In August 2017, the main news on the export of Russian arms was mainly related to aircraft. In particular, a very important event was the signing of an agreement with Indonesia for the supply of 11 Su-35 fighters for a total of $ 1.14 billion, as well as information on India's plans to purchase 108 fifth-generation T-50 / FGFA fighters of joint production.
According to Rosoboronexport, today foreign customers are actively interested in Russian weapons and military equipment for all types of armed forces. As stated in the press release of the special exporter, there is currently a sharp jump in demand for military aircraft. Its share in the total supply of Rosoboronexport in 2017 will exceed 50 percent. At the same time, as noted by the general director of Rosoboronexport, Alexander Mikheev, the company successfully supplies products abroad for other types of armed forces. Since 2001 alone, military equipment and weapons for the ground forces, air defense forces and electronic warfare systems have been supplied abroad in the amount of about 45 billion US dollars. Among the entire range of Russian weapons and military equipment being promoted for export today, multipurpose fighters, transport-combat and combat helicopters, armored vehicles, air defense systems and air defense systems, artillery systems, as well as modern electronic means are in great demand.
As part of the Army-2017 military-technical forum, which took place in the Moscow region from August 22 to 27, 2017, Rosoboronexport signed more than 10 contracts and agreements, including with representatives of Burkina Faso and Kazakhstan. In just three days of work, the employees of the organization held about 70 meetings with foreign delegations representing 50 countries of the world from almost all regions of the planet. More than 20 defense ministers paid attention to Russian equipment and weapons. According to the deputy general director of Rosoboronexport Sergei Goreslavsky, among the heads of delegations with whom negotiations and meetings were held were heads of law enforcement agencies of different countries, as well as commanders of the armed forces and chiefs of general staffs of partner countries. Representatives of foreign delegations showed particular interest in the Iskander-E operational-tactical missile system, T-90S / MS tanks, as well as armored personnel carriers BTR-80A / BTR-82A and automobile, including armored, equipment, modern models of special and small arms weapons, means of material and technical support of subdivisions and means of close combat.
Indonesia will buy 11 Su-35 fighters from Russia
Indonesia intends to purchase 11 Su-35 multipurpose fighters from Russia for $ 1.14 billion, Reuters reports, citing Defense Minister Ryamizard Ryakuda and the country's trade minister, Enggartiasto Lukitu. In exchange for the planes, Indonesia is ready to provide Russia with commodities worth $ 570 million, and will pay the rest in cash. It is reported that the supply of Su-35 aircraft will be carried out in stages in two years, according to RIA Novosti. According to the Indonesian Trade Minister, the type and volume of commodity supplies that will be shipped to Russia are currently under discussion.
According to the newspaper "Vzglyad", earlier on August 7, it was said that Indonesia was ready to supply Russia with tea, coffee, palm oil and other raw materials in exchange for multipurpose Su-35 fighters. In particular, the Ambassador of Indonesia to Russia Vahid Supriyadi spoke about the republic's intention to acquire 8 Su-35 fighters in order to then bring the number of purchased vehicles to 16. In March 2017, it was also said that the countries were discussing a contract for the supply of a certain amount of diesel to Jakarta. -Electric submarines of project 636 "Varshavyanka". In addition, there was information that the Russian Helicopters company signed contracts for the overhaul of Mi-35P attack helicopters from the Indonesian Air Force, as well as the supply of spare parts for them.
According to the bmpd blog, Su-35 fighters are officially purchased by Jakarta to replace the fleet of already outdated light American F-5E / F Tiger II fighters, which are in service with the 14th Squadron of the Indonesian Air Force, based at Iswahyudi Air Force Base (Madiun, Java) … To date, the 14th squadron includes 8 F-5E aircraft and 3 more F-5F fighters, of which only two fighters remain in flight condition. At the same time, according to reports in a number of Indonesian media, the Su-35 fighters purchased from Russia will actually go to equip the 11th squadron of the 5th aviation wing of the country's Air Force, which is deployed at the Sultan Hasanuddin air base (Makassar, Sulawesi) and is currently armed with Su-27SKM and Su-30MK2 fighters. At the same time, the "dryers" released in this way will be used to re-equip the 14th squadron.
In any case, Indonesia becomes the second foreign customer of the Su-35 multipurpose fighters after China. Recall that Beijing in November 2015 signed a contract for the supply of 24 Su-35 aircraft to the country (deliveries began in December 2016). Serial production of this fighter model is carried out today in Komsomolsk-on-Amur at the Yuri Gagarin Aviation Plant (a branch of PJSC Sukhoi Company).
India plans to acquire 108 fifth generation FGFA fighters
According to the Internet resource psk.blog.24heures.ch, which published the material "L'Inde prévoit d'acheter 108 Sukhoi T-50!" … We are talking about the export modification of the PAK FA ("Advanced Frontline Aviation Complex", T-50, which recently received the official designation Su-57), which is being created jointly with India. An internal commission of the Indian Ministry of Defense made a recommendation to purchase a batch of T-50 / FGFA fighters through their joint production with the Russian Federation.
The committee, which is headed by retired Air Marshal Simhakutty Varthaman, conducted a comparative analysis of the aircraft's tactical and technical characteristics, after which they gave a positive opinion regarding its acquisition. In total, India plans to spend $ 5 billion on joint development of the fifth generation fighter. According to a source in the Indian Air Force, the country is ready to place a firm order for 108 such aircraft. However, it is still too early to talk about a deal, since Moscow and Delhi have not yet agreed even on the transfer of technology and the division of work on the project. Currently, the Indian Ministry of Defense is working in this direction, in contact with the Russian side. For its part, the Indian Air Force is working on the final approval of the requirements for the new fighter, as well as the number of aircraft purchased.
It is worth noting that the estimated export value of the fifth generation FGFA fighter is about $ 100 million, excluding R&D. This is below the cost of the American fifth-generation F-22 Raptor fighter, which is estimated at just over $ 146 million. At the same time, some experts note the fact that the price of one Su-57 or F-22 is so high that the performance characteristics of these fighters can become secondary to relatively small volumes of their production in reality.
Pakistan receives all 4 Mi-35M helicopters ordered in Russia
According to the Shephard Media Internet resource, where the article “Pakistan receives Mi-35M quartet” was published, Pakistan received all the Mi-35M transport and combat helicopters manufactured by JSC “Rosvertol” ordered in Russia. When publishing, the journalists of the publication referred to the Pakistani Defense Export Promotion Organization (DEPO). Information about the conclusion of a contract between Rosoboronexport and Pakistan for the supply of 4 combat helicopters appeared in the media back in August 2015.
By supplying these helicopters to Pakistan, Russia has strengthened its position in the region while contributing to the fight against local terrorist groups. Islamabad acquired these helicopters specifically for anti-terrorist purposes. On the other hand, the economic return from this contract was not so high (according to expert estimates, the cost of one Mi-35M helicopter, built in the interests of a foreign customer, is estimated at about $ 30 million). At the same time, the first contract for the supply of Mi-35M helicopters between Russia and Pakistan could be so small in order to assess the reaction of India to the supply of combat helicopters to Islamabad. It is worth noting that Pakistan originally wanted 18 to 24 combat vehicles. With favorable development of circumstances, further cooperation on the supply of Mi-35M helicopters to Pakistan can be expanded.
Indonesian marines preferred Russian BT-3F over Ukrainian BTR-4
According to the specialized military blog bmpd with reference to the magazine "Jane's Navy International", the command of the Indonesian Marine Corps (Korps Marinir - KORMAR) has decided to officially abandon further acquisitions of wheeled armored personnel carriers BTR-4 of Ukrainian production in favor of buying new Russian tracked armored personnel carriers BT-3F built on the basis of the BMP-3. Thus, Indonesia is likely to become the first customer of the BT-3F tracked armored personnel carrier.
The Committee of the House of Representatives of the Parliament of Indonesia on Defense, Intelligence and Foreign Affairs (Komisi I) has previously approved the allocation of $ 95 million in the country's defense budget for 2017 to replace the outdated BTR-50PK armored personnel carriers in KORMAR with Ukrainian BTR-4. This decision was made in addition to the first batch of five BTR-4s, which were ordered by the country's Ministry of Defense from the Ukrainian defense holding group Ukroboronprom back in February 2014. The first 5 armored personnel carriers under this contract arrived in Indonesia in September 2016.
Since October 2016, the cavalry regiment of the 2nd KORMAR Marine Corps Group has been testing these combat vehicles, including at its base in Chalandak (South Jakarta). Among the identified problems that were identified during the tests, there were complaints from personnel about the fact that the BTR-4 armored personnel carrier strongly buries its nose into the water while driving at full speed afloat. Based on the results of the tests carried out on wheeled armored personnel carriers BTR-4, KORMAR decided to abandon the further purchase of these combat vehicles, choosing a different type of equipment to replace the BTR-50PK. The search and assessment of alternative options has been carried out since the beginning of 2017. Initially, the Russian wheeled armored personnel carrier BTR-80, the Turkish tracked BMP ACV-19, as well as the new South Korean tracked BMP K21 NIFV were considered as replacements, but now the preferences of KORMAR are focused on the BT-3F tracked armored personnel carrier specially created for the Marine Corps. It is reported that this model has been offered by the Russian side of Indonesia since 2010 as an addition to the BMP-3F purchased by the Marine Corps.
It is already known that KORMAR submitted an official document to the Indonesian Ministry of Defense with a proposal (in accordance with the Indonesian parliamentary procedures for reallocation of appropriations for defense spending) to transfer the funds originally allocated for the acquisition of the BTR-4 to be used for the purchase of other types of armored personnel carriers. As part of the allocated allocation ($ 95 million), the Marine Corps is going to order 50 new armored personnel carriers to replace the BTR-50PK. General plans for the acquisition of such a new type of armored vehicles in the interests of the Indonesian Marine Corps for the future are estimated at 160 units over the next ten years.
KamAZ will supply 130 units of automotive equipment for the needs of the UN
KamAZ is going to ship about 130 units of motor vehicles for the needs of the UN. The delivery of the vehicles will be carried out within the framework of the 2nd stage of the implementation of the World Food Program (WFP) project to re-equip the fleet of trucks used to transport various humanitarian aid. According to the official website of Rostec, by the end of 2018 KamAZ will ship 97 vehicles to Africa, as well as 30 trailers manufactured by a subsidiary of PJSC Nefaz, including sets of spare parts for them.
It is reported that on-board trucks KAMAZ-43118 (6x6), KAMAZ-63501 (8x8), as well as classrooms based on the chassis KAMAZ-43118 (6x6) and truck tankers will be delivered to Africa. All Russian-made equipment will be adapted to harsh operating conditions in complete off-road conditions, the press service of the automobile plant notes. It is worth noting that the Russian Federation contributes to the World Food Program in accordance with the strategic partnership agreement between the Russian government and WFP, which was signed in 2014. Automotive equipment produced by the KamAZ plant and its subsidiaries serves as a Russian contribution to the program fund in kind.
