Ulyanovsk: invasion of airspace. Tests of the first strike UAV have begun in Russia. UAV breakthrough.
I quote the press: " Ground tracking equipment recorded the appearance of an unknown military unmanned aerial vehicle in the sky over Ulyanovsk, the Kommersant newspaper writes in its issue dated February 24. A special commission has been created at the Volga Territorial Administration of Air Transport to investigate the incident.
The incident occurred on the morning of February 17 in the regulated aircraft flight zone of Barataevka Airport. The aircraft appeared on radar screens dangerously close to two DOSAAF flying club aircraft conducting training. The drone followed at a speed of 500 kilometers per hour at an altitude of more than two thousand meters on the same course as the L-29 training aircraft of the flying club, and came into their tail. The controller gave the pilots a command to change course. After this, the drone continued to fly in the direction of Penza and soon disappeared from radar.
At the Ulyanovsk organization center air traffic confirmed information about the appearance of an unidentified drone in the civil aircraft flight zone, but did not disclose any details about the incident. According to a Kommersant source close to the aviation industry, the dimensions of the drone were similar to the L-29 training aircraft (wingspan of about ten meters, fuselage length of almost 11 meters, weight when ready for takeoff - more than three tons). As the newspaper notes, the Skat drone project had similar characteristics, the development of which, however, had previously been suspended.
Kommersant's source in the Ministry of Defense rejected the version that any foreign aircraft could have flown over Ulyanovsk, since no border crossing was recorded. The defense department did not provide any other comments about the incident." ( Lenta.ru )
"Kommersant": Military drone went AWOL: " "In the sky above Ulyanovsk, the appearance of an unknown heavy unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) for military purposes was recorded."
Aviation circles note that this is “a rather scandalous incident, since an unknown drone actually appeared over the city.”
IMHO: Let me doubt that we can talk about the "Scat" of the MiG corporation, whose passport data is: wingspan 11.5 meters, length 10.25, parking height 2.7 m, maximum take-off weight - 10 tons, maximum speed up to 800 km/h, altitude ceiling - 12 thousand meters, flight range up to 4000 kilometers, RD-5000B bypass turbojet engine with a thrust of 5040 kgf, protected from detection in the infrared range. The reason for doubt is the complete unavailability of Skat's radio-electronic equipment at the moment, in particular the software; to date, these issues have not been resolved by Sukhoi.
But it is very likely that in the airspace of Ulyanovsk there was a Yak-133BR “Proryv-U”, the “Proryv” program of the Yakovlev company. The Yak-133BR UAV is protected from radar detection at long and medium ranges. Its characteristics are similar to the Skat: take-off weight up to ten tons in the shock version, service ceiling of about 16 kilometers, speed up to 1100 km/h. However, perhaps we are talking about the Proryv-R or Proryv-RLD models, which have the ability to stay in the air for up to 16 hours. By performance characteristics series The Proryv UAVs are similar to the promising X-47B UAVs, developed by Northrop Grumman, and the X-45B, developed by Boeing.
If, however, the impressions of observers about the similarity in size with the L-29 aircraft were somewhat exaggerated, then we can also talk about the KAMAZ Dozor-600, a patrol UAV of the Predator/Hermes class, developed by Gennady Trubnikov, but I doubt that it In general, it can be compared with L-29, except with reference to optical illusions.
It would be interesting to know that we are talking about a classic unmanned aircraft developed by the Kazan Design Bureau "Sokol" (Research and Development Institute "Altius").
But, preliminary, a more probable event, apparently, should be considered that the tests were carried out by the Design Bureau named after. A.S. Yakovlev, and in the air was a model by Yuri Yankevich, the Irkut corporation with the participation of the Italian company Alenia Ermacchi (Finmeccanica group of companies). To date, all permits have already been received from the Ministries of Defense of Russia and Italy.
When creating the Yak-133 UAV, the experience and developments on the Yak-130 UTK were taken into account.
Where did the UAV come from? So from GLITs in Akhtubinsk... or from the assembly of the Nizhny Novgorod aviation plant "Sokol" and this, quite possibly, is an unmanned reconnaissance and attack aircraft Yak-133BR. And, yes, it’s more like an “Albatross” than a “Dolphin”.
Yes, I forgot to say, but the Italians somehow didn’t take root in Russia, and they left the “Breakthrough” project having acquired the right to develop their own version of the UAV and produce their own M346 aircraft on the basis of a joint project.
Specialists from the Institute of Nuclear Physics named after. G.I.Budkera SB RAS (BINP SB RAS) manufactured an industrial accelerator of the ILU-8 family for the Special Design Bureau of the Cable Industry (OKB KP, Mytishchi). It will allow the customer to increase productivity by 100 times and reduce the cost of the production process by 25% compared to the method currently used.
After irradiation, the products increase in strength and heat resistance; they become suitable for use at temperatures reaching 200 degrees Celsius. With the help of ILU-8, OKB KP specialists plan to organize mass production of a new type of wire for the military industry.
“Processing cable products at the ILU-8 accelerator,” comments Vadim Viktorovich Bezuglov, a researcher at the Institute of Nuclear Physics SB RAS, “will allow OKB KP specialists to increase production a hundred times - a wire 0.12 centimeters thick is irradiated at a speed of 120 meters per minute. This process significantly increases the strength of the product. According to the requirements, the wire must withstand at least 300 cycles of exposure to a steel string. Products processed using the ILU-8 installation can withstand from 600 to 1300 such impacts. The use of an accelerator significantly reduces the cost of production, since the irradiation method currently used by the OKB KP is based on the use of an expensive and rather dangerous radioactive isotope - cobalt-60.”
OKB KP specialists will use the ILU-8 accelerator for mass production of a new type of wire with fluoroplastic composites. PTFE double-layer insulation has a number of advantages. This is a heavy material, and wires coated with it can easily be pulled through narrow channels inside aircraft or other equipment where saving space is important. This wire is heat-resistant and can withstand temperatures up to 200 degrees Celsius.
OKB KP employees have already begun processing wires of different thicknesses on ILU-8. Laboratory analysis of irradiated samples indicates that they meet the requirements.
The ILU-8 accelerator is an example of import substitution in high-tech production, since it is a cost-effective, high-quality equipment that large state and commercial enterprises choose in favor of, abandoning foreign analogues due to high cost and difficulty in maintaining.
ILU-8 is the most compact accelerator of the ILU family, its height with radiation protection is 3 meters, its width and length are 2.5 meters, and its weight with radiation protection is 76 tons. The advantage of this accelerator is that there is no need to build a separate bunker for it; the protection is a box of thick steel plates. The installation can be placed directly in the customer’s workshop, and everything can be installed next to it necessary equipment. This factor significantly reduces the cost of production.
Just 20 years ago, Russia was one of the world leaders in the development of unmanned aerial vehicles. Only 950 Tu-143 aerial reconnaissance aircraft were produced in the 80s of the last century. The famous reusable spaceship"Buran", which made its first and only flight in completely unmanned mode. I don’t see any point in somehow giving up on the development and use of drones now.
Background of Russian drones (Tu-141, Tu-143, Tu-243). In the mid-sixties, the Tupolev Design Bureau began creating new tactical and unmanned reconnaissance systems operational purpose. On August 30, 1968, Decree of the Council of Ministers of the USSR N 670-241 was issued on the development of a new unmanned complex tactical reconnaissance"Flight" (VR-3) and the unmanned reconnaissance aircraft "143" (Tu-143) included in it. The deadline for presenting the complex for testing was specified in the Resolution: for the version with photo reconnaissance equipment - 1970, for the version with equipment for television reconnaissance and for the version with equipment for radiation reconnaissance - 1972.
The Tu-143 reconnaissance UAV was mass-produced in two variants with a replaceable nose part: a photo reconnaissance version with recording information on board, and a television reconnaissance version with the transmission of information via radio to ground command posts. In addition, the reconnaissance aircraft could be equipped with radiation reconnaissance equipment with the transmission of materials about the radiation situation along the flight route to the ground via a radio channel. The Tu-143 UAV is presented at an exhibition of aviation equipment at the Central Aerodrome in Moscow and at the Museum in Monino (you can also see the Tu-141 UAV there).
As part of the aerospace show in Zhukovsky MAKS-2007 near Moscow, in the closed part of the exhibition, the MiG aircraft manufacturing corporation showed its attack unmanned system "Scat" - an aircraft designed according to the "flying wing" design and outwardly very reminiscent of the American bomber B-2 Spirit or its a smaller version is the X-47B maritime unmanned aerial vehicle.
"Scat" is designed to strike both pre-reconnaissance stationary targets, primarily air defense systems, in conditions of strong opposition from enemy anti-aircraft weapons, and mobile ground and sea targets when conducting autonomous and group actions, joint with manned aircraft.
Its maximum take-off weight should be 10 tons. Flight range - 4 thousand kilometers. Flight speed near the ground is at least 800 km/h. It will be able to carry two air-to-surface/air-to-radar missiles or two adjustable aerial bombs with a total mass of no more than 1 ton.
The aircraft is designed according to the flying wing design. In addition, well-known techniques for reducing radar signature were clearly visible in the design. Thus, the wingtips are parallel to its leading edge and the contours of the rear part of the device are made in exactly the same way. Above the middle part of the wing, the Skat had a fuselage characteristic shape, smoothly coupled with load-bearing surfaces. Vertical tail was not provided. As can be seen from the photographs of the Skat model, control was to be carried out using four elevons located on the consoles and on the center section. At the same time, certain questions were immediately raised by the yaw controllability: due to the lack of a rudder and a single-engine design, the UAV needed to somehow solve this problem. There is a version about a single deflection of the internal elevons for yaw control.
The model presented at the MAKS-2007 exhibition had the following dimensions: a wingspan of 11.5 meters, a length of 10.25 and a parking height of 2.7 m. Regarding the mass of the Skat, all that is known is that its maximum take-off weight should have been approximately equal to ten tons. With such parameters, the Skat had good calculated flight data. At maximum speed up to 800 km/h it could rise to a height of up to 12 thousand meters and cover up to 4000 kilometers in flight. Such flight performance was planned to be achieved using a two-circuit turbojet engine RD-5000B with a thrust of 5040 kgf. This turbojet engine was created on the basis of the RD-93 engine, but was initially equipped with a special flat nozzle, which reduces the visibility of the aircraft in the infrared range. The engine air intake was located in the forward part of the fuselage and was an unregulated intake device.
Inside the characteristically shaped fuselage, the Skat had two cargo compartments measuring 4.4 x 0.75 x 0.65 meters. With such dimensions, it was possible to suspend guided missiles in the cargo compartments various types, as well as adjustable bombs. The total mass of the Stingray's combat load should have been approximately two tons. During the presentation at the MAKS-2007 salon, next to the Skat there were Kh-31 missiles and KAB-500 adjustable bombs. The composition of the on-board equipment implied by the project was not disclosed. Based on information about other projects of this class, we can draw conclusions about the presence of a complex of navigation and sighting equipment, as well as some capabilities for autonomous actions.
The Dozor-600 UAV (developed by Transas designers), also known as Dozor-3, is much lighter than the Skat or Proryv. Its maximum take-off weight does not exceed 710-720 kilograms. Moreover, due to the classic aerodynamic layout with a full fuselage and a straight wing, it has approximately the same dimensions as the Stingray: a wingspan of twelve meters and a total length of seven. In the bow of the Dozor-600 there is space for target equipment, and in the middle there is a stabilized platform for observation equipment. A propeller group is located in the tail section of the drone. It is based on a Rotax 914 piston engine, similar to those installed on the Israeli IAI Heron UAV and the American MQ-1B Predator.
115 Horse power engines allow the Dozor-600 drone to accelerate to a speed of about 210-215 km/h or make long flights at a cruising speed of 120-150 km/h. When using additional fuel tanks, this UAV is capable of staying in the air for up to 24 hours. Thus, the practical flight range is approaching 3,700 kilometers.
Based on the characteristics of the Dozor-600 UAV, we can draw conclusions about its purpose. Its relatively low take-off weight does not allow it to transport any serious weapons, which limits the range of tasks it can perform exclusively to reconnaissance. However, a number of sources mention the possibility of installing various weapons on the Dozor-600, the total mass of which does not exceed 120-150 kilograms. Because of this, the range of weapons permissible for use is limited only to certain types of guided missiles, in particular anti-tank missiles. It is noteworthy that when using anti-tank guided missiles, Dozor-600 becomes largely similar to the American MQ-1B Predator, both in technical specifications, and in terms of the composition of weapons.
Heavy attack unmanned aerial vehicle project. The development of the research topic “Hunter” to study the possibility of creating an attack UAV weighing up to 20 tons in the interests of the Russian Air Force was or is being carried out by the Sukhoi company (JSC Sukhoi Design Bureau). For the first time, the plans of the Ministry of Defense to adopt an attack UAV were announced at the MAKS-2009 air show in August 2009. According to a statement by Mikhail Pogosyan in August 2009, the design of a new attack unmanned system was to be the first joint work of the respective departments of the Sukhoi and MiG Design Bureaus (project " Skat"). The media reported the conclusion of a contract for the implementation of the Okhotnik research work with the Sukhoi company on July 12, 2011. In August 2011, the merger of the relevant divisions of RSK MiG and Sukhoi to develop a promising strike UAV was confirmed in the media, but the official agreement between MiG " and "Sukhoi" were signed only on October 25, 2012.
The terms of reference for the strike UAV were approved by the Russian Ministry of Defense on the first of April 2012. On July 6, 2012, information appeared in the media that the Sukhoi company had been selected by the Russian Air Force as the lead developer. An unnamed industry source also reports that the strike UAV developed by Sukhoi will simultaneously be a sixth-generation fighter. As of mid-2012, it is expected that the first sample of the strike UAV will begin testing no earlier than 2016. It is expected to enter service by 2020. In 2012, JSC VNIIRA carried out a selection of patent materials on the topic of R&D “Hunter”, and in In the future, it was planned to create navigation systems for landing and taxiing heavy UAVs on the instructions of Sukhoi Company OJSC (source).
Media reports that the first sample of a heavy attack UAV named after the Sukhoi Design Bureau will be ready in 2018.
Combat use (otherwise they will say exhibition copies are Soviet junk)
“For the first time in the world, the Russian Armed Forces carried out an attack on a fortified area of militants with combat drones. In the province of Latakia, army units of the Syrian army, with the support of Russian paratroopers and Russian combat drones, took the strategic height of 754.5, the Siriatel tower.
More recently, the Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, General Gerasimov, said that Russia is striving to completely robotize the battle, and perhaps soon we will witness how robotic groups independently conduct military operations, and this is what happened.
In Russia in 2013 it was put into service Airborne forces newest automated control system "Andromeda-D", with the help of which you can carry out operational control of a mixed group of troops.
The use of the latest high-tech equipment allows the command to ensure continuous control of troops performing combat training missions at unfamiliar training grounds, and the Airborne Forces command to monitor their actions, being at a distance of more than 5 thousand kilometers from their deployment sites, receiving from the training area not only a graphic picture of the moving units, but also video images of their actions in real time.
Depending on the tasks, the complex can be mounted on the chassis of a two-axle KamAZ, BTR-D, BMD-2 or BMD-4. Moreover, considering specifics of the Airborne Forces, "Andromeda-D" is adapted for loading into an aircraft, flight and landing.
This system, as well as combat drones, were deployed to Syria and tested in combat conditions.
Six Platform-M robotic complexes and four Argo complexes took part in the attack on the heights; the drone attack was supported by self-propelled drones recently deployed to Syria artillery installations(self-propelled guns) "Acacia", which can destroy enemy positions with overhead fire.
From the air, drones conducted reconnaissance behind the battlefield, transmitting information to the deployed Andromeda-D field center, as well as to Moscow to the National Defense Control Center command post General Staff Russia.
Combat robots, self-propelled guns, and drones were linked to the Andromeda-D automated control system. The commander of the attack to the heights, in real time, led the battle, the operators of combat drones, being in Moscow, led the attack, everyone saw both their own area of the battle and the whole picture as a whole.
The drones were the first to attack, approaching 100-120 meters to the militants’ fortifications, they called fire on themselves, and immediately attacked the detected firing points with self-propelled guns.
Behind the drones, at a distance of 150-200 meters, Syrian infantry advanced, clearing the heights.
The militants did not have the slightest chance, all their movements were controlled by drones, artillery strikes were carried out on the discovered militants, literally 20 minutes after the start of the attack by combat drones, the militants fled in horror, abandoning the dead and wounded. On the slopes of height 754.5, almost 70 militants were killed, there were no dead Syrian soldiers, only 4 wounded.”
Irkut Corporation has begun testing an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) as part of the Proryv development work (formerly known as the Yak-133 project). The device is capable of conducting reconnaissance and, if necessary, destroying enemy targets, while remaining invisible to its radars, Izvestia reports. The new product is built according to an original aerodynamic design and looks very different from traditional aircraft.
In the future, the newest drone will be equipped not only guided missiles air-to-ground class and bombs, but also optical-electronic systems, electronic reconnaissance systems and even radar.
The aerodynamic design of the newest drone (a combination of the geometric and structural design of the aircraft) is very complex, containing many unique technical solutions that have not previously been used in any production aircraft. On the official website of the OKB im. Yakovlev there is a mention that this UAV was developed on the basis of the Yak-130 UBS with 60% reworking of the original design.
At the design stage, there were discussions between representatives of the Zhukovsky Central Aerohydrodynamic Institute (TsAGI), Irkut and the Yakovlev Design Bureau, during which opinions were expressed that a device of this form would not be able to fly at all, said one of the project participants. - Doubts were dispelled only after the first test flight took place in August. Everything went well, the designers were congratulated.
The composition of the drone's armament has not yet been fully determined, but it is already known that the UAV will destroy stationary targets with bombs with laser and optical homing heads, as well as those adjusted by a GLONASS signal.
The unique aerodynamic design of the drone makes it possible to make the UAV invisible to enemy radars even at the moment when it is using weapons or conducting reconnaissance, but also quite maneuverable and fast, the aircraft manufacturer said. - In order for the latest drone with the chosen aerodynamic configuration to fly, it was necessary to do very difficult work on integrating the UAV, to which, in particular, specialists from Roscosmos were involved.
The term “integration” means bringing together the operation of all systems and subsystems installed on board the aircraft into a single complex. According to the specialist, using modern technologies, you can make even a stool fly and perform maneuvers, but the problem remains of how to control such a product.
All aircraft systems must act together as a single organism. If the pilot, for example, begins to perform a maneuver, then all onboard systems - navigation, engine control, etc. “Taking into account the design of the aircraft and its characteristics, they optimize their work so as to carry out the given maneuver without disruption,” explained a representative of the aircraft industry. - Modern aircraft have several thousand different systems and subsystems that monitor and manage hundreds of flight parameters, and the pilot cannot independently monitor the operation of each one. Therefore modern aircrafts are equipped with information and control systems (ICS) that make the aircraft operate as a whole.
The most important part of integration is to prescribe algorithms and mathematical formulas that set the logic and operating parameters of all aircraft systems, which, having turned into a special program, are incorporated into the aircraft’s ICS.
Unmanned technologies in Russia are now developing very actively both in state industry and in the private segment, states Sergei Zhukov, head of the AeroNet department of the National Technology Initiative. - If we talk about gliders, we are now approximately at the level of world standards in terms of small-sized UAVs and have a non-critical - less than three years - lag in terms of ultra-light composite structures for drones large sizes. If we talk about navigation and control systems, our developments are not inferior foreign analogues, but the downside is that they are still made on a foreign element base. By power plants We are somewhat behind, but I can state that we are currently developing developments in the field of localizing the production of piston and turbojet engines, so that the domestic industry is filling this niche at an accelerated pace. We create our own problem-oriented products for processing monitoring data and are already introducing them to the world market. And in terms of integration into the common airspace, we may even be 1–2 years ahead of the world level.
The Irkut Corporation has begun testing a drone as part of the Proryv R&D project (also known as the Yak-133 project), which is capable of reconnaissance and destroy enemy targets while remaining invisible to its radars, they report.
“In the future, the newest drone will be equipped not only with air-to-ground guided missiles and bombs, but also with optical-electronic systems, electronic reconnaissance systems and even a radar,”
According to him, “the aerodynamic design of the newest drone (a combination of the geometric and structural design of the aircraft) is very complex, containing many unique technical solutions that have not previously been used in any of the production aircraft.”
“At the design stage, there were discussions between representatives of the Zhukovsky Central Aerohydrodynamic Institute (TsAGI), Irkut and the Yakovlev Design Bureau, during which opinions were expressed that a device of this form would not be able to fly at all. Doubts were dispelled only after the first test flight took place in August. Everything went well, the designers were congratulated,” the source said.
He noted that the composition of the UAV’s weapons has not been fully determined, but it is already known that “it will destroy stationary targets with bombs with laser and optical homing heads, as well as those adjusted by a GLONASS signal.”
“The unique aerodynamic design of the drone makes it possible to make the UAV invisible to enemy radars even at the moment when it is using or conducting reconnaissance, as well as being quite maneuverable and fast. In order for the latest drone with the chosen aerodynamic configuration to fly, it was necessary to do very difficult work on integrating the UAV, to which, in particular, specialists from Roscosmos were involved,”– said the source.
He explained that the term “integration” means “bringing together the work of all systems and subsystems installed on board into a single complex.”
“All aircraft systems must act together as a single organism. If the pilot, for example, begins to perform a maneuver, then all onboard systems - navigation, engine control, etc. – taking into account the design of the aircraft and its characteristics, they optimize their work so as to perform the given maneuver without disruption. Modern aircraft have several thousand different systems and subsystems that monitor and manage hundreds of flight parameters, and the pilot cannot independently monitor the operation of each one. Therefore, modern aircraft are equipped with information and control systems (ICS), which make the aircraft work as a whole,” said a representative of the aviation industry.
Head of the AeroNet direction of the National Technology Initiative Sergei Zhukov: “Unmanned technologies in Russia are now developing very actively both in state industry and in the private segment. If we talk about gliders, we are now approximately at the level of world standards in terms of small-sized UAVs and have a non-critical - less than three years - lag in terms of ultra-light composite structures for large-sized UAVs. If we talk about navigation and control systems, then our developments are not inferior to foreign analogues, but the disadvantage is that they are still made on a foreign element base. In terms of power plants, we are somewhat behind, but I can state that we are currently developing developments in the field of localizing the production of piston and turbojet engines, so that the domestic industry is closing this niche at an accelerated pace. We create our own problem-oriented products for processing monitoring data and are already introducing them to the world market. And in terms of integration into the common airspace, we may even be 1–2 years ahead of the world level.”
