DEFENCE NEWS IN BRIEF
15.08.2007 12:34

Ka-52 started the second stage of the flight tests with the radar station Arbalet. The first results were called rather encouraging. The stage of the preliminary tests will be finished by autumn. First helicopters Ka-52 will be commissioned with the Russian Air Force in 2007-2008. Arsenyev based Progress started the assembly of the first frame of Ka-52.

Klimov plans tripling the turnover by 2015. According to the General Director of the company Alexander Vatagin by that time it will make 12 billion rubles. Noteworthy, the main increase will be due to removing the manufacturing of the helicopter TV-3-117 and VK-2500 to St. Petersburg as well as setting up the production of the new VK-800. The agreement on the construction of a new hi-tech plant was signed with the government of the city. The project is worth 3 billion rubles, of which 1,5 billion will be allocated from the federal budget, and 1,5 billion from the non-budget sources After this the production of the helicopter engines TV-3-117 and VK-2500 will increase from 100 to 400 a year. According to Vatagin before the end of 2009 this project will be implemented. According to the Perm based media sources referring to a source in the local government Perm Motors started negotiations with Klimov on participating in the VK-2500 project.

OAK redistributed the participants of Be-200. VASO, Samara Aviation Plant and Irkut will make parts of the aircraft. Taganrog based Tavia remains the final assembler. This is due to the fast growing demand in the market. The designers still need RUB 2.79 billion on arranging serial manufacturing, while foreign customers build up orders. According to European Aeronautic Defence & Space and Rolls-Royce in the near 20 years 25 countries may buy up to 320 Be-200.

Russian Air Force commissioned first serial Su-34. This so far “most advanced aerial complex of Sukhoi” has the range of a medium strategic bomber and capable of using high precision arms. Its long range is ensured not only by the fact that it has big internal and attached tanks, but also comfortable conditions for the pilots. One of the two pilots have the opportunity lo lay down and sleep during the flight.

PAK FA is gradually taking shape. At the meeting of the MICom held at the office of Sukhoi First Vice-Premier Sergey Ivanov said that the designed are nearing the end of the R&D. It took place in the conditions of the competition between the two engine designers (Saturn and Salyut) trying to win the tender on creating the engine for the future aircraft. The volume of the pro-Saturn publications in the media exceeds those in favor of Salyut times fold, however, the overwhelming majority have nothing to do with serious arguments for the specialists and geared first of all towards general public.

Second birth of the world’s fastest jet. Mig-31 interceptor undergoes serial upgrade. According to the Commander of the Russian Air Force General-Colonel Alexander Zelin its modernization makes the aircraft a worthy opponent to the fifth generation fighters of the foreign states. All technical developments made by the designers for the Russian version of the 5th generation aircraft (PAK FA) are implemented in Mig-31. New air-to-air missiles of Mig-31 allowed hitting small sized flying objects and perspective hypersonic aircraft. At the same time Mig-31 has considerably higher combat payload and uses latest Russian global positioning system Glonass.

ANTK Antonov and Aviacor are negotiating a joint venture on An-140. The joint venture is likely to be an independent legal entity.

The meeting of the Board of Directors of Aviastar declared that in 2007 the company will make seven aircraft.

Mi-38 is delayed again. Serial manufacturing of the heavy helicopter Mi-38 at Kazan Helicopter Plant is postponed from 2007 to 2009. It was confirmed by the General Designer of Moscow Helicopter Plant Alexey Samusenko. The reason of the delay is the prolonged certification tests and not completed negotiations with the Canadian P&W and some Russian enterprises on establishing in the Russian Federation a license manufacture of the engines for the new helicopter. Assistant to the Deputy General Director of the Kazan enterprise Michael Kostrov mentioned that serial manufacturing may be delayed even till 2010.

Russia upkeeps superiority in the radars. Radio engineering units of the Russia Air Force will commission a new type of radar in the beginning of 2008. According to the Air Force General-Major Anatoly Boyarintsev the new hardware will be able to efficiently monitor the situation even in the mountains. The enterprises finish the development of the equipment based on the new method of radar-tracking. Some of the plants involved in the project which were mentioned by the general is the Nizhniy Novgorod Institute of Radio Engineering and Lianozovsky Electromechanical Plant. One of the new principle achievements of the designers is that the new stations will need just several minutes to (re)deploy.

A «bug» for the Russian Air Force. Fazatron-NIIR will start full scale development of the radar Zhuk-ME for the Mig-29 fighters in 2008. Zhuk-ME (bug) is the home version of the most advanced radar Zhuk M, designed for the foreign customers of RSK MiG. ME version is geared towards the requirements of the Russian Air Force and adjusted to the configuration of the Mig-29 to be upgraded for the national Air Force. As of today the Air Force worked out only preliminary technical requirements to the radar, therefore Fazatron is starting the job with own money.

Motoviliha is booming. Advantageous market conditions made it possible for the JSC Motoviliha Plants to earn over 5,5 billion rubles in the first six months of this year, which is 83 % more than in the similar period of the last year. The net profit of the enterprise grew almost five times, up to 278 million rubles. Interestingly, the main contribution to the above growth was due to the civil production of the company.

In 2020 RFAF will have new transport aviation. It is planned to finish the renewing of the stock of military-transport aircraft of the Russian Air Force by 2020, according to the Commander the Air Force general-colonel Alexander Zelin. It is impossible to replace the whole stock at once, - he said, - but it is not necessity at present. The Air Force needs about two aircraft in three years. Approximately by 2020 the available stock of flying devices will be replaced completely. The Commander also confirmed that the removal of the production of Il-76 from Tashkent to Ulyanovsk is irreversible. Aviastar will make modernized Il-76MF and An-124-100.

Thailand intends to buy 96 Ukrainian BTR-3E1. The two countries are preparing a respective intergovernmental agreement.

Irkut started serial manufacturing of Yak-130. This year first six will be delivered to RFAF and the first Algerian plain will be laud down.

OAK plans staged conversion of Irkut into a civil production, according to the head of OAK Fedorov. Private owners of Irkut do not mind. Both were voiced publicly.

35 types of new arms commissioned in Russia. First Vice-Premier Sergey Ivanov reported to the President of Russia that since the beginning of the year 35 types of new arms were commissioned with the Armed Forces, which means that the plans of the State Arms Program for the first half of the year were completed 100%. Most important items stressed were S-400 air defense complex, ground based missile Yarts and air based missile Kh-102.

Thailand intends to buy 96 Ukrainian BTR-3E1. The two countries are preparing a respective intergovernmental agreement.

Irkut started serial manufacturing of Yak-130. This year first six will be delivered to RFAF and the first Algerian plain will be laud down.

OAK plans staged conversion of Irkut into a civil production, according to the head of OAK Fedorov. Private owners of Irkut do not mind. Both were voiced publicly.

35 types of new arms commissioned in Russia. First Vice-Premier Sergey Ivanov reported to the President of Russia that since the beginning of the year 35 types of new arms were commissioned with the Armed Forces, which means that the plans of the State Arms Program for the first half of the year were completed 100%. Most important items stressed were S-400 air defense complex, ground based missile Yarts and air based missile Kh-102.

Il-76MD to be tested in three stages. According to the General Director of the Aviation Complex Ilyushin Victor Livanov the first stage of state tests is completed. The second stage of should be finished by the end of the current year. Its results are to allow the operation permission. The third stage provides for the flight tests with the new piloting-navigating complex "Kupol", which is planned for integrating with the aircraft in the first quarter of the next year.

Removing Be-200 to Taganrog will cost about 400 million RUB. Now the aircraft is made in Irkutsk, however, according to the owners of Irkut it will pay off to remove the production of Be-200 to Taganrog. The costs will be paid by Irkut.

VDV got new landing hardware. According to the Assistant of the Commander of the Russian Air Borne Troops colonel Alexander Cherednik the flight tests of the world’s heaviest landing artillery unit 125-millimetre self-propelled anti-tank gun 2Ñ25 Sprut were finished successfully. The new landing truck KAMAZ-43501, which is to replace Gaz-66, also passed tests. According to the source by the end of the year Air Borne Troops will get over 100 such vehicles.

The number of FGUPs shrinks. The on-going process of integrating the defense enterprises into holdings increases the number of the joint-stock companies which are established on the former FGUPs (state unitary enterprises). Simultaneously the number of the state enterprises (kazennoe predpriyatie) is stabilizing. As of today there are 24 state enterprises dealing with the production of powder factories, special chemistry and ammunition.

Russia claims it can build still more Il-76. In spite of the fact that Rosoboronexport has serious problems with fulfilling a huge Chinese contract on building 38 transport and tanker aircraft Il-76/78, Ilyushin publicly stated that it is going to compete with Boeing and Airbus on the delivery of air tankers to India. From Russian side Il-76MKI will participate in the tender.

Russians and Americans work together in space. Russian SNTK Kuznetsov and American Aerojet are developing the technology of returning Russian NK-33 and NK-43 engines back to earth. If they parties reach success, it will be a revolutionary breakthrough in space programs.

First engines for Yak-130. The Moscow based state owned enterprise Salyut made first two aircraft engines AI-222-25 for the combat-training jet Yak-130. According to the press release of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation stand tests of the engines were completed and they were delivered to the flight center for tests. Original engine of the jet is French Larzak.

India may withdraw from MTA project. According to the Indian newspaper Defense News Indian company HAL considers an opportunity to refuse from the cooperation with the Russian partners and attract foreign partners to implementing the program of the development of a medium multi-purpose transport plane, MTA. The source claims that there have been contacts with the American Golfstream, Canadian Embraer and Italian Alenia Aeronautica. The Indians accuse Russia of not willing to finance the project. Russian side said that MTA will get the money next year. According to the genera director of AK Ilyushin Victor Livanov Russia will start full scale financing of the Russian-Indian project on the medium transport aircraft MTA from 2008. Keeping in mind the project is implemented by the two parties on equal terms India is supposed to open financing also in a year.

Michail Pogosyan left the post of the general director of OKB Sukhoi. He will concentrate on the work in the Holding Company Sukhoi, which he heads. At the same time he is going to combine this work with the post of the Vice-President of the United Aviation Building Company.

Problems with Su-34. According to the newspaper Izevstiya the delivery of the first Su-34 from NAPO to the Lipetsk Air Force Center was a little bit delayed due to minor technical problems. By the end of the year the Center will get the second plane.

News source: ShipbuildingRu
Print version