In January 2017, the main news on the export deliveries of Russian arms concerned the aviation component. Russian aircraft and helicopters are in demand on the international market. Currently, export deliveries to Algeria, China, Egypt are carried out, Argentina has indicated an interest in the Russian MiG-29 fighters. Vietnam received another Russian multipurpose diesel submarine of project 636.1 "Varshavyanka".
Argentina shows interest in MiG-29 fighters
Argentina expects to buy more than 15 MiG-29 multipurpose fighters from Russia, RBC reports. The deputy director of the Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation (FSMTC) Anatoly Punchuk told the journalists about this. According to him, Buenos Aires has sent a corresponding commercial proposal to Russia, to which our country is preparing its response. Anatoly Punchuk announced a possible deal between Russia and Argentina on the supply of fighters on January 26, 2017 in Lukhovitsy during the international presentation of the new Russian MiG-35 fighter. On Thursday, January 26, flight tests of a new combat aircraft took place in Lukhovitsy. The videoconference dedicated to this event was attended by Russian President Vladimir Putin, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, and Minister of Industry and Trade Denis Manturov.
The MiG-29 is a 4th generation multirole fighter that was developed in the USSR in the 1970s. The fighter has been repeatedly modernized since then, it is exported and operated in about 30 countries around the world. Its successor in the line of MiG fighters in our country should be the MiG-35 fighter. Old modifications of the MiG-29 fighters are gradually being withdrawn from the Russian Aerospace Forces. Their modernization was considered inappropriate due to the physical wear of the airframe and corrosion.
In December last year, Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandr Vucic spoke about plans to receive 6 MiG-29 fighters from Russia free of charge. Having received six fighters from the presence of the Russian Aerospace Forces, the Serbian side will pay for their repair. Thanks to the supply of these aircraft, the Serbian military will have 10 MiG-29 fighters, which will significantly increase the country's combat capability. The modernization of 6 delivered fighters and 4 in the presence of the Serbian Air Force will cost the country 185 million euros. According to the plans, the Serbian aviation will use all 10 modernized MiG-29 fighters over the next 14 years. According to Defense Minister Zoran Djordjevic, the upgraded MiG-29s may enter service at the end of 2017 or earlier if the modernization is carried out in Serbia.
Vietnam received the sixth submarine of project 636.1 "Varshavyanka"
The last of 6 Varshavyanka Project 636.1 submarines ordered by Vietnam from Russia in 2009 was delivered to the port of Cam Ranh in the central part of the country on January 20, 2017. Thus, the Russian Federation fully fulfilled its contract for the supply of six submarines to the customer, which was signed at the end of 2009, TASS reports. The submarine was transported from the Admiralty Shipyard in St. Petersburg by the Dutch dock "Rolldock Storm".
At this point in time, the Vietnamese Navy has already included the first five Russian-made submarines: "Hanoi", "Ho Chi Minh City", "Haiphong", "Khanh Hoa" and "Danang". Rosoboronexport signed a contract for the supply of six Project 636.1 Varshavyanka diesel-electric submarines (NATO codification Clio) worth about $ 2 billion with the government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV). The submarines are being handed over to the Vietnamese Navy as standard with the Caliber-S missile strike system. The sixth diesel-electric submarine "Varshavyanka" has already received its name Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu "Vung Tau" and the tail number is 187.
In addition to the supply of submarines, Russia is implementing contracts related to the construction of Project 11661E Gepard patrol ships for the Vietnamese naval forces. In total, 4 ships of this type have been ordered, two have already been delivered. Also, specialists from Russia provide technical assistance in the construction of Project 1241.8 Molniya missile boats at Vietnamese shipyards under a Russian license.
The Russian Federation is Vietnam's traditional partner in the military-technical sphere. Over the past few years, the countries have signed contracts totaling more than $ 4.5 billion for the supply of the latest weapons. In addition to the Varshavyanka submarines, the most significant of them was the contract for the purchase of multifunctional Su-30MK2 fighters, which is estimated at about one billion dollars. According to information from the Vietnamese government, the country's annual defense spending is about $ 1.5 billion, which is about 1.8% of the country's GDP. In addition to Vietnam, 10 submarines of the Varshavyanka project are operated by China, and two more submarines are being operated by Algeria (the issue of supplying two more boats is being considered).
China received two new Ka-32A11BC helicopters
On January 10, 2017, the press service of Russian Helicopters announced that two Ka-32A11BC helicopters were handed over to the Chinese company Jiangsu Baoli Aviation Equipment Investment Co., Ltd. The helicopters were handed over as part of a contract signed in November 2015 for the supply of four helicopters of this type in the amount of $ 52.058 million. Under the terms of the contract, the two remaining helicopters will also be handed over to the customer in 2017. This technique will be used in China to fight fires and carry out various types of rescue operations. The Ka-32 is a medium coaxial transport helicopter with two turboshaft engines and a fixed landing gear. It is a civilian version of the Ka-27PS search and rescue helicopter, created by the Kamov Design Bureau.
The production of Ka-32A11BC helicopters has been established at the facilities of KumAPP - Kumertau Aviation Production Enterprise. “These helicopters have been successfully operated in China for several years and have proven to be very reliable machines. Russian helicopters are indispensable for fighting fires in dense urban areas, where ordinary fire brigades, most often, have limited access to high-rise buildings. Today we are glad to develop cooperation with our Chinese partners, and we assess the East Asian market as quite promising,”said Alexander Shcherbinin, Deputy General Director of the Russian Helicopters holding for marketing and business development.
Ka-32A11BC, photo: Russian Helicopters JSC
The Ka-32A11BC multipurpose helicopter is designed to perform various search and rescue operations, as well as to evacuate the injured and sick, extinguish fires, patrol, transport cargo and high-altitude installation work. In the PRC, helicopters of this type are used mainly for extinguishing fires and carrying out various rescue operations, they are also actively used in mountainous areas. Earlier, the Russian Helicopters holding has already delivered 11 Ka-32 helicopters to China to various customers. So in 2015, China received 3 helicopters of this type, and within the framework of the China Aviation and Aerospace 2016 exhibition, a number of contracts were signed with Jiangsu Baoli, including for one Ka-32A11BC helicopter with delivery in 2017.
Taking into account the further increase in the fleet of Russian helicopters in the PRC, the Russian Helicopters holding is actively working on the issue of creating service technical centers in the country that would be engaged in servicing the supplied equipment. In addition to China, Ka-32 helicopters of various modifications are successfully operated in many countries of the world, including Spain, Portugal, Switzerland, Canada, South Korea, Japan, Colombia and others.
Russian Helicopters assembled the first Ka-52 for Egypt
According to a press release from the Russian Helicopters holding, the Arsenyev Aviation Company Progress named after N. I. Sazykin assembled the first Ka-52 Alligator combat reconnaissance and attack helicopter in 2017, intended for deliveries to Egypt. The helicopter is currently undergoing the required series of ground and flight tests. Several more fuselages for the new attack helicopters are currently in the final assembly shop. In February 2017, the next batch of Ka-52 combat helicopters will be handed over to customers.
It should be noted that the first batch of Alligator helicopters, scheduled for delivery in 2017 in accordance with the terms of the state contract, was transferred to the Russian Ministry of Defense ahead of schedule in December 2016. In 2017, the production of these rotary-wing combat vehicles will be more than doubled due to the start of work under export contracts. The first prototype for a foreign customer has already been assembled and is successfully undergoing scheduled tests, according to the Russian Helicopters holding.
Ka-52 helicopters at the army aviation base of the Southern Military District in Korenovsk, photo: yuga.ru
The contract for the supply of Ka-52 attack helicopters to Egypt was signed in the fall of 2015. According to information that was published in December 2015 in the corporate magazine of the Russian Helicopters holding, the volume of the ordered by the Egyptian military consignment amounted to 46 machines. The cost of this batch of helicopters was not disclosed. Later, Ruslan Pukhov, a Russian military expert, head of the Center for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies (CAST), in a comment to the Protect Russia website, noted that, according to his estimates, the cost of a batch of helicopters of this type, taking into account the cost of weapons, personnel training, infrastructure creation, etc.., can reach $ 1.5 billion.
The new generation Ka-52 Alligator combat reconnaissance and attack helicopter has been serially produced for the needs of the Russian Ministry of Defense since 2010. The helicopter is designed to destroy tanks, armored and unarmored enemy vehicles, manpower, helicopters and other aircraft. It can operate both on the front line and in the tactical depth of the enemy's defense at any time of the day and in any weather conditions. The helicopter is equipped with modern avionics and a powerful armament complex, the configuration of which can be easily changed depending on the assigned combat missions. The coaxial rotor layout and the increased power of the longitudinal control allow the Alligator to perform complex aerobatics and effectively maneuver, which increases the survivability of the vehicle in battle. Currently, Ka-52 helicopters are effectively operated in combat conditions as part of a Russian aviation group in Syria.
Algeria received another batch of Mi-26T2 helicopters
A photo of a pair of heavy transport helicopters Mi-26T2, which are in Italy on their way to Algeria, where they departed from Rostov-on-Don, was published on the Hammer Head user page on the Facebook social network. The helicopters have temporary Russian registration numbers 06813 (presumptive serial number 34001212648, presumptive serial number 33-08) and 06814 (presumptive serial number 34001212649, presumptive serial number 33-09) according to the bmpd blog.
It is reported that these are the seventh and eighth transport helicopters built by Rosvertol JSC, which will be received by the Algerian Armed Forces within the framework of two previously concluded contracts for the supply of 14 Mi-26T2 helicopters, which were signed between Russia and Algeria in 2013 and 2015. This pair of helicopters is the first two aircraft that Algeria will receive under the second contract from 2015 for the supply of 8 helicopters. The first Mi-26T2 super heavy transport helicopters manufactured by the Rostov-based company Rostvertol were delivered to Algeria in the spring of 2015.
A pair of Mi-26T2 heavy transport helicopters of the Algerian Air Force in Italy, January 2017 (c) Hammer Head, Facebook.com
After the execution of these two contracts, Algeria will become the world's second operator of this technology after Russia. Currently, the Russian army is armed with up to 90 Mi-26 helicopters, built in 1982-1998 and after the resumption of production from 2011 to the present. Of these, no more than 40 helicopters are in operation, the rest are in storage. About 50 more Mi-26 helicopters are operated by civil operators - EMERCOM of Russia and a number of airlines.
The Mi-26T2 helicopter is the most modern modernized version of the Mi-26 super-heavy transport helicopter, which differs from the basic version by the installation of modern avionics and electronic equipment, which allows the helicopter to be effectively operated in adverse weather conditions, as well as in the dark. The maximum take-off weight of the Mi-26T2 helicopter is 56 tons, the carrying capacity is up to 20 tons. With a maximum load, the helicopter can fly up to 500 kilometers.
