In light of the operation of the Russian Aerospace Forces deployed in the Syrian Arab Republic, the attention of foreign and domestic media has again been drawn to one of the most discussed Russian combat aircraft in recent years - the Su-24M.
Previously, this front-line bomber was heavily criticized for its high accident rate, operational complexity and "outdated design." The opinion of "experts" and officials of the Russian Ministry of Defense on the need to decommission these aircraft has been repeatedly published in print and online publications. Now in the same media, the combat effectiveness of the modernized Su-24Ms based on the results of strikes on IS targets is rated very high. In the photos and videos coming from Syria, the combat work of the "outdated" Su-24M is shown even more often than the more modern Su-34. In fairness, it should be said that the Su-24 family bombers have always been characterized by contradictory characteristics.
On the one hand, this aircraft has, in many respects, still not surpassed in the Russian Air Force, the ability to break through air defense and deliver high-precision missile and bomb strikes. For a long time, it was equipped with the most advanced sighting and navigation equipment among other domestic attack winged vehicles.
On the other hand, the Su-24 did not forgive piloting errors and negligence in ground maintenance. Since its inception, this aircraft has earned a reputation for being very "strict". This is largely due to the fact that the designers, in pursuit of high performance at the design stage, laid down many new technical solutions that were not previously used in other domestic combat aircraft.
The first serial Su-24s entered the Lipetsk Center for Combat Use and Flight Personnel Retraining in 1973. The first combat unit that began to master the Su-24 in 1974 was the Kerch Red Banner 63rd BAP stationed in the Kaliningrad region, before that it was armed with Yak-28B aircraft.
One of the first production Su-24s at the Air Force Museum of Aviation in Monino
In the initial period of operation, when the technical reliability of the aircraft was rather low, the necessary experience was not accumulated, and it was not yet possible to get rid of most of the "childhood sores", the reputation of the Su-24 among the flight crew was largely saved by the reliable ejection seats K-36D. And also a large margin of safety was originally laid down, often in the event of an emergency landing, even though the aircraft could not be restored after that, the crew remained unharmed.
Compared to its predecessors, the Il-28 and Yak-28B front-line bombers, the supersonic Su-24 had more than twice the bomb load and could carry practically the entire spectrum of the then existing guided aviation weapons of front-line strike aviation. Due to the variable geometry of the wing, the Su-24 had the ability to make low-altitude high-speed throws, while having good take-off and landing characteristics. Especially for this front-line bomber, FAB-1500S large-caliber one-and-a-half-ton bombs with an aerodynamically perfect hull shape were created.
The large range and complexity of the use of certain types of guided weapons and "special ammunition" led to the introduction of "specialization" in bomber regiments. In the combat training of one or two squadrons, the emphasis was on the use of the Kh-23M and Kh-28 air-to-surface missiles, while another squadron was preparing to use nuclear weapons.
The very fact that the Su-24 in the USSR was considered as one of the main carriers of tactical nuclear weapons was reflected in the appearance of the aircraft. On all combatant Su-24s, a special paint with a highly reflective white coating was applied to the nose, leading edges of the wing and the lower part of the fuselage. Part of the Su-24 was equipped with curtains to protect the crew from being blinded by the flash of a nuclear explosion.
Unlike the first Su-7B and Su-17, built at AZiG and initially entering service with the combatant regiments deployed in the Far East, the Su-24, which was produced in Novosibirsk, were sent mainly to western airfields. The exception was the 277th Mlavsky Red Banner BAP, based at the Far Eastern Khurba airfield near Komsomolsk-on-Amur, which in 1975 was one of the first in the Air Force to replace its Il-28s with Su-24s.
Despite the fact that until the end of the 70s the reliability of a number of electronic systems of the Su-24 left much to be desired, in 1979 these machines were armed with three bomber regiments stationed in the territory of the GDR. Soon, high-quality photographs of the Su-24 appeared at the disposal of the Western press and special services, and the real name of the aircraft became known.
At that time, foreign intelligence services paid particular close attention to the Su-24. In the West, it was quite rightly feared that a front-line bomber, literally stuffed with numerous technical innovations, due to its high speed and shock characteristics, could change the balance of power in Western Europe. Even with a low-altitude flight profile, the Su-24s based in East Germany could strike targets in the UK, France, the Netherlands and Northern Italy.
In the first half of the 80s, most of the sighting and navigation equipment of the combatant Su-24 reached an acceptable level of reliability. At the plant in Novosibirsk, where construction was carried out, improvements were introduced from series to series. Changes were made to wing mechanization, electrical equipment, navigation systems, electronic intelligence and state recognition.
A very important feature of the Su-24 was the high degree of interchangeability of units and some large units. This made it possible, during urgent repairs in combat conditions, to rearrange the damaged part or assembly from one machine to another.
Su-24 bombers (without the letter "M") in the 1980s were modified to be able to use the new X-58 anti-radar missiles, for which a suspension was provided in the container of the Phantasmagoria target designation station.
To maintain a high combat potential in the new conditions and to eliminate a number of shortcomings in the design of the aircraft and avionics, almost immediately after the adoption of the Su-24 into service, the design bureau began work on the development of an improved version of a front-line bomber with higher operational and combat characteristics. In 1984, the Su-24M entered service.
The most noticeable external difference from the Su-24 was the longer nose, which received a slight downward slope. The installation of an in-air refueling system significantly increased the combat range. Another innovation was the PNS-24M "Tiger" sighting and navigation station, which includes the Orion-A search radar and the Relief radar, with the help of which flights are carried out at extremely low altitudes with rounding the terrain. The introduction of the new Kaira-24 sighting system with a laser rangefinder-target designator and a television unit instead of the Chaika electro-optical sighting system made it possible to use new types of high-precision guided aircraft weapons.
Laser-television station LTPS-24 "Kaira-24", thanks to a special prism made of ultrapure glass, deflected the beams at an angle of up to 160 degrees down and back, could "see" the signal of the laser designator reflected from the target, falling into the lens of the tracking camera in horizontal flight bomber when the target was behind him. This made it possible to use guided weapons even in a gentle climb. Prior to this, frontline aviation aircraft could use weapons with a laser seeker only from a dive.
The introduction of new sighting equipment into the Su-24M avionics gave the bomber a "second wind" and capabilities that no Soviet combat aircraft had previously possessed. The front-line bomber's ammunition load was replenished with corrected bombs KAB-500L, KAB-1500L and guided missiles S-25L, Kh-25, Kh-29L with semi-active laser homing heads. The television indicator of the Kaira-24 sighting system was also used to guide the Kh-29T guided missiles and the KAB-500Kr corrected bombs.
Rocket Kh-59
Heavy guided missiles Kh-59 with a launch range of 40 km and KAB-1500TK bombs could be used to attack fortified targets covered by strong air defense. For this, an APK-9 container with television control equipment was suspended on the plane. The planning range of the KAB-1500TK and the launch of the Kh-59 made it possible to hit targets covered by short-range air defense systems without entering their zone of action. In terms of the possibilities of using guided weapons in the Soviet Air Force, only the MiG-27K fighter-bomber with the Kaira sighting system could compete with the Su-24M to some extent. But compared to the Su-24M, which carried a much higher bomb load and had a greater range of fighter-bombers, not many MiG-27s of this modification were built.
But not all improvements and innovations were unambiguously successful. As often happens, having won in one thing, we have lost in another. Pilots who had previously piloted the Su-24, when switching to the Su-24M, noted a deterioration in controllability in turns. Due to the introduction of "aerodynamic knives", the flight range dropped somewhat.
The transition to the Su-24M with its new sighting and navigation system for the flight crew was fairly quick. Certain difficulties in mastering a new, more complex avionics arose from the engineering and technical service.
In 1985, the reconnaissance Su-24MR began to enter the troops. At that time, the Soviet Air Force was in dire need of a tactical reconnaissance aircraft with an increased range, which could conduct not only aerial photography, but also radio-technical reconnaissance.
In contrast to the bomber, the reconnaissance version of the "twenty-four" is deprived of the ability to carry a bomb load. The pylons can be used to suspend two PTB-2000 or PTB-3000 outboard fuel tanks, or air bombs to provide photography at night.
For self-defense, the R-60 melee missiles were suspended on the Su-24MR. The main "weapon" of the reconnaissance aircraft is a side-looking radar, aerial cameras, as well as removable suspended containers that house equipment for electronic and radiation reconnaissance, as well as laser systems.
Theoretically, the Su-24MR provides integrated reconnaissance at any time of the day, to a depth of 400 km from the line of combat contact of troops. But in the troops, the flight and technical personnel are rather skeptical about the capabilities of remote data transmission of the Su-24MR reconnaissance equipment.
In practice, the equipment with which information from the reconnaissance aircraft was to be broadcast in real time did not work reliably. As a rule, intelligence was received with some delay. After the flight, the blocks of information storage and films with the results of aerial photography are sent for decryption, which means a loss of efficiency and a possible exit of mobile targets from under the planned strike. In addition, collecting data using aerial cameras, if the enemy has a developed air defense system, is always associated with a considerable risk of losing a reconnaissance aircraft, which has happened more than once in the course of real hostilities.
New front-line bombers Su-24M arrived mainly in the regiments that had previously operated the Su-24. But, unlike, say, the Su-17 fighter-bombers, the early modifications of which were put into storage as more advanced versions became available, the Su-24 front-line bombers, even of the first series, continued to fly until the resource was fully depleted.
Su-24 naval aviation at the Gvardeyskoye airfield
An example of the longevity of the Su-24 (without the letter "M") is that the aircraft of this modification, belonging to the 43rd Sevastopol Red Banner Order of Kutuzov, a separate naval assault aviation regiment, based at the Gvardeyskoye airfield in the Crimea, until recently took to the air. After the annexation of Crimea to Russia, it was decided to re-equip this regiment with more modern machines, which was previously opposed by the Ukrainian leadership. Until now, several Su-24s at the airfield in Gvardeyskoye are in flight condition and can, if necessary, perform a combat mission. But the age of these bombers is approaching 40 years, these are the most honored Russian combat aircraft of front-line aviation.
Used Su-24s were used to re-equip aviation regiments in the rear military districts. There are known cases when not only bomber and fighter-bomber aviation regiments were transferred to them, but also fighter ones, which had previously been armed with air defense interceptors.
To a large extent, this demonstrated the importance the Soviet military leadership attached to this front-line bomber, in which, in addition to high strike capabilities, a large margin of safety was laid. Despite the high price, the complexity of operation and the accident rate, in total, before the cessation of production in 1993, about 1200 Su-24 of various modifications were built. For comparison, the F-111, which is considered an analogue of the Su-24, was built in the United States in half - 563 aircraft. Operation of the F-111 ended in 1998.
There is information about the conversion of a number of Su-24s into Su-24T refueling aircraft (tanker). Su-24MP electronic warfare aircraft (jammer) were built in a small series. Outwardly, they differed from the Su-24M in the presence of a small fairing in the bow. The plane was equipped with the Landysh jamming complex, which was quite perfect for the early 1980s. It was designed mainly to organize countermeasures to air defense missile systems, including the American Patriot, which had just begun to enter service at that time.
Su-24MP
As conceived by the developers, the built-in and suspended container equipment of the Su-24MP was supposed to provide group protection for Su-24 bombers in the conditions of a well-organized enemy air defense system. The first Su-24MPs were operated in "test mode". Due to the great complexity, the reliability of the REP "Lily of the Valley" complex was low, the collapse of the USSR did not allow bringing this equipment to the performance characteristics that satisfied the military.
Just like the Su-24MR reconnaissance aircraft, the Su-24MP jammer carried only R-60 air combat missiles from weapons. After the collapse of the USSR, all combatant Su-24MPs remained in Ukraine (118th separate air regiment of REP aircraft in Chertkovo).
In the 1980s, a universal outboard refueling unit (UPAZ) was developed for the Su-24, which was subsequently used on other types of combat aircraft.
Due to the lack of an internal bomb bay on the Su-24, the UPAZ is suspended. A turbine is used as a drive for the fuel pump, which is driven by the oncoming air flow. For refueling, the unit has a hose with a length of about 30 meters. Refueling starts automatically after the cone is securely docked with the boom of the aircraft being refueled.
Su-24M with suspended UPAZ and suspended fuel tanks
In 1984, it was decided to test the Su-24 in real combat conditions. The mountains of Afghanistan were absolutely different from the European plains for action over which this front-line bomber was conceived. In Afghanistan, the high-speed low-altitude flight mode, designed to break through the air defense, turned out to be unclaimed. The absence of large radio contrast targets, such as columns of enemy tanks or bridges, and the features of the terrain did not make it possible to fully realize the capabilities of the sighting and navigation complex.
There was no particular difference in the effectiveness of the airstrikes inflicted by the Su-24 of the 149th Guards Red Banner BAP and the modernized Su-24M of the 43rd BAP. At the same time, it was noted that, despite the lack of preliminary training and the lack of knowledge of the target area by the crews, these front-line bombers did not experience difficulties with navigation and carried a much higher bomb load compared to other fighters, fighter-bombers and attack aircraft.
Su-24s turned out to be the only front-line aircraft under which powerful FAB-1500s were suspended. In addition, the wide range of the "twenty-fours" allowed them to be based outside Afghanistan, at Soviet airfields in Central Asia.
To ensure the operation of the Su-24 sighting navigation systems, the An-30 and Su-17M3R reconnaissance aircraft carried out aerial photography in the area of the alleged airstrikes, and also reconnoitered the exact coordinates of the targets.
During the operation to storm the fortified area of Akhmat Shah Masud in the Panzher Gorge, there was a moment when the Su-24, due to weather conditions, were the only combat aircraft providing air support to the advancing troops.
The next time, the Su-24 shook the Afghan mountains with the roar of their engines and the explosions of dropped land mines in the winter of 1988-1989, covering the exit of the 40th Army. As in the 1984 operation, high-explosive bombs weighing 250-500 kg were mainly used. The obvious advantage of the Su-24 was confirmed - the ability to deliver sufficiently accurate strikes from remote airfields, regardless of weather conditions in the target area. In Afghanistan, the Su-24 flew at altitudes of at least 5000 m, out of reach of MANPADS.
After the collapse of the USSR, the Su-24 of various modifications, except Russia, went to Azerbaijan (11 units), Belarus (42 units), Kazakhstan (27 units), Ukraine (200) units. and Uzbekistan (30 units).
Azerbaijani front-line bombers Su-24 and reconnaissance aircraft Su-24MR were used in the conflict with Armenia on the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh. One Azerbaijani Su-24MR crashed into a mountainside. At the same time, the air defense forces of Nagorno-Karabakh ascribe this victory to themselves.
In 1993, Uzbekistan used the available Su-24Ms to bomb camps and villages occupied by the Tajik armed opposition during the civil war in Tajikistan. Apparently, they were not ruled by ethnic Uzbeks. The Uzbek authorities have acknowledged the loss of one front-line bomber shot down from the Stinger MANPADS. The crew members managed to successfully eject and were picked up by a search and rescue helicopter.
Uzbek Su-24M at the Karshi airbase
In August 1999, residents of several villages in Tajikistan held a rally about an alleged bombing strike by four Su-24Ms of unknown origin. As a result of the bombing, there were no human casualties, but, as the protesters stated, about 100 heads of livestock were killed and crops were set on fire. Perhaps the purpose of this demonstration bombing was to "intimidate" the Tajik opposition warlords.
Satellite image of Google earth: Su-24 of the Air Force of Uzbekistan at the Karshi airfield
In 2001, the Uzbek Su-24M, providing support to the "northern alliance", attacked the positions of the Taliban. One bomber was shot down and both crew members were killed. Currently, all the surviving Uzbek Su-24s have been put into storage.
An interesting case is associated with the "twenty-fours" that Ukraine inherited, which will forever go down in the history of the Russian and Ukrainian Air Forces. On February 13, 1992, 6 Su-24M took off without permission from the Ukrainian airfield Starokonstantinov, where the aircraft of the 6th BAP were based. The bombers landed at the Russian airfield at Shatalovo near Smolensk. The main motive of the pilots who hijacked the Su-24M to Russia was their unwillingness to swear allegiance to the new Ukrainian authorities. At the same time, the banner of the 6th BAP was taken to Russia in a passenger car. Ukraine, along with their bombers, left 12 people, including five regimental commanders of various ranks, including the chief of staff of the regiment. This story, which happened on the eve of the meeting of the CIS leaders in Minsk, received a great response.
The fate of the "twenty fours" hijacked from Ukraine turned out to be unenviable. Taking out, in general, useless in Russia the banner of the aviation regiment, the pilots, some of whom were in considerable ranks, for some reason did not take with them the forms for the main units - the glider and engines. Operation without forms according to the existing rules of combat aircraft is impossible, since it is not known how long the aircraft spent in the air, when and what types of maintenance and repairs it took place. This especially applies to the AL-21F-Z engines, the overhaul life of which is 400 hours, and the one assigned in 1992 is 1800 hours.
As a result, no one began to take responsibility and bother with restoring technical documentation. All "Ukrainian" Su-24Ms in Shatalovo were "under the fence." Where they were "buried", using them as "donors", dismantling from them some "non-critical" units and parts.
Currently, all Ukrainian Su-24M and Su-24MR are concentrated in Starokonstantinov, which became famous in 1992, where the 7th tactical aviation brigade is based. The aircraft of the brigade took part in the ATO in the southeast of Ukraine, where they lost three combat vehicles from the fire of anti-aircraft installations and MANPADS. Apparently, the Ukrainian pilots, using unguided types of aviation weapons, neglected the "golden" rule for the Su-24 - in combat missions against irregular armed formations, which have small-caliber anti-aircraft guns and MANPADS at their disposal, do not descend below 5,000 meters.
The author expresses his gratitude to "Ancient" for consultations
