Russia is reviving aviation with an eye on new markets
The 12th International Aviation and Space Salon, which took place from 25 to 30 August in Zhukovsky, clearly showed that the course taken by the country's leadership to revive military aviation is being consistently implemented. Significant progress has been made across all sectors. To realize this indisputable fact, it was simply necessary to look more carefully not only into the sky, where there were brilliant demonstration flights that had no analogues in the world, but also at the static exposition. In the pavilions, sometimes not in the most prominent places, samples were presented, the view of which was sometimes breathtaking. After all, we can, if we want!
As in previous years, combat aviation became one of the main themes of the salon. Although the expected contracts for the supply of Su-35S fighters to China and a new batch of these aircraft for the Russian Air Force did not take place, there were many interesting things. In some cases, these novelties were not particularly advertised.
Training and combat
At the static display, for example, a prototype of the Yak-130 combat trainer in the configuration of a light attack aircraft modestly lurked. Its first public demonstration was noticed, perhaps, only by the most sophisticated journalists specializing in the field of military aircraft.
"The promising transport aircraft will receive the designation Il-106, its carrying capacity will be 80-100 tons."
On the new Yak-130 modification, a laser designator-rangefinder is installed in the beveled nose. In appearance, it resembles similar equipment installed on the Su-25 attack aircraft. The presence of a laser rangefinder will increase the efficiency of the aircraft against ground targets and expand the list of high-precision weapons used by the aircraft. This equipment will ensure the combat use of the Yak-130 on highly rugged terrain (mountains, gorges), increase the accuracy of determining the coordinates of the operational target and the use of the existing nomenclature of aviation weapons (ASP). The laser rangefinder was installed on the Yak-130 at the request of foreign customers in order to expand the combat capabilities and use the aircraft as a light attack aircraft. At the moment, aerodynamic tests of the upgraded Yak-130 have been carried out, the new rangefinder has been tested for range and aiming accuracy.
In principle, the appearance of the modernized Yak-130 was an expected event. As the head of the Air Force Department of Rosoboronexport Sergei Kornev said earlier, Russia can convert the combat training Yak-130 into an attack aircraft if foreign customers have such a desire. He stressed that the potential of the aircraft is very large. Although at this stage, the Yak-130 is of more interest to foreign customers as a combat trainer of the advanced light training class AJT (Advanced Jet Trainer). On this machine, according to a representative of Rosoboronexport, sooner or later, high-precision weapons will certainly appear. At the same time, the use of the Yak-130 as a light attack aircraft will increase its popularity in the world market.
The intention to equip the Yak-130 UBS with a laser rangefinder was also confirmed by the Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Aerospace Forces, Colonel-General Viktor Bondarev. "The laser rangefinder should be used so that the aircraft, as prescribed by the tactical and technical assignment, can use all types of guided weapons," the commander-in-chief said. “He has all the possibilities for this and the modernization potential is huge, so we will install it.”Bondarev noted that the Aerospace Forces plan to purchase at least 16 Yak-130 aircraft annually. This is enough to bring the aircraft fleet to the required number by 2020, which will correspond to the number of cadets flying on this aircraft.
In general, the creation of light combat aircraft based on the UBS is a ubiquitous world practice. An example is the T-50 / TA-50 "Golden Eagle" developed by the South Korean company "Korea Aerospace Industries", the L-15 of the Chinese "Hongdu Aircraft", "Scorpion" (Scorpion) American "Textron AirLand" (Textron AirLand). The M-346 made by the Italian "Alenia Ermacchi" can also be equipped with armament. As a rule, the development of the UBS combat configuration significantly increases the volume of aircraft sales on the international arms market.
At MAKS-2015, Irkut Corporation signed a contract for the supply of four Yak-130 UBS to Belarus. The aircraft will be handed over in 2016. To date, UBS Yak-130 have already been delivered to Algeria (16 units) and Belarus (4), and are exported to Bangladesh (16). According to the latest annual report of the corporation, from 2012 to 2014, 50 Yak-130 UBS were transferred to the Russian Air Force. At the same time, Irkut is successfully executing a contract for the supply of property to support the Yak-130 in the RF Ministry of Defense, servicing the aircraft of the main customer at the base points.
Yak-130 is intended for cadets of flight schools. It masters the skills of piloting and work on ground and air targets, which are necessary for aircraft of the fourth and fifth generations. A highly reliable integrated control system with the possibility of reprogramming makes it possible to train a pilot for both Russian and Western combat aircraft.
MAKS also became aware of the continuation of work on a project to create a new training aircraft (TCB) of the initial stage of flight training (LP), which received the designation Yak-152. According to representatives of the defense industry complex, in connection with a sharp increase in the volume of drugs, the Ministry of Defense requires a new trainer, the role of which is optimal for the Yak-152. It is assumed that it will be actively used in the structure of both the Air Force and DOSAAF. It is possible to equip the machine with a diesel engine running on jet fuel. This will reduce operating costs and improve performance.
One of the features of the Yak-152 is the installation in the cockpit of multifunctional displays (MFD) - similar to those with which the Yak-130 is equipped. Two MFDs are equipped with a cadet's workplace, two more - for an instructor.
When designing the Yak-152, special attention was paid to safety. The aircraft is equipped with a complex of emergency escape equipment KSAP-152 with SKS-94M2 seats developed by NPP Zvezda, which ensures fast and safe ejection in an emergency. Flight tests of the system are expected to begin in late 2015.
The main advantages of the Yak-152 over its counterparts are the optimality of the aerodynamic layout, the increased safety of the crew, a modern avionics complex, the unification of instruments and other means of indication with the Yak-130 UBS, and the strength of the chassis. It is allowed to store the Yak-152 outside the hangar and use it on unpaved airfields. Rosoboronexport intends to begin active promotion of the Yak-152 initial training aircraft in conjunction with the Yak-130 combat trainer in the near future.
Earlier it was reported that under a contract with the Ministry of Defense, it is planned to assemble four Yak-152 samples, including two for participation in flight tests. The first aircraft is expected to take off in 2016. "By 2017, when there will be a maximum number of cadets for flight practice, we will teach them on this plane," the commander-in-chief of the Aerospace Forces promised.
The world experience in the development of piston trainers assumes the creation of light attack aircraft on their basis, as in the case of the A-29 Super Tucano of the Brazilian company Embraer. It is quite possible that a similar light attack aircraft will be created on the basis of the Yak-152.
Although the contract with China for the supply of the Su-35S expected at the show was not signed, it became known that if an agreement was concluded, the aircraft would be handed over to the customer in a fully assembled form, and licensed production in China was not envisaged. The contract is still being negotiated. It must be signed before the end of 2015. In the case of the purchase of the Su-35S, the PRC will also receive one ground-based air communications complex (NKVS) developed by NPP Polet. NKVS is designed to control a group of aircraft and interface with automated control systems (ACS). In the future, China may receive several more such complexes.
The contract for the supply of the Russian Air Force with a new batch of Su-35S fighters was not signed either. UAC President Yuri Slyusar informed that the document is in a high degree of readiness and the corporation expects to sign it by the end of the year. According to him, the new order for the Su-35S for the Russian Air Force will ensure the utilization of the production capacities of the Komsomolsk-on-Amur Aviation Plant named after V. I. Gagarin, who serially produces these aircraft.
As for the continuation of the development and production of promising combat aircraft, the UAC should transfer to the military this year three more experienced fifth-generation fighters PAK FA (T-50) in addition to the five received by the customer earlier. These machines will participate in the flight test program.
According to the plans of the Air Force, the purchase of the first serial PAK FA fighters will take place in 2016, although the total number of aircraft of this type, which is supposed to be supplied to the Russian Armed Forces, is still not specified. Earlier, the commander-in-chief of the Aerospace Forces, Colonel-General Yuri Bondarev announced his intention to acquire 55 PAK FA. Subsequently, the Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation Yuri Borisov warned that the department could adjust the order for the PAK FA in connection with the new economic conditions and the high performance of the Su-35. During the show, Bondarev clarified that test flights had begun to test the combat use of the new fighter's missile weapons, in which the PAK FA showed good results.
The UAC continues to work on a promising long-range intercept aircraft complex (PAK DP). Currently, the creation of the PAK DP is at the stage of working out the terms of reference, which is now being specified.
In total, the Aerospace Forces expect to receive over 250 aircraft and helicopters in 2015. According to the commander-in-chief, for some samples of aircraft there is a possibility of advanced deliveries due to 2016, and there are no plans to reduce the volume of purchases. Earlier, the Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation Yuri Borisov said that the ministry expects to receive more than 200 units of aircraft from the industry this year.
Military transport aviation
The exhibition demonstrated a serial heavy military transport aircraft (MTC) Il-76MD-90A "Viktor Livanov" and a unique laboratory Il-76MDK of the Cosmonaut Training Center, a model of a light transport Il-112 and a laboratory aircraft based on the Il-114.
As it became known, this year the UAC will hand over to the Ministry of Defense three Il-76MD-90A, including the "Viktor Livanov", which will be adopted by the military transport aviation (VTA). Immediately after the show, "Viktor Livanov" went to Ivanovo - to the Center for Combat Use and Retraining of Air Force Flight Personnel.
The first two aircraft built at the Ulyanovsk Aviastar-SP, as recalled by the general director of JSC UAC - Transport Aircraft (UAC - TS) Vildan Zinnurov, were transferred to the Taganrog Aviation Scientific Complex named after Beriev (TANTK): one in the interests of the Ministry of Defense of Russia to create on its basis the AWACS and U A-100 "Premier" aircraft, the second - for partners who will use it as a base for special aviation. According to Zinnurov, the last aircraft is not among the 39 Il-76MD-90A contracted by the Ministry of Defense and will increase the number of the first batch built at Aviastar to 40 units.
According to the general director of OJSC "Il" Sergei Velmozhkin, now there are about ten such machines in production. Their annual output will gradually increase: now three, then five, eight, twelve. “Ultimately, we plan to reach 18 aircraft per year,” Velmozhkin stated. According to him, the company is ready to start accepting orders for the export delivery of the Il-76MD-90A military-technical cooperation next year. And Zinnurov suggested that the first export contracts for the new Russian military-technical cooperation could appear in four to six months after the completion of the show. The interest in the aircraft is enormous, especially now that it has begun to be acquired by the Russian Air Force. The Il-76 does not need advertising on the international market, said the head of the UAC transport division. In general, about a thousand Il-76 of the old modification was produced, of which five hundred fly abroad. “Now the pool of potential customers is quite large,” the interlocutor summed up, noting that negotiations with Algeria, South Africa, Egypt, Venezuela are at the most advanced stage.
At the salon, UAC hoped to find buyers for the civilian version of the Il-76MD-90A, work on which has already begun. It is planned to obtain a certificate for it within a year and a half, and potential operators are already being looked for today.
But it is too early to talk about the state contract for the new Il-78M-90A tanker, which is being created according to the State Armament Program - it still needs to be made and flown around, Velmozhkin noted. Il-78M-90A will take off in the first quarter of next year. In comparison with the IL-78, the modification has an increased efficiency of fuel transfer in flight. According to the head of OJSC "Il", it is not planned to produce a sample for ground flight tests, since the base machine has been tested. Special tests are planned, including refueling in the air.
On the basis of the Il-76MD-90A, a new electronic warfare (EW) aircraft can also be developed, said Vladimir Mikheev, adviser to the first deputy head of the Radioelectronic Technologies (KRET) concern. He recalled that KRET is already working on a new electronic warfare aircraft "Porubshchik-M". The draft design was worked out on the Tu-214, but the most promising at the moment is the placement of the electronic warfare complex on the Il-76MD-90A, because it is more convenient to combine a large number of equipment on it, Mikheev noted, stressing that in the near future the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation plans to initiate full-scale R&D in this direction.
It became known at the exhibition that in December the first obsolete Il-76 of the Russian Aerospace Forces will be modernized under the Il-76MDM program. This was announced by Nikolay Talikov, General Designer of OJSC "Il". Now at the plant in Zhukovsky they are working on the first car. At the moment, the task is to modernize all "age-appropriate" combatant Il-76 VTA.
Two more Il-76s of the old version are in the TANTK. They were transported there from Uzbekistan, from the Tashkent Aviation Production Association named after I. Chkalov (TAPOiCH, now the Tashkent Mechanical Plant), where these machines were mass-produced in Soviet times. As it became known at MAKS, these two most ready-made platforms were bought from Uzbekistan by Israel. It is assumed that they will be used to build early warning and control aircraft (AWACS and U) under the Indian option. New Delhi in 2004 signed a contract for the supply of three AWACS and U "Falcon" aircraft based on the Il-76. At the same time, an option was provided for the supply of two more similar machines. Probably, this order is being carried out at TANTK. In Taganrog, the aircraft corps will be finalized and subsequently equipped with the Israeli Falcon radar.
UAC President Yuri Slyusar informed that the implementation of the IL-96 program continues, which has not developed its entire modernization potential. By 2023–2025, the task is to organize an annual production at VASO of at least two or three Il-96s in different configurations, equipped with fueling station complexes, a control center and others. “We are discussing with our colleagues the options for the implementation of a large number of special complexes on the basis of the Il-96. For us, the expansion of the line is the extension of the life of the aircraft, which is unique and, in addition to ensuring the loading of VASO, remains the basic aircraft of the special flight unit of the presidential administration,”said Slyusar.
Meanwhile, Il OJSC is already developing a promising transport aircraft (PTS), which, according to Talikov, will receive the designation Il-106, its carrying capacity will reach 80-100 tons. The sample will implement the traditional scheme. Previously, it was assumed that the PTS could receive a load-bearing fuselage. Outwardly, the general designer of the company said, the Il-106 will resemble the Il-76, but it will be a different plane. “We have made a technical project, now we are offering it to the RF Ministry of Defense. The customer gave his vision of this aircraft and its characteristics, we see that they coincide with our proposal. While the negotiations are underway, and when they are over, we will be able to say something about the timing."
The UAC's annual report says: “A super-heavy aircraft named PTS is at the initiation stage of the project. Its maximum carrying capacity can reach 80, 160 or 240 tons."
Also, the UAC continues to develop, together with India, a multi-purpose transport aircraft MTA (Multirole Transport Aircraft). The United Instrument Making Corporation (UIC) discussed at MAKS with the German company Rohde & Schwarz the possibility of joint development of a communications complex for MTA.
As for the light military transport Il-112V, its tests will be completed in 2019, after which serial deliveries will begin, Talikov said. Earlier, the Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation Yuri Borisov said that the first Il-112 should take off in 2017. The military expects that the aircraft plant in Voronezh will begin serial production of these aircraft in 2019, and are going to receive at least 35 aircraft.
The light Il-112 with a carrying capacity of six tons is being created to replace the An-24 and An-26. Il OJSC won the competition for the best light military-technical cooperation project back in 2003, then it was assumed that the military would receive the Il-112 already in 2006.
General Director of the Tekhnodinamika holding Maxim Kuzyuk believes that a neutral gas system can be installed on the Il-112V, according to which the company has unique developments. A prototype of this system was demonstrated at MAKS-2015. "Technodinamika" was included in the program for the creation of the Il-112V with a landing gear and wing mechanization elements. Also, the holding has already signed a contract for development work on the power supply system for the Il-112V. It will use a generator without a hydraulic drive, which will increase energy efficiency by 15-20 percent. The absence of a hydraulic drive increases reliability and reduces the cost of the product. In addition, the mass of the system is reduced in comparison with analogs. Deliveries of prototypes should begin in the second half of 2015, state joint tests are scheduled two years later.
Another interesting aircraft with a difficult history is the Il-114. Today the question of its reproduction in Russia is being decided. Previously, the Il-114 was produced in Uzbekistan, at TAPOiCh. Now, according to Talikov, the model is planned to be assembled at the Nizhny Novgorod aircraft plant (NAZ) "Sokol". UAC President Yuri Slyusar confirmed that the reproduction of this aircraft in Russia is planned according to the same scheme as the Il-76MD-90A: the existing Il-114 gliders will be purchased from Uzbekistan for flight tests and, accordingly, a significant reduction in time and costs.
According to Talikov, the Il-114 is a remarkable aircraft in terms of technical performance, efficiency and service. Earlier, Sergei Korotkov, general director of RAC MiG, into which NAZ Sokol is being integrated, said that the corporation was ready to organize work under the IL-114 program together with OJSC Il at the facilities of the Nizhny Novgorod plant.
This is good news for the Radar MMC company, which has developed the Kasatka search and sighting system based on the IL-114 aircraft laboratory. According to executive director Ivan Antsev, the open architecture complex includes optoelectronic, radioelectronic and magnetometric systems, as well as satellite communications. "Kasatka" allows in real time to bind the radar layer to the map of the area, which ensures the implementation of a whole complex of search and sighting and search and rescue missions with a target detection range of 120 kilometers. The unification of the "Kasatka" by the types of carriers ensures its installation on various platforms - an airplane, a helicopter, a balloon, an ekranoplan.
Rocket armament
The Tactical Missile Armament Corporation (KTRV) first presented its new airborne weapons (ASP) at MAKS-2015. Among them are the Grom-E1 guided cruise missile and the Grom-E2 gliding cruise missile. These missiles are currently at the testing stage, said KTRV General Director Boris Obnosov.
Both weapons have a normal aerodynamic configuration and a unified configuration, which allows them to be placed in the carrier's internal armament compartment. The main difference between the Grom-E1 is the rocket engine in the tail section, while the Grom-E2 has an additional high-explosive fragmentation warhead instead of the engine.
All the main parameters of the two new ASPs are classified. The developers only noted that the starting weight of each product is more than 600 kilograms. At the same time, the mass of the Grom-E1 warhead is about 300 kilograms, while the Grom-E2 has more than 450. The combined guidance system is an inertial navigation system with trajectory correction based on signals from the GPS satellite system.
One full-scale model under the designation "Grom-E1" / "Grom-E2" was presented at the salon, which gives an idea of the aerodynamic layout of the two new ASPs and the principle of their operation. After the ASP is dropped from the carrier aircraft, the wing is deployed to the operating position, and then the rocket engine is launched (at the "Grom-E1"). The flight range of both ASPs should be sufficient to attack ground targets outside the range of the object air defense systems.
According to Boris Obnosov, KTRV will develop twelve intra-fuselage guided missiles specifically for the fifth generation PAK FA fighter. The first six missiles will be created by 2017, and the remaining six by 2020. Four samples of the in-body placement for the PAK FA are already being tested. They will be ready by the time of the start of serial deliveries to the Aerospace Forces of PAK FA fighters in 2017. Among them are the Grom-E1 cruise missile and its version without an engine - the Grom-E2 gliding cruise bomb, as well as the Kh-58UShK anti-radar missile (PRR).
Serial production of the new PRR X-58UShK for the fifth generation PAK FA fighters will begin in 2017. This missile has a new broadband passive seeker operating in all of these frequency ranges, covering the frequency ranges of all known types of ground-based radars from 1.2 to 11 GHz.
The mass of the new rocket is 500 kilograms, the length is 4, 19 meters, the span of the cruciform wing is 0, 8 meters, the diameter of the body is 0, 38 meters. When the tail is folded, the cross-section of the rocket has a width and height of 0.4 meters. The rocket can be launched at M = 0, 47-1, 5, flight range - 76-245 kilometers. The minimum missile launch range from an altitude of 200 meters is 10-12 kilometers, the maximum flight speed is 4200 kilometers per hour. The probability of a missile hitting a circle with a radius of 20 meters, in the center of which there is an active radar, is 0.8. The mass of the warhead is 149 kilograms. The rocket was developed by the Raduga State Design Bureau of the TRV Corporation, located in the city of Dubna, Moscow Region, and will be mass-produced by this enterprise.
At the showroom, KTRV also demonstrated a modified PRR X-58UShKE with a thermal imaging channel (TP). As explained at the corporation's stand, the retrofitting of the X-58USHKE PRR control system with a thermal imaging channel will increase the combat potential of front-line aircraft carriers by increasing the likelihood of hitting radio-emitting targets using a pause mode of operation, as well as turning off radiation during the PRR flight in the final section of the trajectory.
PRR X-58USHKE (TP) is designed to arm aircraft of the MiG-35, Su-30MK, Su-34, Su-35 types, which must be equipped with a target designation system and equipped with an AKU-58 type aircraft launcher. The Kh-58USHKE and Kh-58USHKE (TP) missiles can be used on promising multipurpose aircraft with intra-fuselage placement from a UVKU-50 type launcher. The missile is launched both at pre-programmed radar targets and at targets quickly detected by the target designation system of the carrier aircraft.
It should be noted that the availability of scientific and technical groundwork at the leading enterprises of the KTRV allows them to offer effective ASP, both in-fuselage and external placement. The show, in particular, demonstrated a modernized version of the well-known Kh-59MK2 aircraft guided missile. However, if earlier the turbojet engine of this rocket was located under the fuselage, now it is removed into the fuselage. The work on the re-arrangement of the rocket made it possible to place it in the in-fuselage compartment of the armament of the carrier aircraft, since the width and height of the Kh-59MK2 with the folded wing and aerodynamic surfaces is 0.4x0.4 meters. Changing the configuration of the missile also reduced its radar signature. The guidance system is combined: an inertial navigation system with correction based on signals from the satellite system on the cruising section and a homing system on the final section of the trajectory. With a flight range of 290 kilometers, the circular probable deviation from a given aiming point is only three meters.
The helicopter industry has become one of the most eventful areas of the salon. The most discussed topics were the Arctic, the supply of new generation vehicles to the troops, export orders and interaction with UAVs.
But first of all, it should be noted an event that previously passed unnoticed. This is the replenishment of the helicopter fleet of the Russian Armed Forces with a new Russian Ka-35 radar patrol helicopter (RLD). This topic was not discussed at any of the meetings between industry and the military with journalists. Meanwhile, according to a source in the military-industrial complex, the newest Russian helicopter RLD Ka-35 has been put into service.
"Scientific and technical groundwork will allow increasing the speed of helicopters up to 400 kilometers per hour at the initial stage and up to 450 and more in the future."
It has not yet received the NATO reporting name. This follows from the documentation of the alliance, which contains a list of designations for all aircraft of Soviet and Russian production. The absence of the Ka-35 designation indicates that the rotorcraft was recently adopted. The Ka-27 / Ka-29 / Ka-31 helicopters, on the basis of which the Ka-35 was created, are included in the Helix family with the assignment of an additional letter index (Helix-A / B / C / D). Probably, according to this principle, a new model will also be designated.
A source in the defense industry complex, however, informed about the expediency of modernizing the Ka-31: “Today it can actively return to the fleet to solve a number of tasks, including the use of the Ka-52K, since it is placed on any ship and has the ability to carry heavy missiles. Issues related to the combat interaction of these helicopters may again become relevant."
Meanwhile, the chief of naval aviation of the Russian Navy, Major General Igor Kozhin, said that a replacement for the carrier-based Ka-27 is being prepared: “Work is underway, a fundamentally new helicopter will be created. You can wait for it from 2018 to 2020”. The vehicle, which is supposed to replace the Ka-27 in the future, is designed primarily for the detection, tracking and destruction of submarines. The dimensions of the helicopter will be tied to ship standards, and modules for installing weapons will appear on it.
A certain sensation was the news received at the salon about the order by Egypt of the Russian Ka-52. "So far, only the order has been issued, the deliveries have not yet begun," said a military-diplomatic source, without specifying the volume and timing of the deliveries, as well as the modification.
The volume of the ordered batch can be judged by the report of the Research and Production Corporation "Systems of Precision Instrumentation" (NPK "SPP"), according to which about 50 units of the new optoelectronic sighting system OES-52 will be delivered to Egypt in the period 2016-2019. equipping combat helicopters Ka-52. At present, these rotorcraft are equipped with the GOES-451 complex produced by the Ural Optical and Mechanical Plant (UOMZ, part of the Shvabe holding). It is not known, however, whether spare ECOs are included in the supply.
Currently, the Egyptian Armed Forces have 45 Boeing AH-64D Apache Longbow helicopters and 55 SA342L Gazelle helicopters of the French company Aerospatiale in an attack configuration. Traditionally, Cairo adhered to a policy of purchasing weapons from various manufacturing countries, so the decision to order the Ka-52 does not look unusual, especially taking into account the situation with the activation of Islamists in the Sinai Peninsula.
As for the ship version of the Ka-52K, its deliveries to the troops, as well as another new model, the Mi-28NM, will begin in the near future, said the general director of the Russian Helicopters holding, Alexander Mikheev. In turn, the commander-in-chief of the Aerospace Forces Viktor Bondarev said that after the termination of the agreement on the Mistrals, the deck version of the Ka-52K would be transferred to the Russian naval and army aviation.
Heading to the Arctic
The center of attention at the salon was the modernized version of the combat Mi-28N "Night Hunter" - the Mi-28NM. It has been under development since 2009 and is currently undergoing trials, which should be completed in 2016. The Mi-28NM significantly differs from the basic version and is an all-weather round-the-clock helicopter, which will receive new navigation and reconnaissance systems, optics and a control system that allows for a blind landing. A number of new Mi-28NM products are used for the first time on Russian helicopters. We are talking, in particular, about a helmet-mounted target designation system and an overhead radar.
An innovative helmet-mounted target designation and indication system, which will be part of the Mi-28NM avionics, was presented at the salon. The system was developed by the Ryazan State Instrument Plant (GRPZ) and is designed to display the visual information necessary for the pilot against the background of the surrounding space. It also provides targeting of aircraft weapons at targets located not only directly on the course, but also in any monitored area.
As for the new N025 radar for the Mi-28NM, its state tests will be completed within a year, said Igor Nasenkov, First Deputy Director General of the Radioelectronic Technologies (KRET) concern. Trials of three copies of the station are being carried out on three machines. Nasenkov noted that Mi-28NE helicopters with N025E simplified configuration radars are being exported, but Russian troops are still receiving vehicles that are not equipped with a new radar.
“As for the Russian customer, there is a certain regulation - until we carry out state tests, they will not be successfully completed, we cannot supply the N025 radar in series. The helicopter flies without this radar. I think it will take another year to complete all tests,”Nasenkov said.
A feature of the H025 is, in particular, its location in the nadulok fairing, above the main rotor of the helicopter, which makes it possible to provide all-round visibility.
Russian Helicopters noted at the show that the Mi-28NM, like the other newest Russian military Mi-35M, will receive new rotor blades in the future, this will significantly increase the cruising (by 13%) and maximum (by 10%) speed. Now the maximum speed of the Mi-28N is 340 kilometers per hour. On the Mi-35M helicopter, the new blades will increase the maximum speed by 13 percent and cruising speed by 30.
New blades with saber tips and a special thickening were installed on the demonstrator of a promising high-speed helicopter (PSV), created on the basis of the Mi-24. Its full-scale model was first demonstrated at MAKS-2015. The first flight of the PSV demonstrator, the construction of a flight copy of which is being completed at the Moscow Helicopter Plant. ML Mil, scheduled for December. It will be a laboratory for full-scale flight tests of elements of the PSV carrier system, which is its main structural difference from the base Mi-24K. The latest domestic developments in the field of aerodynamics, strength and manufacturing technology have been introduced into the design of the new rotor.
In the work under the PSV program, it is planned to create a scientific and technical groundwork for increasing the flight speed to 400 kilometers per hour at the initial stage and to 450 or more in the subsequent. Meanwhile, the KRET concern presented an avionics complex for PSV at the air show, which will also be tested at a flying laboratory. The new complex corresponds to the concept of integrated modular avionics.
The Ulan-Ude Aviation Plant (UUAZ), which carries out the state defense order, reported that flight tests of the Mi-8AMTSh-VA, designed to operate in the Far North, had begun. Measures will be taken to verify the compliance of the helicopter characteristics with the requirements of the customer's technical specifications, the Russian Ministry of Defense. The helicopter is designed for transport and landing support of the actions of the Arctic group of forces, air support, and monitoring of assigned areas of responsibility. Also, its tasks include the search and rescue of crews and passengers in distress on aircraft and ships on the Northern Sea Route.
The Mi-8AMTSh-VA is based on the newest version of the Mi-8/17 series military transport helicopter - the Mi-8AMTSh-V. These samples have been produced since the end of 2014 and are supplied under the state defense order.
The development of a specialized arctic vehicle began at UUAZ in the middle of last year, and in December the Russian Helicopters holding launched the production of a prototype at its own expense.
The Arctic version receives a more powerful power plant compared to the base one; technologies used on spaceships are used to insulate the cabin. The main task in the creation of the Mi-8AMTSh-VA was the adaptation of the machine to low temperatures and limited visibility, loss of satellite signals and other features of work in the Far North. The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation believes that the army's need for such helicopters can be up to a hundred vehicles. On the basis of the arctic Mi-8AMTSh-VA, it is planned to create a commercial version of the vehicle.
At the same time, the general designer of the Kamov company, Sergei Mikheev, noted that helicopters based on the Ka-52 are also being finalized for use in the Arctic. The design of the Ka-52 for army aviation includes improvements developed under the ship version program. Among them are a developed electronic complex, a folding blade system and other innovations.
The ship variant of the Ka-52K will also be in demand in the Arctic. “It is the configuration that we see at the salon that will be produced for this region,” Mikheev informed. He stressed that folding blades are essential for the use of this type of helicopter in the Arctic, where they will be based in small hangars. “This is our know-how. The system allows you to fold four helicopter blades in a minute. In the future, any composition of the Ka-52 combat helicopter will be equipped with this system,”the general designer promised.
According to the commander-in-chief of the Aerospace Forces Viktor Bondarev, the newest Mi-38 can also find application in the Arctic. Serial assembly of these helicopters began in Kazan in the summer. It is expected that the type certificate for this machine will be obtained by the end of the year. “Yesterday we saw the Mi-38 both on the ground and in the air. This is an excellent helicopter that has occupied a niche in the line of machines between the medium-class Mi-8 and the heavy Mi-26,”Bondarev said at the salon. He stressed that the Aerospace Forces will definitely purchase the Mi-38: “It is equipped with a new engine with increased thrust, has an increased payload, range and flight speed. The car is beautiful."
On July 15, the United Engine Corporation and the Kazan Helicopter Plant signed a contract for the supply of the first batch of TV7-117V engines for the Mi-38 in the amount of 50 units. The ceremony of presenting the type certificate for this motor took place at the salon. The cost of the contract for 50 TV7-117 is 3.922 billion rubles. It will be carried out in the period 2016–2019 by the cooperation of UEC enterprises. Next year, the corporation must supply the customer with eight engines, in 2017 - 12, in subsequent years - 14 and 16.
The All-Russian Research Institute of Aviation Materials (VIAM) and Russian Helicopters have agreed to cooperate in the development of new protective and anti-icing coatings for machines operating in the Arctic. At the salon, the parties signed a corresponding agreement. Technodinamika plans to adapt its developments to the conditions of the Arctic, making it possible to use them at temperatures up to 60-65 degrees below zero, said the head of the holding Maxim Kuzyuk. According to him, there are a number of plans to bring the temperature range to minus 60-65 degrees Celsius. As an example, Kuzyuk cited the Russian-French project of an auxiliary power unit for the Seyfire helicopters (Saphir 15). Its prototype, intended for medium-sized Mi and Ka machines, should appear before the end of the year, certification tests are planned to be completed. in 2018.
Unmanned slave
The topic of interaction between helicopters and UAVs, which was discussed at MAKS-2015, was very interesting. Moreover, at the salon, this issue, not previously touched upon in the media, remained in the shadows. It could be calculated by analyzing and comparing a number of facts: plans of Russian Helicopters to develop an unmanned tiltrotor, the holding's signing an agreement with Skolkovo, a variety of new generation equipment for UAVs and helicopters presented at the salon.
In particular, the signing of an agreement on cooperation in the development of promising UAVs between VR-Technologies (part of the Russian Helicopters holding) and the Aerob company, a resident of the space cluster of the Skolkovo Foundation, remained unnoticed. Meanwhile, it means that the helicopter-building holding is interested in the innovative hardware and software complex. It is an intelligent unified modular automatic control system for UAVs that implements functional and fault-tolerant scaling, integral control taking into account external influences, expert situational control, and integration into centralized control complexes for drone groups.
In the annual report of the cost center them. ML Mil, in the "State Defense Order" section, it is reported that last year a component part (SC) of the ROC "Product 860" was carried out, within the framework of which design documentation was developed, two "Product 860" helicopters were retrofitted with UAV control equipment, ground and flight tests. According to experts, we are talking about the Mi-8.
Russian Helicopters presented a project of a promising multipurpose unmanned aerial vehicle made according to the tiltrotor scheme. The goal of the project is to create a family of high-speed multipurpose rotorcraft, the holding explained. The main task of the project at this stage is to determine the critical technologies and systems required for the further creation of a whole family of convertiplanes with different maximum take-off weights, both manned and unmanned.
The United Instrument Making Corporation (OPK) and Russian Helicopters signed an agreement under which helicopters will be equipped with sixth generation avionics. "Developments in the field of fifth and sixth generation aviation communications, integrated modular avionics are of particular interest, as they can provide our technology with new advantages in terms of efficiency, quality, communication range, its secrecy, noise immunity and reliability," said Alexander Mikheev. And the general director of the defense industry complex, Alexander Yakunin, said that the corporation will create control automation systems and communication complexes for helicopter technology based on new technologies that are now being intensively developed.
In turn, Sergei Mikheev, who was asked for an appropriate explanation, said that the company is studying the possibility of pairing the Ka-52 Alligator attack and reconnaissance helicopter and a UAV in a single combat system: “This is a very promising direction, working in pairs is a completely competent approach as the tactical and hardware capabilities of the unmanned helicopter have grown and help ensure the efficiency and safety of the manned vehicle. Such a bundle will absolutely exist in the ranks of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation”.
The company is ready for the task of the Ministry of Defense to develop an unmanned helicopter. “It's only a matter of the customer, from an engineering point of view, everything is clear to us and technically feasible, so we will do it,” added a representative of Kamov. Earlier, the US military used the helicopter and drone pairing for the combat AH-64E Apache Guardian and the RQ-7B Shadow UAV.
Possibilities for improving the flight and functional characteristics of the Ansat helicopter were also discussed at the salon. To increase the range, it is planned to modernize the fuel system with a volume of about 750 kilograms and install additional fuel tanks with a volume of up to 200 kilograms.
Technodinamika has developed an accident-resistant fuel system, which has successfully passed the first stage of testing. The system is designed for "hard landings" of helicopters. In this case, it is important to protect the tanks, to avoid fuel leakage and, as a result, fire. The system was primarily developed for transport and passenger helicopters, but the solutions will be replicated for other types of aircraft.
The head of Russian Helicopters, Alexander Mikheev, said that within six months it is planned to present a program to resume production of the Mi-14 amphibian. It was produced from 1973 to 1986 and operated in more than 20 countries. “We are now considering this program at the holding - we are looking at the technological groundwork, how the resumption of the helicopter with new avionics will correspond to the prices on the market,” Mikheev explained. “In the next six months, we must finish this work and pass the proposals to the interested parties.”
Onboard equipment
There were enough novelties in the field of onboard equipment for aircraft. But the greatest interest among specialists, especially Western ones, was aroused by the demonstration of an active phased antenna array (AFAR) for a fifth-generation fighter, as well as a cylindrical AFAR developed by the N. I. V. V. Tikhomirov. For the first time in the UAC pavilion, the PAK FA antenna system was presented in full: the X-band forward-looking AFAR, the X-band side-looking AFAR and the L-band wing AFAR. As the general director of the enterprise Yuri Bely noted, during the flight tests of the PAK FA, the antenna system shows very good performance and demonstrates high reliability. In real operation of the AFAR, the failure of about 10 percent of its modules, especially if they are scattered over the antenna web, practically does not affect its characteristics.
At the present time, as Bely noted, testing of the interaction of the AFAR with the means of destruction is beginning at field tests. There is a consistent increase in the characteristics of the equipment to the requirements of the technical specifications.
There could have been more contracts
The international military-technical cooperation program of MAKS-2015 turned out to be less intense than expected. Agreements for the supply of weapons and military equipment were signed with Belarus. The Irkut Corporation has signed a contract for the supply of four Yak-130 UBS to this country, which will be handed over to the customer at the end of 2016 at the Lida airbase. In April 2015, Belarus received the first batch of Yak-130s under a contract signed in 2013. A very important fact in this deal is that the contract with the Ministry of Defense of Belarus for the supply of the Yak-130 was signed by Irkut directly, without the participation of Rosoboronexport. In the near future, the company should receive the right to supply aircraft to other CSTO countries. According to a representative of Irkut, deliveries of Yak-130 to Belarus can be continued in the near future, Kazakhstan and Armenia are showing interest in purchasing the aircraft.
Rosoboronexport signed a contract with the Ministry of Defense of Belarus for the supply in 2016 of five combat vehicles from the Tor-M2K air defense system.
Sergey Korotkov, General Director of the Russian Aircraft Corporation (RAC) MiG, said that RAC is negotiating the completion of the modernization of the MiG-29 fighters in service with the Latin American country. Venezuela has already received the first battalion of the Buk-M2E air defense missile system on a wheeled chassis, and currently another batch is being delivered to this country. Iran informed about active negotiations, as a result of which two types of Russian combat aircraft may be acquired.
Also at the salon it became known about the delivery to Iraq of the next batch of Mi-35M and Mi-28NE "Night Hunter" attack helicopters. Four Mi-35M and four Mi-28NE were exported in full combat configuration and equipped with night vision equipment. Earlier it was reported that by 2016 inclusive, Baghdad will receive a total of 43 combat helicopters, including 24 Mi-35M and 19 Mi-28N. These machines are planned to be used to combat terrorist groups. To date, Iraq has received 16 Mi-35M and 11 Mi-28NE.
