Russia Aircraft and Aerospace Programs

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A Russian Be-12 seaplane drops bombs. The crews of the Be-12 anti-submarine seaplane and the Ka-29 helicopter of the Russian Black Sea Fleet conducted exercises over the Black Sea. The purpose of the exercise is to search for and counter enemy naval drones. In the video, a Be-12 Chaika turboprop amphibious aircraft bombed a mock enemy. The Ka-29 helicopter practiced firing at a sea target from a heavy machine gun. The Be-12 Seagull seaplane was built from 1963 to 1973 at the Taganrog Aviation Plant No. 86 named after. G.M. Dimitrov, a total of 142 aircraft were built. The Be-12 aircraft is still in limited service with the Russian Navy today. At the time of its creation, the Be-12 was the largest production amphibious aircraft in the world. The aircraft can carry anti-submarine bombs, torpedoes, mines, and a total of 24 weapons are used. The Be-12 is equipped with two AI-20D engines and is capable of speeds of up to 550 km/h, with a tactical range of up to 650 kilometers, and a maximum flight range of 4,000 kilometers. Weight of combat load is 3000 kilograms.

 

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Aviation plant named after. Yu.A. Gagarin manufactured and handed over to the Russian Ministry of Defense the final batch of fifth-generation Su-57 aircraft, according to the 2023 production program. To speed up production, the Su-57 assembly line was set up in 2023 in the face of growing serial production of aircraft. Measures were also taken to eliminate bottlenecks not only in the final aircraft assembly shop, but throughout the entire production cycle. Issues regarding the supply of high-tech components from supplier factories are also being successfully resolved, and opportunities for improving the assembly technology of Su-57 aircraft are being worked out.

 

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Since there is no topic about the Ethiopian army, I am posting it here. The Ethiopian Air Force has received Russian export Su-30K fighters. The ceremony of introducing the first two Su-30K aircraft into the Ethiopian Air Force took place last Tuesday, January 16. Russia previously supplied 18 Su-30K fighter jets to India in the second half of the 1990s. In 2008, India returned 18 Su-30K fighters to Russia under the “trade in” system, receiving new Su-30MKIs in return. In 2011, all aircraft were transported from India to Belarus to the 558th aircraft repair plant in Baranovichi. In 2013, 12 former Indian Su-30K fighters were purchased by Angola after modifications and repairs were carried out in Belarus. The Su-30K was developed in 1993 on the basis of the Su-27UB and is a transitional model to the Indian version of the Su-30MKI aircraft.

 

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The Russian training aircraft UTS-800 made its first flight, the footage was published by the Ural Civil Aviation Plant. The aircraft is intended for training pilots of fighter and bomber aircraft. The UTS-800 is equipped with modern equipment, including a digital flight control system and a multifunctional display. Earlier, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced a competition designed to find a replacement for the foreign fleet of training aircraft; Yak-152 and UTS-800 aircraft took part in it. The aircraft is equipped with modern systems and is not inferior to foreign analogues in terms of payload, thrust-to-weight ratio and maneuverability. The aircraft's components are made in Russia, and the airframe itself is made of domestic composite materials. Currently, the UTS-800 is equipped with a General Electric H80 engine. It is planned that the aircraft will receive a Russian VK-800SM turboprop engine. The cost of a flight hour for a UTS-800 aircraft is about 25 thousand rubles or 285 dollars. The aircraft's cruising speed is 360 km/h, flight altitude is up to 8000 meters, maximum take-off weight is 2150 kg.

 

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Footage of the modernized Russian Tu-160M missile carriers. The President of Russia visited the Kazan Aviation Plant named after Gorbunov, where he talked with aircraft manufacturers and boarded one of the aircraft. The Tu-160 supersonic bomber entered service in 1987, later it was upgraded to the Tu-160M and Tu-160M2 versions. In the modernized aircraft, most of the equipment, automatic on-board control system, fuel management complex, aviation system, and weapons were replaced. The new information and control system of the aircraft made it possible to abandon analog instruments. The aircraft can carry Kh-555, Kh-101, Kh-15, Kh-22 and Kh-55 missiles. After inspecting one of the aircraft, the President of Russia proposed giving it the name "Mintimer Shaimiev".

 

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Russia is resuming the production of A-50 long-range radar warning aircraft, this is an analogue of American AWACS aircraft, Rostec reported. The A-50 aircraft is now in great demand, since there are few of them in the Russian Air Force, only 12 of them, 7 of them are flying. In light of recent events, with the expected loss of two A-50 aircraft, which are not officially confirmed, the release of aircraft is becoming especially important for the Air Force . Now Russia can produce up to 3 A-50 aircraft per year. To date, no new aircraft are being produced; only the A-50s already in service are being modernized to the A-50U level; work is being carried out in Taganrog. A-50U aircraft have recently been used to guide missiles from Russian S-400 air defense systems. Most likely, the A-50U aircraft will go into production. It is worth noting that Russia is also developing new A-100 aircraft, created on the basis of the Il-76MD-90A aircraft. For comparison, the A-100 will be able to detect up to 350 air, sea and ground targets at a distance of up to 650 km; its analogue, the American Boeing 737AEW&C AWACS system, can track up to 180 targets at a distance of up to 500 km. When asked about the A-50 aircraft, the head of Rostec said: “Of course, this aircraft is needed. Of course, we will make it. Not only does our army need it, it is also exported very well.” In recent years, Russia has put into operation improved A-50U aircraft, they are capable of detecting low-flying targets at a distance of up to 400 kilometers, targets at medium and high altitudes are detected at a distance of up to 650 kilometers, and ballistic missiles are detected at a range of up to 800 kilometers. The number of simultaneously tracked targets is up to 150. You can see the full technical characteristics of the A-50 aircraft on the screen. The aircraft can coordinate the work of 12 fighters and guide 30 aircraft. The A-50 aircraft is capable of conducting patrols for 4 hours at a distance of 1000 km without refueling, with one refueling up to 7 hours. The practical flight range of the aircraft is up to 7500 kilometers, the aircraft crew is 5 people and 10 operators. The cost of the A-50 aircraft is about 330 million dollars.

 

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Footage of a Russian search and rescue team taking off on a Mi-8 helicopter. The helicopter is accompanied by two helicopters, Mi-28 and Ka-52. The specialized air search unit consists of a fire support team and a medical worker. The medic helps in rescue operations, he also monitors the situation, assists in evacuation and provides first aid to pilots in case of emergency situations. Also on the channel you can watch videos of Russian pilots training on survival in enemy territory

 

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Footage of the use of a flight simulator of the Yak-130 aircraft by the President of Russia, at the Krasnodar Higher Military Aviation School of Pilots named after. Hero of the Soviet Union A.K. Serov. The Russian flight simulator is a complete copy of the control system of the Yak-130 and L-39 fighters. The Yak-130 combat training aircraft is recognized by experts as the best in terms of price-performance ratio; more details about the Yak-130 can be found in the link to the video in the comments to the video. Future pilots are allowed to fly an aircraft only after 17 hours of training flight time on this simulator. The flight simulator is used to practice difficult flight conditions, actions in case of equipment failures and simulate the main mistakes of pilots. The President of Russia flew and landed on a flight simulator.

 

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Footage of the production and testing of the Russian airborne electronic warfare complex L-370 "Vitebsk", designed to protect aircraft and helicopters from missiles. The developer of the complex is the Federal State Unitary Enterprise Research Institute Ekran, it is produced by the KRET company, journalist Alexey Egorov interviewed the developers. The Russian airborne defense complex L-370 "Vitebsk" is produced in two versions, the L-370 version is used for helicopters, and the "Vitebsk-25" version is used for aircraft. The electronic warfare system is effective, but it does not provide 100 percent protection; in the cockpit you can often hear the phrase “Attack from the right, attack from the left,” this means that the electronic warfare system detected the missile launch and rejected it. Judging by the videos published by the Russian Ministry of Defense, the complex quite often saved the lives of pilots. The Vitebsk electronic warfare system is also installed on the Il-96-300 aircraft on which the Russian President flies.
In the video you can see tests of the L-370 electronic warfare system installed on a Mi-8 helicopter; as you can see in the video, the complex successfully rejects Igla MANPADS missiles; a total of 20 of them were fired. The sets of the L-370 "Vitebsk" complex are placed in suspended containers on the suspension units of the Su-25SM3 aircraft and on the Ka-52, Mi-26, Mi-8 and Mi-35M helicopters. It is worth noting that it is not often found on Su-25 aircraft.
The basis of the Vitebsk electronic warfare is the L-370-3S active jamming station; according to the developer, the station is much faster than the electronic warfare on other aircraft: the Sorptsiya electronic warfare on the Su-27, Omul on the Su-25 and Gardenia on MiG-29. Electronic warfare L-370 "Vitebsk" is capable of assessing the intensity of radar radiation and suppressing this signal in a wide frequency range. The complex also includes a missile protection system with a thermal homing head. In the photo you can see the composition of the complex placed on the Su-25Sm3 aircraft and the Ka-52 helicopter. The system automatically detects a missile launch and activates the use of passive jamming, thermal decoys and chaffs, as well as active protection in the infrared and radio bands. The operation of electronic warfare leads to disruption of the missile homing systems and provokes them to fly to false targets. The system can operate automatically without operator participation, only providing information about the attack angle and the nature of the threat. They plan to equip the Il-76, Il-78, An-72, An-124 aircraft, as well as the promising Il-112V, with the complex.

 

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Russian MiG-31 aircraft with hypersonic Kinzhal missiles and Tu-22M3 bombers patrolled the western border of Russia over the Baltic waters. During the flight, the crews of the MiG-31 aircraft practiced in-flight refueling from the Il-78 aircraft. Fighter escort was also provided by Russian Su-30SM and Su-35S aircraft. At certain stages of the route, Russian aircraft were accompanied by Finnish F-18 fighters armed with AIM-9 air-to-air missiles.

 

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The first batch of Su-35S fighters produced in 2024 was transferred to the Russian Ministry of Defense. The aircraft underwent a series of ground and flight tests and flew from the airfield of the aircraft plant named after. Yu.A. Gagarin in Komsomolsk-on-Amur, to the place of service. The Su-35 has a low effective dispersion area; for example, the American Patriot air defense system sees the fighter only at a distance of about 70 km, instead of the standard 130 km. The Su-35 has an AL-41F-1S thrust vectoring engine, which began production in 2010 and is also installed on the Su-57 fifth generation fighter. The Su-35S made its first flight in 2008, the maximum speed of the aircraft is 2500 km/h, the flight range is up to 4500 km, and the combat radius is up to 1800 km. Combat load – 8 tons, service ceiling – 20 km. The service life of the Su-35 aircraft is 6000 flight hours or 30 years. Su-35S cost: from 80 to 100 million dollars.

 

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Two Tu-95ms strategic missile carriers of Russian long-range aviation performed a scheduled flight in the airspace over the neutral waters of the Bering Sea. The flight duration was more than 11 hours; the Tu-95MS strategic missile carriers were accompanied by Russian Su-30SM 4++ generation fighters. Off the west coast of Alaska, Russian Tu-95MS missile carriers were accompanied by F-16C fighters from the 18th Fighter Interceptor Squadron from Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska.

 

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The only Soviet combat fighter I-16, which participated in the battles of the Great Patriotic War, has been restored in Russia. There are now only three flying I-16 aircraft in the world. The I-16 fighter will take to the skies at the Victory Parade in Novosibirsk on May 9. The I-16 was developed in the design bureau of Nikolai Polikarpov. The I-16 aircraft is quite difficult to pilot; due to its tendency to go into a tailspin at low altitude, which leads to difficulties during landing, the aircraft did not make even the slightest mistakes in piloting. The first I-16 type 4 fighter was put into serial production in 1934, it became the most popular Soviet fighter, 10 thousand aircraft were manufactured before 1942, they were also used in Spain and China. The aircraft was equipped with engines with power starting from 480 hp. up to 1100 hp The aircraft is armed with 4 ShKAS machine guns of 7.62 mm caliber or 20 mm ShVAK air cannon. The plane carried 6 RS-82 shells or up to 500 kg of bombs. The maximum flight range of the I-16 is 680 km, at altitudes up to 9950 meters, at speeds up to 470 km/h.

 

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Footage of the Russian Ka-52 helicopter piloting at ultra-low altitude. Judging by the instruments, the helicopter flies at a height of 2-3 meters with a speed of about 220 km/h. When flying at extremely low altitudes, it is necessary to continuously maintain visual orientation and constantly monitor the earth's surface and obstacles on it, which practically eliminates the possibility of using counting and measuring instruments.

 

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A Mi-35 helicopter attacks a Ukrainian MAGURA naval drone with a GSh-23L cannon. Footage of the attack of the Russian Mi-35M helicopter on the Ukrainian maritime drone MAGURA V5, technical information about the drone is on the channel. The Mi-35M helicopter fires at the drone from an NPPU-23 installation with a GSh-23L double-barreled aircraft cannon with a 23 mm caliber. The GSh-23L aviation cannon is liquid-cooled, which allows firing in long bursts without high-speed air flow blowing onto the gun; the GSh-23L's rate of fire is 3,400 rounds per minute. Reportedly, a total of 15 maritime drones were destroyed in the Black Sea, but only one was shown on video.

 

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Russian military transport aviation ceases operation of the world's largest turboprop transport aircraft, the An-22 Antey. From 2024, the operation of An-22 aircraft will cease, as announced by the commander of the Military Transport Aviation, Lieutenant General Vladimir Benediktov. The lieutenant general clarified that during the existence of the project, a total of 67 An-22 aircraft were produced, some of them are located in Ukraine. According to Benediktov, the 12th Military Transport Aviation Division currently uses the world’s largest mass-produced aircraft, the An-124 Ruslan. The AN-22 made its first flight in 1965; it was produced at the Tashkent aircraft plant; in 1976, turboprop engines began to be considered obsolete and AN-22 aircraft were no longer produced. Instead, they began to produce the Il-76 turbojet military transport aircraft. The AN-22 has a mass of 114,000 kg and is capable of transporting up to 60 tons of cargo over a range of up to 5,250 km, developing a cruising speed of up to 560 km/h and a maximum speed of up to 760 km/h, with a flight altitude of up to 9,000 meters. The practical flight range of the An-22 is up to 10,950 km, crew up to 7 people. The height of the An-22 aircraft is more than 12.5 meters, length is 57 meters, wingspan is 64.4 meters. At the moment, the only air unit using these aircraft in Russia was the 12th Military Transport Aviation Mginskaya Red Banner Division, based at the Migalovo airfield in Tver. As of 2024, it included four An-22s.

 

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The second stage of joint training of units of the armed forces of Russia and Belarus for the combat use of non-strategic nuclear weapons took place in Belarus. We previously showed the first stage of the exercises, the military worked on receiving special training ammunition for the Iskander tactical missile system, equipping launch vehicles with them and covertly advancing to the designated position area. The exercises used Iskander missile systems with Iskander-K and Iskander-M missiles, Tu-22M3 aircraft with Kh-22 and Kh-32 missiles, and MiG-31 aircraft with Kinzhal hypersonic missiles.
The exercises are aimed at maintaining the readiness of personnel and equipment of units to use non-strategic nuclear weapons.

 

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Rostec handed over the first VK-650V engines to the Kazan helicopter plant for testing the imported Ansat helicopter. “The first prototypes of the VK-650V engine were produced at the St. Petersburg enterprise ODK-Klimov, they successfully passed preliminary and life tests. They are currently undergoing certification tests. They plan to receive the certificate by the end of this year, and next year they plan to begin mass production of the engine. VK-650V is the first Russian helicopter engine in the 650-750 hp power class. The power plant will replace the American Pratt & Whitney PW207K engine on the Ansat helicopter; it will also be used on the Ka-226T helicopter, as well as in other promising Russian helicopters and aircraft with a take-off weight of up to 4 tons. Compared to foreign analogues, the VK-650V will have greater take-off power and better specific characteristics. Dry weight of the VK-650V engine is 105 kg. The declared specific fuel consumption at takeoff is 245 grams of fuel per horsepower per hour.

 

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Footage of a Russian Su-35 fighter flying next to an American MQ-9 Reaper UAV in the sky over Syria. The shooting was carried out over the village of Es-Sukhneh, Homs province of Syria at altitudes from 7000 to 8000 meters. The Su-35 was armed with R-73 and R-77 missiles, and the MQ-9 Reaper UAV also had missile weapons.

 

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In the Amur Region, the crews of Russian Tu-95MS strategic missile-carrying bombers practiced in-flight refueling of aircraft. More than 5 Tu-95MS aircraft were involved in the flights; refueling was carried out from Il-78 aircraft. The Tu-95 aircraft was initially created with an in-flight refueling system, which in theory made it possible to increase the flight range to 18 thousand km with one refueling and up to 32 thousand km with several. The Tu-95 fuel system includes 11 tanks, which are located in the wings and fuselage. The weight of fuel to be filled can reach 88.5–100 tons, this is up to 50% of the take-off weight of the aircraft; aviation kerosene grades T-1, TS-1 or T-2 are used. Now the Tu-95MS-16 version aircraft are being upgraded to the Tu-95MSM version with the engines replaced by the NK-12MVM modification with AB-60T propellers. This version is distinguished by a complete replacement of radio-electronic equipment, while the airframe of the aircraft remains the same. The crews of Tu-95MS aircraft practiced piloting techniques and air navigation during the day and at night. In-flight refueling was carried out at an altitude of over 5,500 meters and at speeds over 550 kilometers per hour.