The MiG-25 Foxbat was (like almost every other Soviet project in the Cold War) a top secret plane. The MiG-25 itself scared the west so bad that they pushed for the development of the F-15 Eagle to counter it. The west had assumed it was a highly maneuverable (incorrect) air superiority fighter - when infact it was a high-speed, high-altitude interceptor designed to protect Soviet airspace primarily from high-flying, supersonic bombers. It also had a use in defending Soviet airspace from high-flying spy planes such as the U-2 and the SR-71 Blackbird. While the MiG-25 was not fast enough to catch a SR-71, in theory it could be carefully calculated, plotted, and timed to place the MiG-25 into a position where it could fire upon a Blackbird, if needed.
The SR-71 could travel at mach 3.3 while the MiG-25 could reach mach 3.2. However at this speed the plane is going so fast that the friction causes the aircraft to heat up, and while the MiG-25 could reach and sustain mach 3.2: it would damage the aircraft to a point where it could not be used again without immediate repairs & replacement of parts upon landing, so the MiG-25 pilots were limited to the safe speed of mach 2.83.
The MiG-25 was introduced in 1970, and only 6 years later Viktor Belenko (a Soviet pilot) defected from the USSR in a MiG-25, landing in a west-controlled air base located in Hakodate, Japan. It was the first time the west was able to closely analyze the assumed superjet, and while the USSR protested heavily - the analysis was carried out and the USSR got the jet back in a multitude of pieces.
This event ties into the running-away portion of the comic.
As for the alcohol, the MiG-25 was affectionately loved by Soviet crews because the aircraft contained 500 liters of pure alcohol (for the cooling & brakes of the aircraft), and it was a well-known phenomenon that if a MiG-25 landed with any alcohol left over, it quickly disappeared overnight at the base.
This ties into the portion where MiG-25 regurgitates alcohol into the bottle.
The Alcohol was primarily used for cooling the Mig-25's very high power TL-25 radar. The radar generated immense heat and was cooled by the alcohol evaporating. However, when the booze ran out, so did the plane's ability to use the radar. Despite this, alcohol cooling was cheaper and lighter than the complicated heat-exchange systems used in the F-15.
SLOSHAnd a bit scaryFufu... Getting alcohol is no great challenge if I have a bottle handy!Huh!? Where'd you even get something like that?Tada!!Is this some act of teenage rebellion...Here you are!And just where did that come from!!?That's scary!MIG AND PUBERTYYou sure are upbeat for a run-away...
I can almost picture just how bad a state your house is right now.FLAP
FLAPDa! ...This is actually the first time I've stepped outside the house. It's kinda exciting!Speaking of which, let's drink some booze for the sake of maximum rebelliousness!