and location, customers may experience takeoff, maneuvering and aerobatic elements under the direction of a professional pilot. These are organized experiences rather than scheduled air transport, and availability depends on aircraft condition, local permissions and safety procedures.

• Historic aviation · 2004

  Historic fighter and warbird flights

  The company has arranged access to historic military aircraft including the MiG-23, MiG-25, MiG-29, Su-27, Hawker Hunter, English Electric Lightning and Blackburn Buccaneer. Some programs were tied to specific airbases or operators and are no longer documented as generally available. GoAviator extends the historic-aircraft concept to warbirds and biplanes.

• Group aviation experience · 2015

  Formation jet flights

  Introduced in 2015, the formation product allows multiple passengers to participate at the same time in coordinated L-39 flights. The attraction is the visual and operational experience of flying in close formation with other aircraft, subject to the limitations imposed by the participating operators and aviation authorities.

• Space-adventure experience

  Zero-gravity flights

  MiGFlug has arranged weightlessness experiences using aircraft such as an Ilyushin Il-76 near Star City and a Boeing 727 in the United States through Zero Gravity Corporation. These flights use parabolic flight profiles to create brief periods of reduced gravity and are distinct from orbital or suborbital spaceflight.

• Space-adventure concept

  Suborbital and edge-of-space concepts

  MiGFlug previously publicized a planned suborbital experience involving the XCOR Lynx and has discussed future stratosphere or edge-of-space flights using aircraft such as the MiG-21 and MiG-23. These concepts should not be treated as established operating products; the XCOR plan was disrupted by the company’s 2017 Chapter 7 bankruptcy.

• 1997Tomorrow Never Dies aircraft appearance

  International

  An L-39 associated with MiGFlug appeared in the opening sequence of the James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies, providing prominent entertainment-media exposure for the aircraft experience category.

  Outcome. The appearance increased the visibility of the type of military-jet experience MiGFlug later commercialized, although it predates the company’s 2004 founding.

  Source
• Television and documentary aviation features

  United Kingdom · Germany · International

  MiGFlug experiences have been featured in BBC programming, Lonely Planet’s Year of Adventures with Ben Fogle and ProSieben’s Galileo productions, including a T-38-related supersonic flight and a zero-gravity feature.

  Outcome. The coverage positioned MiGFlug as a specialist adventure provider and introduced its aircraft experiences to broad television audiences.

  Source
• Branded aviation content

  International

  MiGFlug has participated in advertising or advertorial projects connected with Porsche, Mercedes-Benz Diesel, OnePlus, IGN and Emmi.

  Outcome. These collaborations used military aircraft and unusual flight experiences as visual and experiential marketing assets.

  Source

• 2017

  Shift planned future experiences toward alternative aircraftStrategy

  Background

  The MiG-29 was no longer available for the relevant program after late 2017, while XCOR’s financial failure undermined the planned Lynx suborbital arrangement.

  Action taken

  MiGFlug discussed possible stratosphere or edge-of-space flights using MiG-21 and MiG-23 aircraft instead.

  Aftermath

  The proposed alternatives remained future plans rather than documented mainstream operating products.

  Source

• 2015

  Launch of formation jet flightsProduct launch

  Background

  MiGFlug sought to broaden the appeal of L-39 experiences beyond a single-passenger flight.

  Action taken

  The company introduced formation flights that could involve up to six passengers flying simultaneously in close formation.

  Aftermath

  Formation flying became a distinct group-oriented experience within the company’s product portfolio.

  Source

• 2004

  Commercialize civilian military-jet experiencesStrategy

  Background

  The founders identified demand for access to high-performance military aircraft after experiencing a flight in Russia.

  Action taken

  MiGFlug created a legal commercial arrangement for organizing fighter and military-jet flights for civilian customers.

  Aftermath

  The company developed from a Russia-centered concept into an international aviation-adventure business.

  Source

1. 1MiGFlugen.wikipedia.org