There are a number of enterprises in Russia that produce unmanned aerial vehicles of various classes and types. By the end of the year, it is planned to launch another plant, the products of which will be heavy reconnaissance and strike UAVs. The new production site is being built by the Kronshtadt company in Dubna.
As soon as possible
On April 16, the press service of Kronstadt announced the start of the construction of the new enterprise. The official announcement revealed some details of this project, and in addition, photos from the construction site and a general view of the future plant were published.
The construction of the plant is being carried out in the city of Dubna near Moscow, and such a place was chosen taking into account objective factors. Dubna is a science city with many industrial enterprises from different industries. Probably, the location of the UAV plant will make it possible to establish cooperation with local organizations with the receipt of certain advantages.
According to the project, a plant with a total area of 45 thousand square meters will be built. Silent and environmentally friendly production has been developed. Attention is paid to the comfort of workplaces and the design of areas between workshops. The new plant will create 1,500 jobs. Investments in construction will exceed 4 billion rubles. At the same time, according to calculations, the plant will pay annually approx. RUB 900 million taxes.
Of particular interest are the declared construction timeframes. According to the published photographs, earthworks are currently underway at the site of the future enterprise, preceding the actual construction. In the coming months, all the necessary measures will be carried out, and the launch of production will take place in November.
The press release about the start of construction cites the words of the general director of the company "Kronshtadt" Sergei Bogatikov. He pointed out that the builders are facing very tough deadlines, but at the same time, he expressed his readiness to do "everything possible and impossible" to fulfill them.
Expansion of production
The headquarters of the Kronstadt company is located in St. Petersburg. The company's plant operates in Moscow. It has already established a full production cycle of several types of unmanned aerial vehicles. In addition, the Moscow enterprise is engaged in the manufacture of experimental equipment for promising projects. At the end of February, the Moscow plant received a delegation from the Ministry of Defense and the press. Then, both well-known and new developments of interest to the army were shown.
At the same time it was announced that this year "Kronstadt" will build and transfer to the armed forces 6-7 newest unmanned systems "Pacer" with three UAVs "Orion" each. At the same time, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu demanded to increase the pace of production. In response, the company's CEO revealed plans to build a new plant that will be commissioned this year.
Thus, the main task of the new plant in Dubna will be to help the existing Moscow enterprise in the production of unmanned vehicles. Apparently, the existing facilities of "Kronstadt" can no longer cope with all the tasks of experimental and serial production. As a result, the company needs a new site.
The quantitative indicators of the expected growth have not yet been specified. Judging by the orders available, the existing Moscow plant is capable of producing several dozen UAVs annually, including heavy vehicles. A new plant in Dubna may have a similar or higher potential. Thus, one can count on a significant increase in indicators, perhaps even several times.
Manufactured products
The Kronshtadt Group works in several directions, and the main ones are the development and production of unmanned aerial systems, as well as the target load for them. In the field of UAVs, the company is engaged in the most complex projects - heavy-class vehicles with reconnaissance and strike capabilities. In addition, fundamentally new concepts and techniques are being worked out.
At the moment, the main project of "Kronstadt" is the complex "Walker" / "Orion". It was brought to mass production and operation in the troops, incl. with combat use in a real conflict zone. A rather large order for the assembly and delivery of such equipment to the Russian army is currently being carried out.
Interesting information about the production of "Orions" is given by RIA Novosti with reference to its sources. It is argued that the new plant will cover the needs for such UAVs of both the Russian army and other customers. What structures are mentioned as the latter is not specified, but this information may hint at very interesting processes.
Kronstadt is developing another heavy-class UAV. A mock-up of the promising Sirius product was demonstrated at Army-2020. According to the latest reports, an experimental device of this type will be built and will be released for testing next year. Probably, in the future, the plant in Dubna will master its serial production.
Two more interesting projects have reached the assembly of models. A heavy UAV "Thunder" is being developed, capable of operating independently or in conjunction with manned aircraft. Work is also underway on the Molniya group-use unmanned complex. How soon the design will be completed, whether it will be possible to solve all the tasks, and whether the Ministry of Defense will be interested in such products - it will become known over the next few years.
Thus, the Kronstadt group not only produces already developed samples, but also designs completely new complexes. In just a few years, the range of UAVs produced will expand, and the production capacity must match it.
Benefits for the army
It should be recalled that Kronstadt is not the only domestic developer and manufacturer of military UAVs. Devices of different classes and types are produced by ENIKS, Zala Aero, etc. It is their products, in quantitative terms, that now form the basis of unmanned army aviation. However, in this case we are talking only about light or middle class equipment, which does not cover all the needs of the armed forces.
The first domestic project of a heavy reconnaissance and strike UAV was developed and brought to operation by the forces of the Kronstadt company. In the foreseeable future, we should expect the emergence of new complexes of this class. This will completely close the previously empty niche and organize in the troops full-fledged unmanned forces with all the required capabilities and functions.
Obviously, the quality indicators of such an air fleet are directly related to the number of manufactured and operated equipment. The number of UAVs, in turn, directly depends on the financial capabilities of the army and on the production potential. The construction and launch of a new production site at Kronstadt will increase the rate of production of heavy Orions, and then master the assembly of new samples of different types.
The benefits and benefits for the Russian army are obvious. The long-awaited heavy UAVs will appear in the units, and in the required quantities. In addition, there is an opportunity to enter the international market with high chances of obtaining lucrative contracts.
Thus, the development of unmanned aircraft in the Russian army continues and will receive a new impetus in the near future. It is assumed that the new plant will start working in November of this year, and it is planned to do everything possible and impossible to solve this problem. Whether it will be possible to meet the deadline will become clear this fall. However, it is not the launch date of the enterprise that is of decisive importance, but the very fact of its existence and production capabilities.
