A real agressor squadron in Iceland?

14:16 01/09/2010

BRUSSELS, September 1 (RIA Novosti) NATO declined to comment on Wednesday on a report saying it could use Russian Sukhoi Su-27 fighters at a Cold War-era base in Iceland for training purposes.

The Financial Times reported on Monday the Icelandic government is in talks on renting an airbase to a private company, ECA, that says it is buying up to $1.5 bln of Sukhoi Su-27 warplanes from Belarus for use as a mock enemy in military training exercises.

The paper said ECA has agreed to buy 15 Su-27 jets from BelTechExport, a Belarusian arms export company, with an option for 18 more.

"We have studied this interesting report, but cannot comment because we do not have official information on the issue at hand," an official at the NATO headquarters in Brussels who requested anonymity said.

A Russian arms trade expert dismissed the FT report that NATO is going to buy Su-27 fighters in Belarus as a "spoof."

"Judging by the figures cited and the unprecedented nature of the contract in question, one can assume that it is a made-to-order article, which is designed to promote the ECA company," said Igor Korotchenko, head of a Moscow-based think tank on the international arms trade.

ECA Program says it has already signed up five air forces keen to test their pilots and jets against "an aircraft most commonly flown by the Russian and Chinese militaries."

BelTechExport denied knowledge of the deal on Monday, having previously confirmed it to the Financial Times.

According to the FT story, an official at the Belarusian agency responsible for approving arms exports said later he was not aware of it and Rosoboronexport, the Russian state arms exporter, denied involvement.

The USAF operated an aggressor squadron at Nellis AFB, NV that used captured soviet aircraft and F-16s which had similar flight characteristics to Soviet aircraft. The aggressor squadrons were used in the Red Flag series of exercises to provide raining ot USAF pilots.


The Russian aircraft have always been a match for US aircraft that some people would describe as gold plated. The big advantage the US has had is in pilot training, but the Russians are closing the gap here.


Still the Russian aircraft seems to be plagued with quality control problems and have maintenance issues that have created contract disputes. The Russians may lose their biggest export market for its fighter aircraft, India, because of such issues.


Regardless, NATO air forces would be fortunate to get combat training flying against real Flanker squadrons.

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Commander outlines future of the Russian Air Force

MOSCOW, August 5 (RIA Novosti) - New and modernized aircraft will comprise 70% of the Russian Air Force by 2020, the Air Force commander said on Wednesday.

"We expect 70% of the Air Force strength to be new and modernized aircraft by 2020," Col. Gen. Alexander Zelin told reporters.

"The development of the Russian Air Force will be carried out through extensive acquisition of new advanced aircraft and continuing modernization of the existing fleet," he added.

STRATEGIC AVIATION AND RECONAISSANCE AIRCRAFT

According to Zelin, Tu-95MC Bear and Tu-160 Blackjack bombers, Tu-22M3 Backfire long-range bombers and Il-78 Midas aerial tankers will form the backbone of the Russian strategic aviation in the next decade following extensive modernization.

The bombers, in particular, will be equipped with new targeting and navigation systems, which will enable them, in particular, to use conventional unguided bombs with a very high degree of accuracy - effectively engaging any target within 20 meters.

They will also have their operational range increased and their onboard defense systems significantly upgraded, the general said.

In addition, Zelin said Russia had been developing a fifth-generation strategic bomber which could be used effectively in both conventional and nuclear conflicts.

"The new plane will use a wide selection of high-precision weapons, and will have a whole range of new combat capabilities, allowing it to apply new methods to carrying out deterrence tasks," he said.

Russia will also develop in the near future a number of advanced reconnaissance aircraft including a stratospheric plane capable of avoiding enemy air defenses.

"Ultra-high altitude reconnaissance planes will play a key role in future wars because they will be capable of staying in the air for a long time and conduct reconnaissance operations deep into enemy territory while avoiding hostile air defenses," the Air Force commander said.

FRONTLINE AVIATION

The frontline aviation is the core of the Russian Air Force and currently comprises MiG-31B Foxhound interceptors, Su-27 Flanker and MiG-29 Fulcrum fighters, Su-24M Fencer fighter-bombers, Su-25 Frogfoot ground attack aircraft, and MiG-25R Foxbat and Su-24MR Fencer-E tactical reconnaissance aircraft.

Zelin said the Air Force will receive in the next decade not only modernized Su-27SM and MiG-29SMT fighters, but also generation 4++ Su-35S Flanker-E and MiG-35C Fulcrum-F fighters.

"The Russian Defense Ministry will start purchasing large numbers of these aircraft at the beginning of the next decade," the general said.

Meanwhile, Russia's fifth-generation multirole fighter is being developed by the Sukhoi aircraft maker, part of the United Aircraft Corporation (UAC), along with India's Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), under a preliminary intergovernmental agreement signed in October 2007.

"Flight tests of the [fifth-generation] aircraft are scheduled to start in the second half of 2009, and the aircraft is expected be put into service in the next few years," the commander said.

He also said Su-24 fighter-bombers will soon be replaced by advanced Su-34 Fullback aircraft.

The general reiterated that Russia will start in 2009 the production of the Su-25UBM, a two-seat version of the Su-25SM.

MILITARY TRANSPORT AVIATION

There are up to 300 transport aircraft in service with the Russian Air Force, including An-12 Cub, An-72 Coaler, An-22 Cock, An-124 Condor and Il-76 Candid planes.

The An-12, An-22, and An-26 planes will be decommissioned in the near future, Zelin said.

The An-26 plane will be replaced by Il-112B light transport aircraft with higher payload capacity and better fuel efficiency.

"The first Il-112 is expected to make its maiden flight in 2011. The Air Force will order over 70 planes of this type," the general said.

The An-12 will be most likely replaced by a medium-haul transport plane jointly-developed by Russia and India, Zelin said.

The plane, with a 20-ton cargo capacity, is expected to go in service with the Russian and Indian air forces in about eight years.

The An-124 and its modernized version, the An-124-100, will remain in service as a strategic heavy airlift transport aircraft. In addition, 12 Il-76 aircraft will be modernized to Il-76MD-90A starting in 2011.

HELICOPTERS

The existing fleet of Mi-24 Hind attack helicopters will be fully replaced with new-generation Mi-28N Night Hunter and Ka-52 Alligator attack helicopters by 2015.

"We have started deliveries of Mi-28N helicopters to combat units [in the North Caucasus military district] and plan to re-equip at least one squadron with these aircraft by the yearend," Zelin said.

"We are also expecting to complete the tests of the Ka-52 helicopter this year," he added.

The Ka-52 is a twin-seat derivative of the Ka-50 Hokum-A attack helicopter, and is designed primarily for reconnaissance and target designation purposes. It is similar to the U.S. AH-64 Apache attack helicopter.


UAV

The unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) will start playing an increasingly important role in future combat. Given their much lower manufacturing and maintenance costs they could form as much as 40% of the Air Force fleet by 2025, Zelin said.

The Air Force will start receiving domestically-developed attack UAVs in 2011.

"Unmanned and manned aircraft will complement one another, and must be able to accomplish a full range of combat missions in regional or local conflicts," the general said.

source: http://en.rian.ru/mlitary_news/20090805/155736575.html

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Pentagon purchases two Russian-made Su-27 fighter jets from Ukraine

Rightardia comment:  As a former Air Force intelligence office, The Major, was always impressed with Russian aircraft and would not be surprised at all if this story is accurate. However, the F15 is not really a dog fighter. It was a stand-off aircraft that used the Phoenix missile to destroy enemy aircraft at very long distances (100+ NM). The Su-27 Flanker aircraft will probably end up with the Aggressor Squadron at Nellis AFB, NV. The Air Force will then develop new tactics to counter the Su-27.

(Pravda.ru) The Pentagon purchased two Russian-made Su-27 fighter jets from Ukraine. The United States will reportedly use the Russian jets to train effective counter-operation efforts.

The Russian jets are a serious competition for the US F-15 fighters. The jets of Russia’s renowned Sukhoi design bureau proved to be more successful than their US competitors during a number of tests. The Pentagon has been trying to obtain the Russian warplanes, and Ukraine helped the nation do it legally.

The news about the deal between the USA and the Air Force of Ukraine appeared on the US-based website Strategypage.com. The website said that Russia’s Su-27 fighters were technically similar to F-15 jets, although the Russian planes were 30 percent cheaper.

Several Su-27 jets landed at Langley US air base in the summer of 1992, upon the agreement with the US side. Russian pilots examined F-15 jets at the base and proposed a simulated combat.

The US pilots did not like the idea much: they thought that it would be too risky to hold the fight above the base in front of photographers and TV cameras. They eventually accepted the offer, but agreed to hold the mock fight above the Atlantic Ocean, 200 kilometers far from the coast.

The scheme of the mock fight was very simple. A Sukhoi was supposed to fly behind a US jet, and the planes were supposed to switch places with one another. A US plane attempted to fly away from the Russian jet, but the Russian pilot caught up with the F-15 very easily.

The planes switched places, and the Su-27 flew away from the F-15 making a turn and gaining altitude. The Russian jet found itself behind the American fighter a couple of minutes later. The F-15 pilot lost the Russian aircraft out of sight and could not escape from it afterwards: the Russian pilot was keeping the F-15 covered.

The F-15 lost another battle with Russia’s Su-27 in the autumn of 2000, during the US-Japanese drills in the Pacific Ocean. Two Su-27 jets, covering the Su-24MP, conducted a sudden attack of the flagship of the US 7^th fleet, Kitty Hawk. The US aircraft carrier would have been destroyed in real combat conditions.

The US Defense Department is seriously concerned about the growing sales of Su-27 and Su-30 all over the world. Russia has been shipping these jets to India, China, Malaysia, Venezuela, Indonesia and Algeria for years.

Now the US purchased two Su-27 fighter jets from Ukraine. The US military command will now be able to study the phenomenon of Russia’s Sukhoi design bureau thoroughly.

http://english.pravda.ru/world/americas/20-07-2009/108253-su27-0

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