Servicemen of the Russian Airborne Forces are preparing for internships in the United States, Germany and other countries, the commander of the Airborne Forces, Lieutenant General Vladimir Shamanov, said on Wednesday. The general also spoke about the immediate plans of the Airborne Forces and what aircraft the paratroopers need.
"The Chief of the General Staff has set a task in the form of Russia-NATO to conduct military training of our servicemen in the armed forces of a number of foreign countries," Shamanov said. In particular, he said, a number of servicemen are now preparing for a trip to the United States and Germany.
Shamanov also said that more than ten airborne forces will undergo retraining this summer for the operation of modern unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) purchased in Israel.
- Airborne forces asks to purchase 30-40 An-70 aircraft
- The Ministry of Defense will resume production of Ruslan aircraft
"Today there is an order from the General Staff to prepare 12 calculations in the center of unmanned aerial vehicles in the Moscow region during the summer training period," Shamanov told reporters in Moscow on Wednesday. He said that so far the Airborne Forces specialists have not been able to visit Israel, as planned, in connection with the purchase of "drones" in this country.
At the same time, he praised the Russian-made unmanned aerial vehicle, noting the usefulness of the spirit of competition in the context of possible purchases of foreign-made weapons for the Russian army.
“At one of the exercises, we used the Kazan-made Eleron unmanned reconnaissance aircraft, with the help of which we carried out additional reconnaissance of the target at a distance of up to 10 km and successfully inflicted fire damage,” Shamanov said.
According to him, this Russian-made "drone" is an advanced product, especially in terms of objectivity and reliability of the target coordinates provided. Shamanov noted that during the exercise, the products of the Russian companies Vega, Irkut and a number of other enterprises showed themselves well.
Airborne forces asks to purchase 30-40 An-70 aircraft
Within the framework of the developed State Armaments Program for 2011-2020, 30-40 An-70 military transport aircraft of Russian-Ukrainian production can be purchased, Shamanov also said.
"The elaboration of the State Armament Program for 2011-2020 is nearing completion," the commander recalled. "According to our requests, there is an upgrade of Il-76 aircraft, resumption of production and modernization of An-124 aircraft, and the purchase of 30-40 An-70 aircraft."
Shamanov noted that the final decision on the An-70 has not yet been made. "It's not for me to decide. After the approval of the State Armaments Program, we'll see."
Ministry of Defense will resume production of Ruslan aircraft
The Russian Defense Ministry plans to resume production of the An-124 Ruslan aircraft within the framework of the state armaments program for 2011-2020, Vladimir Shamanov told reporters. "When developing the state program, we submitted our proposals, whether they will be implemented in the approved version of the state program, I cannot say yet," the commander said. According to him, the An-70 aircraft, after all the modifications, should occupy the niche of the An-12 aircraft.
The Ruslan Russian-Ukrainian transport aircraft is the largest production transport aircraft in the world. The aircraft were produced in Ulyanovsk and Kiev. In 2004, production was suspended.
