On October 24, Moscow hosted a meeting of the Expert Council under the State Duma Committee on Industry. Defense industry experts and legislators discussed a number of issues related to promising vehicles - ekranoplanes. Representatives of the Military-Industrial Commission, the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Transport, the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the United Shipbuilding and the United Aircraft Building Corporation, as well as specialists from other organizations and departments were involved in the discussion of the issue.
Drawing of a perspective ekranoplan
State Duma Deputy, First Deputy Chairman of the Industry Committee Vladimir Gutenev, opening the meeting, stressed the importance of transport development. Due to the large size of the state and the unsatisfactory state of the transport infrastructure, the development of promising modes of transport is important for the development of remote regions: the Arctic, the Far East and Siberia. In addition, the issue of communication with Crimea requires a solution. The deputy noted that most of the scientific and experimental base required for the development and construction of new ekranoplanes has been preserved to this day. At the same time, however, this base remained unclaimed for several decades.
According to V. Gutenev, the Ministry of Industry and Trade took into account the prospects of new vehicles and developed a draft Concept for the development of civilian and military ekranoplanes, as well as an action plan for its implementation. The draft Concept and the plan for its implementation have been submitted to the Russian government, which must approve them. The development of new documents should contribute to the beginning of systematic work in the construction of ekranoplanes, unite the efforts of various enterprises, and also attract private investors.
During the meeting of the Expert Council, Sergey Ganin, a representative of the Krylov State Scientific Center of the Federal State Unitary Enterprise, revealed some details of the proposed Concept for the development of ekranoplanes. It forecasts the development of the ekranoplan market in the country until 2020, determines their optimal appearance for solving various transport problems, and also proposes measures of state support for projects aimed at increasing production efficiency and improving the competitiveness of finished equipment.
Currently, there is an increasing interest in ekranoplanes in the world, which are considered as a promising vehicle capable of occupying a niche in commercial cargo transportation. One of the consequences of this interest was the emergence of an appropriate regulatory framework. The USA, China, Japan and other countries are especially active in this area. In addition, the development and construction of new ekranoplanes is underway. So, at present, South Korea is testing the WSH-500 ekranoplan capable of carrying up to 50 passengers. At the moment, this car, which is soon planned to be put into series, is the largest representative of its class in the world.
In Russia, the production of ekranoplanes is still carried out in extremely modest volumes. The head of the Moscow complex of TsAGI, Vladimir Sokolyansky, believes that the development of domestic ekranoplanes is hampered by the lack of the necessary regulatory framework for the construction and use of such equipment, the rapid aging of existing developments and the strengthening of the positions of competitors from foreign countries. In addition, such a technique is hindered by the lag in some technical areas, the specific intersectoral status and the lack of funding for topics within the framework of the development of aircraft construction.
Experts who took part in the meeting of the Expert Council under the State Duma Committee on Industry came to the conclusion that it was necessary to create an industrial complex, the task of which would be to develop and manufacture new ekranoplanes. It is necessary to form a new industry. Screen-building should be a specialized, innovative and high-tech direction in the industry. When creating new technology, it is necessary to take into account the economic and military security of the country, as well as to carry out development with the active support of the state.
It should be noted that the new industry, ekranoplanostroeniya, will not be created from scratch. Several decades ago, some developments in the field of this technique were created in our country. In addition, at present, several commercial organizations are engaged in the construction of ekranoplanes and have achieved some success.
At the beginning of October, it became known that the first prototype of the Burevestnik-24 ekranoplan, created at Sky and Sea LLC, entered trial operation in Yakutia. This device is capable of carrying up to 24 passengers with luggage. During the tests and trial operation, flights from Yakutsk to Bestyakh, Pokrovsk and Sinsk were made and continue to operate. The Lena River became the "route" for the flights of the ekranoplan. The Burevestnik-24 ekranoplan will be in trial operation until next spring, when full-fledged commercial flights are expected to begin. In addition, the construction of the second apparatus "Burevestnik-24" is nearing completion, and the authors of the project are working on a new ekranoplan capable of carrying up to a hundred people.
The Petrozavodsk Center for ekranoplan construction, created on the premises of the Avangard shipyard, spoke a few days ago about the progress in fulfilling foreign orders. So, the construction of ekranoplanes for Iran continues. Two Orion-20 vehicles have already been tested and sent to the customer, the third is being tested. There are three more machines of this type in the workshops of the Center for ekranoplanostroeniya at different stages of production. Various foreign customers, including those from China, show their interest in the developments of Petrozavodsk engineers.
Ekranoplanes are of certain interest from the point of view of modernization of transport infrastructure and are able to occupy their niche in the structure of transportation of goods and passengers. However, this technique cannot yet compete with existing traditional vehicles. For a full-fledged exit of ekranoplans on routes, it is necessary to develop the industry and some related areas. Specialists of the Ministry of Industry and Trade have developed a program in accordance with which the development of ekranoplan construction should proceed. If the proposed Development Concept is approved by the government, then its first results may appear within the next few years.
