Thursday 28 February 2019

Kalashnikov Group and Russian Defense Ministry discuss deliveries latest KUB-UAV exploding drone to troops - News - Russian Aviation - RUAVIATION.COM

Kalashnikov


Kalashnikov Group and Russian Defense Ministry discuss deliveries latest KUB-UAV exploding drone to troops - News - Russian Aviation - RUAVIATION.COM The Kalashnikov Group and Russia’s Defense Ministry are in talks on deliveries of the latest KUB-UAV exploding drone to troops, Industrial Director for the Cluster of Conventional Armaments, Ammunition and Special Chemistry at the Rostec hi-tech corporation Sergei Abramov told TASS on Monday.

"Foreign customers display great interest in it. We expect the Defense Ministry [of Russia] to display interest in it as well," the Rostec official said.

When asked about whether the Kalashnikov Group was discussing the deliveries of the suicide drone with the Defense Ministry, the Rostec official said: "Yes, of course."

"This is an effective and cheap product to destroy small-size targets on the ground: lightly-armored hardware, fortifications and other targets," the Rostec top manager explained.

The Kalashnikov Group, the maker of the renowned AK-47 assault rifle, demonstrated the KUB-UAV precision strike drone at the IDEX 2019 defense exhibition in Abu Dhabi in February.

The KUB-UAV detonating drone has been developed and produced by Zala aero, a subsidiary of the Kalashnikov Group. The ‘kamikaze’ drone can develop a speed of 80-130 km/h. With its 1,210x950x165mm dimensions, the drone can fly for 30 minutes and carry a maximum payload of 3 kg.

After it is launched, the drone can hover in the air to detect a target and then attack it from the upper hemisphere through the vertical trajectory. This makes it possible, for example, to strike tanks on the battlefield from the upper hemisphere, piercing the turret, which has minimum armor at the top.

Air defense systems usually have difficulties when they try to counteract the new precision drone, Rostec CEO Sergei Chemezov said earlier. The new drone is a step toward absolutely new warfare, he added.

ZALA AERO

defenseupdate
Published on Feb 18, 2019
KUB-BLA - a new high-precision unmanned attack complex

Embraer Shareholders Approve Joint Venture with Boeing | Air Transport News: Aviation International News

Dj Den Kot


Embraer Shareholders Approve Joint Venture with Boeing | Air Transport News: Aviation International News: Embraer received shareholder approval to proceed with its proposed strategic partnership with Boeing during a Tuesday morning general shareholders' meeting held at the Brazilian company’s headquarters in São Jose dos Campos. The proposal passed with 96.8 percent votes cast in favor of the transaction, while participation in the vote equated to 67 percent of all outstanding shares. The transaction values Embraer’s commercial aircraft operations at $5.26 billion and Boeing’s 80 percent share at $4.2 billion. A joint statement announcing the deal indicated that Boeing would take full operational and management control of the new company, but that a Brazil-based management team, including a president and CEO, will lead the joint venture and report to Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg.

Embraer shareholders also agreed to a joint venture to promote and develop new markets for the multi-mission medium KC-390 airlifter. Under the terms of that proposed partnership, Embraer will own a 51 percent stake in the joint venture and Boeing the balance. Embraer’s defense and executive jet business and services operations associated with those products would remain a standalone, publicly traded company.

Boeing and Embraer announced in December 2018 that they had approved the terms of the joint ventures and the Brazilian government issued its approval last month. Shortly thereafter, Embraer's board of directors ratified its support for the deal and signed definitive transaction documents. The timing of transaction now stands subject to regulatory approvals and agreement of certain “customary” closing conditions, all of which the companies said they hope to meet by the end of the year.

The final approval of the deal has survived several legal challenges initiated by employee unions, the most recent of which resulted in a judge issuing an injunction on Friday that, if not overturned, would have at least temporarily blocked the vote. As in previous attempts to block the deal, Embraer's appeal succeeded, thereby allowing the vote to take place.


Brazil judge overturns injunction that blocked Embraer-Boeing deal

Brazilian judge has blocked sale of Embraer’s commercial aviation business to Boeing

Navy’s New Nuke Sub On Track; Early Problems Fixed « Breaking Defense - Defense industry news, analysis and commentary



Navy’s New Nuke Sub On Track; Early Problems Fixed « Breaking Defense - Defense industry news, analysis and commentary: CAPITOL HILL The head of the Navy’s Columbia-class nuclear submarine program says that the program, despite earlier concerns over cost, schedule, and industrial base issues, is set to meet its goal of a first deployment in 2031, putting the service’s most expensive and consequential program on track.

The boats will come just in time to replace the fourteen aging Ohio-class ballistic missile submarines, which will be over 40 years old by time they’re replaced, making them the oldest subs the US Navy has ever taken to sea.

All of the Ohios were all commissioned between 1981 and 1997, and the US hasn’t built another SSBN since, leading to some slack in the industrial base.

Rear Adm. John Tammen, who directs the Navy’s Undersea Warfare Division, said today at the Heritage Foundation that “our nuclear industrial base has been somewhat stagnant for awhile,” but with work starting soon on the Virginia payload modules (which increase cruise missile capacity in attack submarines), “we see the industrial base ramping up pretty quickly here.”

In the coming years, the planned 12 Columbia submarines will be tasked with carrying about 70 percent of the nation’s strategic nuclear weapons capability in their weapons bays, making it possibly the most mobile, and survivable leg of the nuclear triad. But the boats, part of a $128 billion program to upgrade the nation’s nuclear posture, will enter service at a critical time for the Navy, as it struggles to build more hulls to reach its 355-ship goal while also spending more to refit and repair existing ships to extend their lifespans.

Navy leadership has said that the increase in funding they received over the past two years will have to be sustained to pull this off. Building new Ford-class aircraft carriers, Columbia subs, and brand-new classes of frigates and cruisers — all while bringing the F-35 into the force — will pose a challenge to Navy spending.

The program has very little wiggle room on schedule, as the Ohio subs will have to be retired as soon as the Columbia boats come on line.

Tammen said he’s working with Newport News and Electric Boast to accelerate work schedules on the subs where he can. “You see it in the shipbuilding plans. There are gap years in the Columbia schedule so if we can pull work into those gap years,” the schedules can be sped up.

A scare last year with the subs’ missile tubes threatened to push the timeline back, but Tammen said Tuesday that there is enough slack in the early going that all is well, despite the snafu.

What happened was the Navy’s primary submarine builder, Electric Boat, hired a subcontractor to help with the welding of its missile tubes. After the tubes were delivered some inconsistencies were found in the welding, leading to a halt to the tubes’ installation. The company admitted in November that the faulty work would cost a relatively paltry $27 million to fix over the course of the next year.

Speaking at the annual Naval Submarine League conference on late last year, George Drakeley, the civilian in charge of the Navy’s submarine programs called the incident a “debacle,” adding that fixing the issue is “is going to be harder than we thought.” The problem also affects the Royal Navy’s new Dreadnought-class submarines,which use the same Common Missile Compartment as the American Columbia. But it appears to have been a relatively easy and cheap problem to fix.


This is how they’re going to raise the Norwegian frigate that sank

Foto NRK


This is how they’re going to raise the Norwegian frigate that sank: The cause of the accident has not yet been established.

COPENHAGEN, Denmark — The operation has begun to raise a Norwegian frigate that sank last year in a harbor north of Bergen following a collision with an oil tanker.

Anders Penna of the salvage company in charge of raising the KNM Helge Ingstad says it is “very complex and demanding operation,” adding it could take up to six days.

Penna says the plan is to put the frigate on a barge and transport it to a navy base where the damage will be assessed.

Two giant cranes on Tuesday began raising the 134-meter (442-foot) vessel that collided Nov. 8 with Maltese-flagged oil tanker Sola TS, tearing a large hole in the frigate’s side.

The cause of the accident has not yet been established.

No one was injured.

Norwegian Armed Forces

Forsvaret
Published on Feb 26, 2019



Missiles have been removed from sunken Norwegian frigate HELGEINGSTAD and this is the salvage plan
Early report blames confused watchstanders, possible design flaws for Norway’s sunken frigate
“KNM Helge Ingstad“ sinks deeper - Pictures


Nansen Class Anti-Submarine Warfare Frigate: Details

Wednesday 27 February 2019

US Navy completes AN/AQS-20C mine-hunting sonar developmental testing - Naval News



US Navy completes AN/AQS-20C mine-hunting sonar developmental testing - Naval News: The US Navy announced completion of developmental testing for the AN/AQS-20C mine-hunting sonar system at Naval Surface Warfare Center, Panama City Division, Feb. 26.

The AQS-20C is the next generation of the AN/AQS-20 system designed to be incorporated into the Littoral Combat Ship Mine Countermeasures Mission Package. The system consists of four sonar arrays: two side-looking arrays; a gap-filler sonar array; and a forward-looking sonar array providing simultaneous detection, localization and classification of bottom mines, close-tethered moored mines and volume-moored mines. 

The system delivers high-definition images of bottom mines, providing the operator with both range and contrast data that combine to form a three-dimensional image during post-mission analysis to aid in mine identification.

Developmental testing verifies that a system’s design meets all technical specifications, and that all contract requirements have been met. During testing the Raytheon-developed towed sonar sensor conducted 12 underway missions in various operational modes and at different depths at four separate NSWC PCD test ranges. The missions were conducted aboard the test vessel M/V Patriot.

The AQS-20C will now be integrated with and deployed from the Mine Countermeasures Unmanned Surface Vehicle (MCM USV), a long-endurance, semi-autonomous, diesel-powered, all-aluminum surface craft that supports the employment of various mine countermeasure payloads. The MCM USV can be launched and recovered by the LCS, from other vessels of opportunity or from shore sites to provide minesweeping, mine-hunting and mine neutralization capabilities. The MCM USV is currently undergoing developmental testing as a component of the Unmanned Influence Sweep System at the South Florida Test Facility in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Test results will now undergo scoring and performance assessment leading up to a final developmental testing report that is expected to be completed in the spring. Findings from this report will be used for future performance improvements of the system.

Weapons of Military
Published on Jan 27, 2019


AN/AQS-20C mine-hunting sonar 


The U.S. Navy's standard for mine hunting, the AN/AQS-20 is an advanced minehunting sonar system that has been designated as the minehunting sonar for the Littoral Combat Ship's (LCS) mine countermeasure mission package.

The AN/AQS-20 incorporates four separate sonars in a compact, lightweight and hydro-dynamically stable towed body. It uses state-of-the-art imaging sonars, signal processing and computer algorithms to provide real-time, computer-aided detection and classification against the full spectrum of threat mines. The AN/AQS-20 automatically localizes mine-like objects and provides the operator with a visual image and a contact data list. All mission data is recorded for post-mission analysis.

researchgate.net

REDUCING RISK THROUGH OPERATIONS CONSOLIDATION, AGILITY


The AN/AQS-20's computer processing power and advanced signal processing, coupled with its portability, reduces the amount of time required to search an area while significantly increasing search-rate agility. By reducing the size of the platform and the number of crew required to deploy the system, the AN/AQS-20 safely and efficiently consolidates expansive mine-sweeping operations that previously required a large warfare ship manned by more than 80 crew members.

This low-risk approach gives the fleet an organic mine countermeasures capability in the near term that meets all Navy requirements. The AN/AQS-20 towed body satisfies the requirements of three platforms through common hardware, software and interfaces; common integrated logistics support; and modular operational configurations. The AN/AQS-20 has been extensively tested and operated from unmanned, underwater vehicles such as the AN/WLD-1 and was the only minehunting sonar sensor developed, tested and certified for Remote Multi Mission Vehicle (RMMV) deployment. It is the most advanced and capable mine warfare sensor system, fully integrated with and effectively operated from the LCS 2.

OPERATIONAL MODES

The combination of sidescan, forward-looking and gapfiller sonars enables the AN/AQS-20 to detect and classify mine-like objects from the seafloor to the near surface in a single pass. The system also has an electro-optics identification capability that delivers high-definition images of bottom mines using Streak Tube Imaging Laser (STIL) technology. The STIL technology provides the operator with both range and contrast data for post-mission analysis to aid in mine identification.

Four modes of operation are provided:

  • Single Pass Shallow (SPS) Mode — Bottom and moored mine coverage in a single pass
  • Single Pass Deep (SPD) Mode — Moored mine coverage in deep water
  • Volume Mine (VOL) Mode — Volume mine coverage at four times the area search rate
  • Identification (ID SPS) Mode — Bottom and moored mine coverage in a single pass plus optical imaging of bottom mines

These modes enable the AN/AQS-20 to give timely and accurate information on the location and position of mines to support neutralization by systems such as the Airborne Mine Neutralization System (AMNS). Source: raytheon.com

Boeing unveils unmanned combat jet developed in Australia | Reuters

Boeing


Boeing unveils unmanned combat jet developed in Australia | Reuters: Boeing Co on Wednesday unveiled an unmanned, fighter-like jet developed in Australia and designed to fly alongside crewed aircraft in combat for a fraction of the cost.

A model of Boeing Co's new unmanned, fighter-like jet, called the Boeing Airpower Teaming System, is displayed in Avalon, Australia February 27, 2019. REUTERS/Jamie Freed

The U.S. manufacturer hopes to sell the multi-role aircraft, which is 38 feet long (11.6 meters) and has a 2,000 nautical mile (3,704 kilometer) range, to customers around the world, modifying it as requested.

The prototype is Australia’s first domestically developed combat aircraft since World War II and Boeing’s biggest investment in unmanned systems outside the United States, although the company declined to specify the dollar amount.

The Australian government is investing A$40 million ($28.75 million) in the prototype program due to its “enormous capability for exports,” Minister for Defence Christopher Pyne told reporters at the Australian International Airshow.

Defense contractors are investing increasingly in autonomous technology as militaries around the world look for a cheaper and safer way to maximize their resources.
Boeing rivals like Lockheed Martin Corp and Kratos Defense and Security Solutions Inc are also investing in such aircraft.

Four to six of the new aircraft, called the Boeing Airpower Teaming System, can fly alongside a F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, said Shane Arnott, director of Boeing research and prototype arm Phantom Works International.

“To bring that extra component and the advantage of unmanned capability, you can accept a higher level of risk,” he said. “It is better for one of these to take a hit than for a manned platform.”

The Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies in the United States said last year that the U.S. Air Force should explore pairing crewed and uncrewed aircraft to expand its fleet and complement a limited number of “exquisite, expensive, but highly potent fifth-generation aircraft” like the F-35.

“Human performance factors are a major driver behind current aerial combat practices,” the policy paper said. “Humans can only pull a certain number of G’s, fly for a certain number of hours, or process a certain amount of information at a given time.”

MULTI-MISSION CAPABILITIES

In addition to performing like a fighter jet, other roles for the Boeing system include electronic warfare, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance alongside aircraft like the P-8 Poseidon and E-7 Wedgetail, said Kristin Robertson, vice president and general manager of Boeing Autonomous Systems.

“It is operationally very flexible, modular, multi-mission,” she said. “It is a very disruptive price point. Fighter-like capability at a fraction of the cost.”

Robertson declined to comment on the cost, saying that it would depend on the configuration chosen by individual customers.

The jet is powered by a derivative of a commercially available engine, uses standard runways for take-off and landing, and can be modified for carrier operations at sea, Robertson said. She declined to specify whether it could reach supersonic speeds, common for modern fighter aircraft.

Its first flight is expected in 2020, with Boeing and the Australian government producing a concept demonstrator to pave the way for full production.

“I would say we are some years away from exports, we are probably years away from it being in operation here in Australia,” Pyne said. “It is designed to be a cheaper platform, a shield if you like around the more expensive platforms, to protect our servicemen and women who might be on a Poseidon or a Wedgetail or a F-35A.”

Australia, a staunch U.S. ally, is home to Boeing’s largest footprint outside the United States and has vast airspace with relatively low traffic for flight testing.

The Boeing Airpower Teaming System will be manufactured in Australia, but production lines could be set up in other countries depending on sales, Arnott said.

The United States, which has the world’s biggest military budget, would be among the natural customers for the product.

The U.S. Air Force 2030 project foresees the Lockheed Martin F-35A Joint Strike Fighter working together with stealthy combat drones, called the “Loyal Wingman” concept, said Derrick Maple, principal analyst for unmanned systems at IHS Markit.

“The U.S. has more specific plans for the wingman concept, but Western Europe will likely develop their requirements in parallel, to abate the capabilities of China and the Russian Federation and other potential threats,” he said.

Robertson declined to name potential customers and would not comment on potential stealth properties, but said the aircraft had the potential to sell globally.

“We didn’t design this as a point solution but a very flexible solution that we could outfit with payloads, sensors, different mission sets to complement whatever their fleet is,” she said. “Don’t think of it as a specific product that is tailored to do only one mission.”

Reporting by Jamie Freed; additional reporting by Gerry Doyle; editing by Gerry Doyle

Boeing
AviationWeek
Published on Feb 26, 2019

POTD: The French Leclerc Mk2 Main Battle Tank -The Firearm Blog

Cropped


POTD: The French Leclerc Mk2 Main Battle Tank -The Firearm Blog: Today's Photo of The Day is a silhouette of a French Leclerc Mk2 Main Battle Tank (MBT), shrouded in smoke after firing during the live fire element of a joint UK/French exercise.

The aim of the exercise, which took place in Estonia, was to give troops from both France and the UK a chance to watch each other’s main battle tanks in action, the Leclerc Mk2 from France and the Challenger 2 from the U.K.

After the tank ranges had finished, both armies set up a range to test out each other’s individual weapon system, an activity enjoyed by all due to its rarity.

The enhanced Forward Presence Battlegroup in the Baltic States means that there are multinational, combat-ready forces in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland, on a persistent, rotational basis.

The Leclerc’s main armament is a GIAT CN120-26/52 120 mm tank gun.

The secondary armament is the well-known 12.7 mm coaxial M2HB machine gun (with 1,100 rounds) and a 7.62 mm machine gun (3,000 rounds).

The engine is a Wärtsilä 8-cylinder diesel engine with 1 500 hp.


Error by Firearm Blog the engine is German MTU 883 diesel


Leclerc MBT 140mm gun variant
Eurosatory 2016: French Army Leclerc renovation

Leclerc Main Battle Tank: Details

Su-30SM fighter jet will be upgraded up to 4++ generation - News - Russian Aviation - RUAVIATION.COM

KHMedia


Su-30SM fighter jet will be upgraded up to 4++ generation - News - Russian Aviation - RUAVIATION.COM  The Sukhoi Su-30SM fighter jet will be standardized with the generation 4++ Su-35 fighter by its onboard equipment and armament to cut its cost price and breathe a new life into the plane, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov told journalists on Tuesday. This reported by TASS.

"After completing the work on the Su-30SM upgrade, changing the layout of the onboard radio-electronic equipment to make the Su-35 and the Su-30SM more standardized and thus cut the cost price, and standardizing the airborne weapon systems, this may breathe a new life into the plane," the vice-premier said.

The heavily upgraded Su-30SM plane may open a new niche for Russia in India, he noted.

"Considering that there are about 200 such planes in India [the Su-30MKI as the baseline version of the Su-30SM], an opportunity will probably open for modernizing this fleet to prolong its service life," the vice-premier explained.

Under Russia’s diversification program and amid the declining volume of the defense procurement plan, domestic defense enterprises should shift their focus towards life cycle maintenance and upgrade, Borisov noted.

‘It is necessary to move towards diversification and towards gaining foothold on the civil market. This is what we will have to do under the national project and as part of investment programs of our fuel and energy companies," the vice-premier said.

TASS reported in September 2018 that during their upgrade the Su-30SM fighters would also get AL-41F-1S engines mounted on the Su-35 planes. It was also reported in January 2019 that the trials of the modernized Su-30SM multirole fighter jets were expected to be completed before the end of 2019.


Modernized Su-30SM to receive Su-35S engines

Beriev, Indian Airlines in Be-200 Talks | Air Transport News: Aviation International News

Michel LAURENT


Beriev, Indian Airlines in Be-200 Talks | Air Transport News: Aviation International News: India’s Regional Connectivity Scheme sets aside 18 routes for seaplane operations.

Russia’s United Aircraft Corporation-owned Beriev has begun negotiating the sale of Be-200 amphibians with Indian regional airlines. The development follows the inclusion of seaplanes under the recently announced third phase of India’s Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS), which allows seaplanes to serve 18 routes. The seaplane operations would add more than 100,000 seats.

The RCS provides initiatives for aircraft operators to connect underserved and remote airports.

Initially designed for fire extinguishing, the Be-200 flies to a range of 1,780 nm and can land on the ground, ice-covered airfields, and on water. Beriev has now begun a program to re-engine the amphibian with PowerJet SaM146 turbofans built by a joint venture between Russia’s NPO Saturn and France’s Snecma. The new engine will increase its operational ceiling to 33,000 feet and improve fuel efficiency by 17 percent compared with its present Ukrainian D-436TPs.

“This is a unique aircraft without the need to be based at an airport," Beriev general director Yuri Grudinin said at the recently concluded Aero India air show in Bangalore. “We are holding talks with potential partners [here].” The airplane can take off and land on water with a wave height of up to 1.3 meters. In areas with underdeveloped ground infrastructure, the Be-200 can deploy on a 130- by 70-meter paved area equipped with a slipway.

Grudinin said infrastructure for operating the amphibian and regulatory approvals remain challenges. To make the operations feasible, India’s Ministry of Civil Aviation has appointed a team consisting of officials from the Airports Authority of India and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation to carry out a feasibility study in around 20 locations for seadromes.

Beriev Aircraft last year sold four Be-200s with an option for six more—two with Ukrainian D-436TP engines and the rest with SaM146 engines—to U.S.-based Seaplane Global Air Services.


ОАК intends to supply Be-200 amphibious aircraft to India

Beriev BE-200: Details

TASS: Military & Defense - Russia’s Aerospace Force to get first serial-produced Su-57 fighter in 2019

© Mikhail Tereshchenko/TASS


TASS: Military & Defense - Russia’s Aerospace Force to get first serial-produced Su-57 fighter in 2019: The Su-57 took to the skies for the first time in 2010

KOMSOMOLSK-ON-AMUR, February 26. /TASS/. The first serial-produced Sukhoi Su-57 fifth-generation fighter jet will arrive for Russia’s Aerospace Force in 2019, Deputy CEO of the Sukhoi Aircraft Company Alexander Pekarsh said on Tuesday.

Pekarsh heads the Company’s branch in Komsomolsk-on-Amur in the Russian Far East where Su-57 planes are manufactured.

"If we speak about the Su-57 program, we are today at the stage of manufacturing the first serial panes. In 2018, we completed the manufacture and the delivery of a batch of prototype planes that are now undergoing trials. Under the existing contract with the Defense Ministry, we have two planes in the production process, with the timeframe for the delivery of the first aircraft in 2019 and the second plane in 2020," the Sukhoi deputy chief executive said.

"I am confident that we will cope with the task and the first serial-produced plane will be delivered this year," he added.

A source in the Russian aircraft-making industry earlier told TASS about the same timeframe.

Russia’s Defense Ministry and the Sukhoi Aircraft Company signed a contract on the delivery of the first two Su-57 fighter jets to the troops at the Army forum in Kubinka outside Moscow on August 22, 2018. Russian Deputy Defense Minister Alexei Krivoruchko said at the time that the first serial-produced Su-57 out of 15 planes planned for delivery would arrive for the Aerospace Force in 2019.

The Su-57 is a fifth-generation multirole fighter designed to destroy all types of air targets at long and short distances and hit enemy ground and naval targets, overcoming its air defense capabilities.

The Su-57 took to the skies for the first time on January 29, 2010. Compared to its predecessors, the Su-57 combines the functions of an attack plane and a fighter jet while the use of composite materials and innovation technologies and the fighter’s aerodynamic configuration ensure the low level of radar and infrared signature.

The plane’s armament will include, in particular, hypersonic missiles. The fifth-generation fighter jet has been successfully tested in combat conditions in Syria.



Su 57 to get hypersonic 400 km ultra long-range R-37M missiles

TASS: Military & Defense - Russia ready to discuss deliveries of Su-57 fifth-generation fighter jets to India

Телеканал Звезда


TASS: Military & Defense - Russia ready to discuss deliveries of Su-57 fifth-generation fighter jets to India: The Su-57 is a fifth-generation multirole fighter designed to destroy all types of air targets at long and short distances

MOSCOW, February 25. /TASS/. Russia is ready to hold a dialogue with India on the deliveries of Sukhoi Su-57 fifth-generation fighter jets to India, Director for International Cooperation and Regional Policy at the state hi-tech corporation Rostec Viktor Kladov told TASS on Monday.

"On our part, we are ready to continue the deliveries of generation 4+ and 4++ planes and for the work on the delivery of fifth-generation aircraft. At the same time, Russia’s Air Force is a top priority for us. The plane [the latest Su-57 fifth-generation fighter jet] has been tested in combat conditions in Syria and its deliveries to the Russian troops have begun," the Rostec official said.

India displays interest in the Su-57 but the country needs to shape its further concept of the Air Force, Kladov said.

"The Indian Air Force should determine how much this plane fits into their general concept, what their focus should be and on what money should be spent - on acquiring several models of the next-generation aircraft or on building up significantly the number of reliable Su-30MKI planes well known to Indian pilots," the Rostec official said.

Deputy Director of Russia’s Federal Service for Military and Technical Cooperation Anatoly Punchuk said at the Aero India 2019 air show that India had filed a request for the delivery of 21 light MiG-29 fighter jets.


Russia earlier supplied over 200 Su-30MKI multirole fighter jets while the Kommersant daily reported in early February, citing the Federal Service for Military and Technical Cooperation, that India had filed a new request for aircraft sets to assemble these planes.

The Su-57 is a fifth-generation multirole fighter designed to destroy all types of air targets at long and short distances and hit enemy ground and naval targets, overcoming its air defense capabilities.

The Su-57 took to the skies for the first time on January 29, 2010. Compared to its predecessors, the Su-57 combines the functions of an attack plane and a fighter jet while the use of composite materials and innovation technologies and the fighter’s aerodynamic configuration ensure the low level of radar and infrared signature.


Tuesday 26 February 2019

Turkey Launches Heavy Attack Helicopter | Defense News: Aviation International News

turkishaerospace


Turkey Launches Heavy Attack Helicopter | Defense News: Aviation International News: Drawing on its experience with the T129 Atak, Turkish Aerospace has officially launched development of a larger, heavier attack helicopter

Turkey’s Undersecretariat for Defence Industries (SSB) signed a contract with Turkish Aerospace Industries on February 22 as part of the country’s effort to indigenously develop a new 10-tonne heavy attack helicopter, which is likely to compete in the future with the Boeing AH-64 Apache. The contract for the Heavy Class Attack Helicopter project has an undisclosed value, and how much this initial contract covers in terms of program deliverables has also not been released. Details so far suggest that the program has an ambitious timeline with first flight of the aircraft expected within five years.

The helicopter—which may be designated T130—will have two engines driving a five-blade main rotor, with a tandem armored cockpit configuration for pilot and gunner. There will be a modular avionics package, which includes a four-axis autopilot and helmet-mounted displays (HMD) for the crew. Performance characteristics released by the SSB state that the aircraft will have a service ceiling of 20,000 feet and a maximum speed of 172 knots, with a 6,000-foot HOGE (hover out of ground effect) ceiling.

It is unclear currently what engines will be used to power the helicopter and whether they will be sourced domestically or internationally. One option is a variant of the indigenous TS1400, a 1,400-shp turboshaft engine being developed by TUSAS Engine Industries (TEI) for possible integration on Turkish Aerospace’s T625 utility helicopter.

Initial specifications suggest an external payload capacity of 1,200 kg (2,646 lb), with each wing able to accommodate three weapon stations for guided and unguided 2.75-inch rockets, anti-tank guided missiles and air-to-air missiles. The helicopter will also feature a nose-mounted 30mm cannon, similar to the M230LF weapon system that currently equips the Apache.

Other features include a nose-mounted forward-looking infrared (FLIR) turret that includes target-tracking functionality. The FLIR turret will be linked to the 30mm main gun with imagery projected to the helmet-mounted displays of the gunner and pilot, who will then be able to control gun-slewing with head movements. The helicopter will also feature a suite of electronic warfare systems such as infrared/ultraviolet missile-warning sensors and a tail-mounted directed-infrared countermeasure (DIRCM) system to jam heat-seeking missiles.

Turkey’s development of an indigenous heavy attack helicopter was unveiled in November 2018 when the SSB posted details of the project on social media. This program continues Turkey’s ambitious drive toward an advanced, self-sufficient defense industry that can supply a number of complex technologies including fighter aircraft, as well as sub-systems such as sensors and communication suites.

A day previously, the SSB also announced that various sub-systems of the TF-X developmental fighter were now going through wind tunnel testing, with a full aircraft expected to be rolled out in 2023.

Earlier in February, Turkish media reported that a twin-engine variant of the Turkish Aerospace Anka UAV will make its maiden flight next month. The High Payload Capacity (YFYK) variant—also referred to as the Anka-2—will be powered by indigenously developed TEI 170-hp engines and has a payload of 750 kg. It will cruise at 20,000 feet for up to 24 hours while transmitting ISR data via the Turksat constellation.

turkishaerospace
Published on Feb 22, 2019


T129 Attack Helicopter: Details