iG Corporation is busy working to develop a replacement for the MiG-31 fighter-interceptor, company general director Ilya Tarasenko has revealed. The company head also indicated that the company is actively working on creating a multipurpose military drone.

Speaking to Russia's Kommersant newspaper, Tarasenko explained that the company has divided its business into three main clusters. 

"The first involves the modernization of aircraft which had been delivered to the customer earlier," he said. "In other words, we can modernize them in such a way as to bring their characteristics as close as possible to fifth generation aircraft."

"The second area, which we are proposing to our customers, and on which we are proactively working, is a prospective long-range interceptor aircraft," Tarasenko added.

Tarasenko said that work on the new aircraft is already underway, even as the company continues to fulfill its commitments to modernize Russia's fleet of Mig-31 fighter-interceptors. According to the official, the company hopes to have a new plane ready by the time the next prospective modernization of the MiG-31 rolls around. "That's our plan," he said.

The MiG-31 is a long-range supersonic fighter-interceptor, designed for use against both high and low-altitude airborne targets. The plane was first introduced with the Soviet military in 1980, and its mass production continued until 1994. MiG Corporation is currently fulfilling a contract to modernize the Russian Aerospace Defense Forces' existing fleet of MiG-31s. The military expects for the planes to remain in service until at least 2030.