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Firefox
A joint British–American plan is devised to steal the MiG-31 "Firefox", a highly advanced Soviet fighter jet. Capable of Mach 6 hypersonic flight, the Firefox is invisible to radar and carries weaponry controlled by human thought, threatening to give the Soviets a military advantage over the West. Retired U.S. Air Force Major Mitchell Gant —an experienced pilot, Vietnam veteran, ex-member of an aggressor squadron, and former prisoner of war—is deemed well-suited for the task, despite his affliction with " delayed stress syndrome ". Air Force Captain Buckholz makes an unannounced helicopter trip to Gant's home in Alaska and explains the mission.
Gant has two further advantages: he speaks Russian, thanks to his Russian mother, and will be aided by a network of Soviet dissidents, three of whom are scientists working on the fighter plane itself. His mission, as directed by the British–American team and arranged by the S.I.S., is to infiltrate the Soviet Union, steal the Firefox, and fly it back to friendly territory for analysis. Kenneth Aubrey, the British spymaster guiding the plan, briefs Gant in London.
Gant enters Moscow disguised as Leon Sprague, a businessman and heroin smuggler. Gant and the dissidents make a rendezvous with the real Sprague but, to the shock of Gant, one of them kills Sprague and plants Gant's false identification papers on the corpse. Gant assumes several identities during his mission. He is questioned by a KGB agent in a metro station, but blows his cover and kills the agent in a fight, barely escaping the station afterward. While the KGB is concerned about the Firefox, they do not yet know who Gant is. Aided by the dissidents, Gant remains one step ahead of the KGB and reaches the air base at Bilyarsk, where the Firefox prototype is under heavy guard.
The dissidents working on the Firefox help Gant infiltrate the base. Pyotr Baranovich, one of the dissident scientists, briefs Gant about the aircraft and warns that there is a second prototype in the hangar. A fire will destroy the second plane and cause a diversion, allowing Gant to hijack the first plane. Gant knocks out Lt. Colonel Yuri Voskov, a Soviet pilot assigned to perform a test flight while the Soviet First Secretary visits. Alone with the unconscious Voskov, Gant decides to spare his life. The KGB finally learns Gant's identity, but it is too late. Although the scientists start the fire, the second prototype survives. Baranovich is singled out by Soviet personnel and draws a pistol, managing to shoot one of the guards before he is gunned down. As the commotion unfolds, Gant boards the Firefox and taxis out of the hangar. Colonel Kontarsky orders his men to open fire, but Gant successfully takes off. The British–American team, monitoring Soviet communications, realize that he is airborne.
The Soviet First Secretary contacts Gant and tells him to return the plane. After Gant refuses, he orders the plane destroyed. Gant begins flying south to confuse his pursuers, then turns north. He narrates his actions on the cockpit voice recorder while the Soviets frantically try to stop him. General Vladimirov plans a trap for the Firefox, but Gant destroys a Soviet plane instead, and the First Secretary berates Vladimirov. Gant engages a homing device en route to a U.S. submarine, which will refuel him after he lands on the polar ice pack. A Soviet ship launches missiles, but none hit the plane. Gant reaches the submarine, whose crew refuel and rearm the Firefox. However, Gant's decision to let Voskov live has consequences—the Soviet pilot flies the second prototype, with orders to intercept him in the North Cape area. Gant is flying home when Voskov appears, engaging him in a dogfight. After a hard-fought battle, Gant fires a rearward missile with the aircraft's thought-control system, and Voskov's plane is destroyed. Gant continues his flight to safety.