Airforces, planes (6th & 7th Gen!), drones etc.

[TsarSamuil]

WATCH: Russian drone takes out aerial target for first time.

RT.com
21 Dec, 2021 10:41

The Russian Ministry of Defense has released a video of the "Orion," a state-of-the-art combat drone developed by Russia's Kronshtadt Group, destroying an aerial target at a testing range in Crimea.

The footage, which was released by military chiefs on Sunday, shows the Orion lifting off and circling in the air before firing a missile that strikes an unmanned helicopter, destroying it completely. In the description of the video, the ministry wrote, "the first military application of the newest armed unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), the Orion, in the Crimean test site."

The description continues, "the UAV 'Orion' will significantly expand the military capabilities of the Russian Armed Forces. It allows not only for dozens of hours of aerial reconnaissance at a great distance from the airfield base, but also for swift strikes at exposed targets."

Orion was developed by the Kronshtadt Group, part of a large conglomerate headed by Russian billionaire Vladimir Yevtushenkov. This weekend, the company published new photos of the vehicle on its Instagram page, along with an announcement of the construction of two new drone hangars near Ryazan, in western Russia.

Dmitry Litovkin, editor of Russia's "Independent Military Review," told TASS that Orion is capable of surveilling vast regions, such as the entire Northern Sea Route, spanning the Arctic, and that authorities in Moscow believe it will break the monopoly that China, Israel, and the US currently have on drone technology.

Last week, Russia unveiled a new version of its "Hunter" combat drone, equipped with advanced stealth capabilities including a specialized flat rocket nozzle, which allows for reduced radar detection. Alexey Krivoruchko, the Defense Ministry official who oversaw the rollout, said the Hunter represents "the highest achievements of our defense industry's enterprises and organizations."

[TsarSamuil]

NATO member vows to build up air defense after drone incident.

RT.com
14 Mar, 2022 15:06

Croatian President Zoran Milanovic declined to provide details about his nation’s probe of last week’s incursion and crash of a Soviet-made drone, but said the incident showed the shortcomings of the national air defense system. NATO is a trusted organization, but the country’s security is ultimately its own responsibility, the president said during a press conference on Monday.

Milanovic stood before the cameras after receiving the latest update from top officials about the Thursday night incident in which an old, unmanned aircraft entered Croatia’s airspace and crashed in a park area in the capital, Zagreb. The ownership of the aircraft was not confirmed by Croatian officials, but it came from Ukraine via Romania and Hungary.

The president said the incident showed that the nation needs to invest more in its defensive capacities. It’s not an extremely urgent matter, he added, since an incident like last week’s is unlikely to happen again anytime soon, but decisions need to be made.

“We are a member of NATO, I would say, a solid and loyal one. But at the end of the day we are the only ones who take care of our own security,” Milanovic said. He stressed that he didn’t believe other members of the US-led bloc should have taken down the unidentified aircraft during its hour-long flight towards Croatia.

The Croatian leader dismissed suggestions that the country urgently needed to deploy US-made Patriot anti-aircraft missiles in response to the incident. The idea was promoted by some senior Croatian officials, including Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic.

Zagreb considered buying used American long-range interceptors a few years ago, but decided in 2016 that the defense money would be better spent on French Dassault Rafale fighter jets. During the press conference, the president fired off a barrage of rhetorical questions when asked about the proposed deployment of American systems.

“What kind of Patriot systems? What do we need them for? Is Hezbollah attacking us every day? Who will man the Patriots? Tram controllers?” Milanovic asked, before stating that the purchase of the Rafales was the right call.

Pressured by the media on whether reports were true that the mystery drone carried a bomb that detonated when it crashed, Milanovic referred journalists to Defense Minister Mario Banozic. The minister claimed on Saturday that bomb fragments were recovered from the crash site. The president said the bomb theory was “not a topic that is being talked about publicly.”

He likewise declined to comment on whether the aircraft was operated by the Ukrainian military, as is widely suspected by the national media. “We can’t be completely sure. We will probably never know that,” he stated, adding that he didn’t expect Kiev to claim responsibility for the incident, even if the aircraft belonged to it.

The drone, presumably a Tu-141 reconnaissance aircraft designed in the 1970s, crashed in Zagreb near a student campus on Thursday night shortly before midnight local time. Nobody was hurt in the incident.

[TsarSamuil]

Concept art for PAK DP, MIG 41 which is a 6th gen stealth interceptor plane to replace MIG 31

oh, here is the source, some amazing detail of work, many pictures n information

www.artstation.com/artwork/q9289e



Replacement for MiG-31 Interceptor Enters Final Dev Phase, Could Fly at Edge of Space.

autoevolution.com
21 Oct 2021, 16:00 UTC · by Benny Kirk

The Mikoyan MiG-31 Foxhound has been the primary long-range jet interceptor for the Soviet and then the Russian Air Force for 40 years and counting.

Attempts have been made in the past to improve the jet further, like the Izdeliye 701 (Project 701) in the early 90s, which aimed to use the existing Foxhound to add upgraded engines, weapons, and avionics. This project was deemed insufficient in meeting the demands of the Russian Air Force.

Almost 20 years after the first attempt to replace the Foxhound, Mikoyan is now developing an all-new platform that it hopes will fly higher, faster, and deliver more powerful weapons to any threat that dares challenge Russian airspace. Dubbed the PAK DP while under development, this aircraft is expected to outperform the incumbent MiG-31 in every conceivable metric.

Since the Foxhound flew at Mach three at some of the highest altitudes possible for an air-breathing jet-interceptor to achieve, If the PAK DP is to improve on those metrics, the new jet will likely travel at least four times the speed of sound. It could also dance on the ragged edge between the stratosphere and space.

Here, the MiG could conduct enemy aircraft and ballistic missile interception. The possibility exists that the platform will use the same engines found in the cutting-edge Sukhoi SU-57 stealth fighter.

Early this year, Rostec Corporation, the majority owner of PAK-DP’s designer Mikoyan announced the project had entered the final developmental phase, declaring that the development of the aircraft some in the west have dubbed the MiG-41 has already begun. Even before Mikoyan made any formal announcement.

Expect first flights to begin sometime around 2025 and full-service introduction around 2028. As of October 2021, very little information exists on the specifics of the project. As deadlines for the first flight get closer, expect that to change rapidly.

[TsarSamuil]

Production date for Russia’s next-generation weapons revealed.

RT.com
18 May, 2022 13:35

The Sukhoi Su-75 Checkmate, a light single-engine cousin of Russia’s advanced Su-57 fighter jet, will go into production sometime in 2027, the head of state-owned Rostec said on Wednesday.

The deadline was revealed by Sergey Chemezov during a meeting with President Vladimir Putin. He detailed the progress of several leading Russian aviation projects, including the Checkmate.

The light fighter, derived from the heavier fifth-generation twin-engine Su-57, was first introduced last year. Rostec hopes it could become a major arms export boost for Sukhoi, a subsidiary of the Russian defense conglomerate.

The Checkmate uses some of the technology developed for the Su-57 project, including the powerplant, but has several distinctive features, like its diverterless air inlet and V-tail control surfaces. The supersonic warplane can carry a payload of up to 7 tons in its internal weapons bay and has a range of 3,000km, according to designers.

That's longer than America's F-35 Lightning II.

So far, a single prototype has reportedly been finished, with two more underway. The aircraft is to make its maiden flight next year.

Another aerial weapons platform, the Sukhoi S-70 Okhotnik (“hunter” in Russian) will go into production next year, according to Chemezov, while its producer is working on an upgrade for the drone’s ground control equipment.

The Russian defense ministry earlier indicated that it expected to receive S-70s in large numbers starting 2024, but the head of Rostec said the deliveries may begin a year earlier.

The UAV is a heavy 20-ton strike drone using a flying wing airframe. It made its maiden flight in 2019.

Chemezov also briefed Putin on the ongoing overhaul of Russia’s fleet of Tu-160M long-range bombers and the progress of the civilian MS-21 airliner.