Modern Russian Army in the photos.

[USAFSS-ColdWarrior]

Ahab (and others including myself)....

This thread is wandering away from its Title/Topic.
Let's swing it back on track before someone throws a yellow flag for the HIJACKING.

Thanks to everyone.

 

[GoldComet6]

This will get it back on track....

Russian Kamov Ka-52 attack helicopter. It's the two seat version of the original Ka-50. Lot's of details in this video - shows a lot of close ups of outside, inside the cockpit and explains its systems.

These are quite unusual to me with the counter rotating twin main rotor and no tail rotor. They are very maneuverable and are supposed to be good at their intended role. Notice in the export video, the type of tank it attacks is an Abrams....

Maybe it's just me, but they are rather ugly though!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t3O801sVuVo

 

[GoldComet6]

Just for comparison, here is another current attack helicopter the Russians use and have also exported around the world : Mil Mi-24 Hind.

Very different design - that is larger with the inline pilot & co-pilot seating and the ability to carry troops. They are also a formidable attack helo, but they have shown they are not invulnerable when used in combat.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYM-okDK2QQ


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JuV36v0Nm7c

 

[turnkey]

So did our Russian friend go on vacation still???

 

[Carlo]

Just for comparison, here is another current attack helicopter the Russians use and have also exported around the world : Mil Mi-24 Hind.

Very different design - that is larger with the inline pilot & co-pilot seating and the ability to carry troops. They are also a formidable attack helo, but they have shown they are not invulnerable when used in combat.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYM-okDK2QQ


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JuV36v0Nm7c

Nice photos and videos. I was present at a air show where an MI24 was flying and it was like seeing a MBT with a rotor! Seeing it on the ground you would think it could fly.
Keep up the good work. Your posts are appreciated.
Carlo

 

[GoldComet6]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V3iKuLW8Q6w



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NXAuRWTIUc8



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OcUFYyo20eg

 

[GoldComet6]

More details have come out now about this vehicle family - here is a full run down for each one.

The Armata is a conventional MBT with a rear mounted engine. No details yet as to whether it is a V-12 diesel or gas turbine though. Plus it is interesting to read about the possibility of a 152 mm smooth bore main gun coming - much larger than the current NATO standard 120mm.

http://www.janes.com/article/51469/russia-s-armour-revolution


Russia's armor revolution

• Russia's 9 May Victory Day Parade in Moscow marked the formal debut for the country's sweeping range of new armoured vehicle designs
• The parade revealed many new details about the vehicles, which appeared fully uncovered for the first time
• 
  

Paraded uncovered for the first time on 9 May in Moscow, Russia's new range of armoured vehicles represent not only the biggest change in the country's armoured vehicle families since the 1970s but also a new design ethos.

While the vehicles' designs partly involve radical rather than revolutionary innovation, the scale and ambition of the change they embody is nothing short of a revolution. Together, the Armata, Kurganets, Boomerang, and Koalitsiya and other vehicles on show will replace nearly all Russia's existing vehicle families as, remarkably, Russia is attempting to replace all its main armoured fighting vehicle (AFV) families at the same time.
Additionally, the new vehicles display radical changes in design ethos and incorporate multiple previously unseen active protection systems (APSs). The reported weight and the apparent size of all the vehicles indicates a shift in armoured vehicle design philosophy away from the Soviet emphasis on manoeuvrability and low vehicle profile towards the Western focus on armour protection and crew survivability.
While many details of the vehicles had already been known, and were covered in depth byJDW in April, the full unveiling of the vehicles has revealed many fascinating new details and added greatly to our understanding of the vehicle family designs.

T-14 Armata main battle tank (MBT)

The T-14 is Russia's first truly new tank design since the T-72, designed in the early 1970s. Based on the Armata Universal Tracked Platform, the T-14's most attention-grabbing feature is its unmanned turret, with all of the MBT's three crew (commander, driver, gunner) seated in a well-protected crew compartment at the front of the hull.

​

Seven T-14s took part in the parade and the type is slated to replace the Russian Ground Forces' T-72M3 and T-90 main battle tanks (MBTs) currently in service.
Notably, the unveiled turret dispels suggestions the MBT would be armed with a coaxial 30 mm cannon, in addition to its 2A82A 125 mm main gun. Indeed the pre-production vehicles paraded by Russia feature neither a 30 mm cannon nor a coaxial machine gun (MG) armament as expected, although the production vehicles might eventually feature the dual 30 mm cannon/7.62 mm MG.

Although the T-14's turret features a large bustle, it remains unclear whether this features the autoloader/weapon-handling system for the MBT's main gun or serves another purpose (meaning the T-14 would retain the vulnerable hull-mounted carousel system present in previous Russian MBTs). Some reports also indicate Russia has not entirely abandoned its ambitions to arm Armata with a 152 mm main gun. If this is the case, it could explain why the T-14's unmanned turret has an unusually high profile relative to the position of the 125 mm main gun, with the turret possibly designed to incorporate growth potential up to the 152 mm calibre.

T-14 is armed with a remote-controlled turret (RCT) armed with a 7.62 mm PKTM MG, with the unit also functioning as the commander's independent sight. The gunner's sight is mounted to the left side of the main gun and shielded by a two-piece armoured door to protect it from small arms fire. A barrel reference unit is mounted above the base of the 2A82A main gun, which notably lacks a fume bore extractor (which would be superfluous given the turret is unmanned). Metrological, satellite communications, GLONASS, datalink, and radio communications antennae are fitted on the roof of the turret.

The MBT's turret is literally covered in a variety of launcher and sensor systems understood to be linked to a new APS system, which some reports call 'Afghanit'. At the base of each side of the turret are five large and fixed horizontally arrayed launch tubes covering the 120° frontal arc of the turret. These bear a strong resemblance to the launchers for the earlier Drozd and Drozd-2 APS, which fired a hard-kill 107 mm unguided projectile armed with a high-explosive-(HE) fragment warhead to defeat incoming anti-tank guided weapons (ATGWs).

The T-14 is also fitted with four sets of smaller-calibre launchers, with each unit armed with 12 launch tubes. Two horizontally trainable launcher units are fitted on either side of the top of the turret, while two apparently fixed and vertically facing launcher units are recessed into the top of the tank's turret.

It is unclear whether this second system fires hard-kill (ie warheads) or soft-kill (ie anti-infrared/laser-obscuring smoke) munitions, or a combination of the two. It is also unclear if the vertically mounted units are fireable, or simply storage for reload units for the two trainable launchers. One limitation of the Drozd systems were that they provided no protection against threats emanating from above the tank, so mounting the fixed launchers vertically could be one way to provide protection against top-attack threats.

Providing warning and guidance for the APS system are two types of sensors mounted around the T-14's turret. Two large sensors, believed to be electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR)-based laser warning receivers, are angularly mounted on the front of the turret providing 180° coverage, while four smaller sensors (covered but believed to be radars) are mounted around the turret providing 360° coverage.

Armata features a notably different hull design to the T-72/90. One striking difference is the road wheels, which are of a different design to the T-72/90's, while the Armata features seven road wheels, to the six of the previous MBT designs, with the drive wheel at the rear. This is similar to the T-80 MBT family, which also has chassis with seven smaller road wheels.

It is not known whether Armata is equipped with a gas-turbine or a diesel engine, but the T-14's powerpack is mounted at the rear of the MBT, with two internal fuel tanks mounted on either side, and exhausts also mounted on either side. Day/night cameras are mounted around the T-14's turret to provide situational awareness, while a forward-looking EO/IR (FLIR) system is mounted on the front of the hull for the driver. The driver's hatch has no periscopes. When driving buttoned-down, the driver may be in a reclined position, using a set of periscopes mounted on a second hatch directly behind him.

NII Stali is understood to have designed a new form of steel armour for the Armata family. Speaking to TASS, a NII Stali representative said the "steel armour alloy, named 44S-sv-Sh [44S--], is approved by the Armata's developer. The alloy's operational testing has been started and it can be used in prospective vehicles' parts". The use of the 44S-sv-Sh steel in Armata is intended to provide protection at a similar level to STANAG 4569 (first edition) Level 5. The high level of 44S-sv-Sh's protection is ensured by the short-grained material structure, the optimised legation process and the special heat processing. The steel has also been designed to maintain its characteristics in very cold conditions.

The Armata design is also understood to utilise explosive reactive armour (ERA) within its base design (rather than the appliqué ERA tiles seen on previous Russian MBTs), with views from above the MBT showing a distinctive tiled pattern indicative of ERA on the top of the vehicle's chassis and turret. Although what appear to be ERA tiles are present on the turret roof, much of the sides of the turret appears to be just a thin cladding covering the various APS and sighting systems rather than armour. Appliqué armour (unclear if passive or ERA, or both) is fitted to the forward two thirds of the T-14's sides, while the rear third is protected by bar armour to provide clearance for the T-14's exhausts.

T-15 Heavy Infantry Fighting Vehicle (IFV)

Also based on the Armata universal platform and fully unveiled during the 9 May parade is the T-15 Heavy IFV.

​

For the creation of the T-15 the Armata chassis has been reversed in its entirety to create a compartment to accommodate dismounts at the rear of the IFV. Accordingly, the T-15's powerpack is mounted at the front of the vehicle, with the drive wheel also at the front and the exhausts now on the forward sides of the vehicle.

This swap has necessitated relocating the vehicle's fuel tanks, while to protect the normally weaker armour of the rear of the Armata chassis a distinctive arrowhead-shaped armour package extends around the forward sides of the vehicle. To accommodate the vehicle's exhausts the side armour is overhanging rather than arrowhead. The overall effect of this is to give the vehicle an odd, bulbous appearance. The top of the vehicle's chassis appears to be protected by integrated ERA tiles.

​

The T-15 is armed with a KBP Instrument Design Bureau Epoch Almaty-designed RCT at the rear of the vehicle equipped with a 30 mm 2A42 cannon, 7.62 mm coaxial MG, and a bank of two Kornet-M ATGWs on either side. The RCT features a gunner's sight to the right of the main gun and an independent commander's sight on the top of the turret on the left-hand side.

The heavy IFV is also fitted with an advanced armour package on the side of the vehicle. The T-15 appears to feature the same APS sensors and launchers as seen on the T-14, although mounted on the hull of the vehicle rather than its turret.

A three-man crew (commander, gunner, driver) are located in the centre of the vehicle, behind the engine, with the rear of the vehicle's hull raised to accommodate the troop compartment and turret. Egress from the crew compartment is made via a power-assisted door at the rear of the vehicle.
The front/underside of both the T-14 and T-15 is fitted with what appears to be a small entrenching/counter-mine system.

Kurganets-25

The lighter, 25-tonne, Kurganets-25 was present in two variants at the 9 May parade: IFV and armoured personnel carrier (APC). The new vehicle family appears significantly wider and taller than BMP series of vehicles it is slated to replace.

​

The IFV variant is armed with the same 30 mm cannon/Kornet ATGW armed turret as the T-15. Uralvagonzavod has also created its AU-220M turret armed with a 57 mm cannon, which is understood to be in contention to be fitted to the IFV variant, although this was not fitted to the Kurganets-25 IFVs taking part in the parade.
Much like the Armata vehicles, the Kurganets-25 IFV appears to feature two types of APS sensor and effector, although these appear subtly different to those on the Armata vehicles. Fixed launchers are placed all around the vehicle hull, providing 360° coverage. While these resemble the launches on the Armata vehicles, they appear to be of a much smaller calibre. A two-part sensor system, similar to the laser-warning
receivers on the Armata vehicles, is also located around the hull. Oddly, three sensors are located on the left-side of the vehicle, but only two on the right-side. Given both sets of sensors and effectors are located on the hull, it would appear the two systems are linked.

​

Three two-part sensors (covered during the parade) are also mounted around the turret, along with four sets of effectors on the front of the turret and two mounted sidewise on the rear of the turret. It is unclear what these effectors are, but they appear similar to an unknown system seen mounted on the turret of the earlier T-95 (Object 195) prototype MBT. On the IFV, each set has a pair of what are either round windows or frangible covers. If they are windows, this system could be a new APS interference emitter similar to a greatly slimmed-down version of the soft-kill Shtora system present on the T-90. Alternatively, each set could contain two of the effectors from the smaller-calibre launchers on the Armata vehicles. Given that the coverage provided by the location of the effectors appears to intermesh, the latter option seems more likely.

​

The APC version, meanwhile, is fitted with a much smaller RCT armed with 12.7 mm MG. The APC lacks the hull-mounted sensors or effectors seen on the IFV variant, and instead features solely the second APS type present on the Kurganets-25 IFV. While the sensor configuration is the same for this APS on both the APC and IFV variants, the configuration of the effectors differs. On the APC vehicle, the effectors are located only on the front of the turret and instead of six sets of paired effectors, there are four sets of paired effectors, and four sets of single effectors.

​

Both the APC and IFV variants are otherwise identical, with a forward-mounted powerpack and seven road wheels. Commander and driver's hatches are present in front of the turret, with access to the troop compartment via a rear door. Unlike in previous Russian IFV designs, there are no other hatches for troops carried inside, apart from the rear door. Neither variants feature any obvious ERA, although ERA has not typically been fitted to Russian IFVs.

Both feature a large appliqué kit to the sides of the vehicle, although whether this is principally for armour or flotation purposes is unclear. Amphibious capability has been designed into the Kurganets family, with both featuring a bow plane and waterjets installed within the rear of the hull.

Boomerang

The Boomerang 8x8 vehicle also made its full debut at the 9 May parade, and is intended to replace the BTR-family of vehicles, the most recent variant in Russian service being the BTR-82A.

​

The 8x8 is armed with the same turret as both the T-15 and the Kurganets-25 IFV, although the examples taking part in the parade were fitted with no APS systems. An APC variant fitted with an RCT with a 12.7 mm MG is also understood to be planned.

​

Boomerang's powerpack is located in the front right-hand side of the vehicle, with the driver at the front-left side of the vehicle. Neither the vehicle's commander nor gunner have their own hatch, although unlike the Kurganets vehicles there are two roof-hatches for the troop compartment. With the engine located in the front of the vehicle, troops can egress via a door at the rear of the vehicle, unlike the awkward side doors of the BTR series (which had their engine at the rear). Also designed to be amphibious, Boomerang is equipped with a bow plane at the front of the hull and shrouded propellers at the rear of the 8x8.

Koalitsiya-SV

Also shown off on the 9 May parade was the 2S35 Koalitsiya-SV (Coalition-SV) self-propelled artillery (SPA) system, which will replace the 2S19 MSTA-S SPA in Russian Ground Forces service.

​

This is understood to feature a new 152 mm ordnance utilising a modular charge system. This main gun features notably different muzzle brake and recoil dampeners to the earlier SPA. An RCT armed with a 12.7 mm MG is mounted on the roof of the turret. There are two bundles of 902B Tucha smoke grenade launchers mounted on either side of the cabin and no other APS effectors, although four warning receivers are located on the SPA's turret. The main turret, understood to be unmanned akin to the T-14's turret, is significantly longer than the 2S19's.

​

Although Koalitsiya-SV was slated to be based on the Armata universal chassis, the pre-production vehicles appear based on a modified T-72/90 chassis. The general layout and roadwheels appears to be identical to those on the T-72/90 chassis, although the front of the chassis has been heavily modified to create positions for the commander and gunner on either side of the driver. Unlike on Armata, where the driver is located on the right side of the vehicle, the driver on Koalitsiya is located in the centre of the vehicle (as seen in the T-72/90 and 2S19).

According to Georgy Zakamennih, chief director of TsNII Burevestnik, the developer of the 2S35, Coalition-SV has a maximum range of 70 km when firing advanced shells. He added that its ammunition load is larger than Western analogues. There is a unified command-and-control panel on which all the actions are displayed. The system's pneumatic loader is billed as increasing Coalition-SV's rate of fire. 2S35 can automatically choose the appropriate type of shell and fire it. Coalition-SV is therefore not a classic self-propelled gun but an innovative robotised complex, autonomous to a high extent, he said.

 

[GoldComet6]

Some more photos.

 

[GoldComet6]

Last one.

 

[GoldComet6]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=np35PSIrtAc

 

[GoldComet6]

Don't speak Russian, but this one reveals some details of the T-14. The interviewer gets up close to the tank and talks to the crew.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2WCORBzeUU

 

[Another Ahab]

Come on people let's help USSR keep this thread alive during his leave.

My intention has been to keep it going too. So I'll post when I can.

This has been terrific to see all the recent videos of equipment here, and particular thanks are due to GoldComet6 and Carlo for all their good postings.

I feel like we're hijacking USSR's thread here though, by substituting ourselves for him.

The world is a complicated place, and there was some sniping there (admittedly two-way), for a brief exchange or two that flared up.

I will continue to appreciate the "substitute" postings by anyone among us with content. But for record, and to USSR specifically, I feel obliged to recognize the complexity of this world, and want him to know I consider him a buddy, and I hope things work out for all without undue catastrophe to any. Kind of a prayer in a way. Amen.

 

[ODFever]

Thank you for posting all of these cool pictures and videos!

 

[Carlo]

Don't speak Russian, but this one reveals some details of the T-14. The interviewer gets up close to the tank and talks to the crew.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2WCORBzeUU

Thank you GoldComet6 for stepping up to keep the thread going.

 

[turnkey]

Great stuff ...maybe the Russian guy will come back to keep the thread going.....great videos.

 

[GoldComet6]

Here is one you might not be familiar with...the Yakovlev Yak-130.


The Yak-130 combat trainer was selected as the winner of the trainer competition of the Voyenno Vozdushnyye Sily, Russian Federation Air Force, in April 2002. The aircraft is also actively marketed for export by Yakovlev, the Irkut company, and by Rosoboronexport.

The Russian Air Force has a future requirement for 300 Yak-130 aircraft that can be deployed as a light strike aircraft or as a trainer for a range of fourth or fifth-generation fighters. An order was placed for the first 12 aircraft to replace ageing Aero Vodochody L-39 Albatros in 2002. The aircraft entered service in the Russian Federation Air Force at the military pilot training academy in Krasnodar in July 2009 and was showcased in the MAKS 2009 air show.

The production line for the aircraft at the Aviation Plant Sokol in Nizhny Novgorod, known as NAZ Sokol, is fully operational and the roll out of the first production series aircraft took place in May 2003. A series of flight tests of the serial production aircraft was started in April 2004.

The Russian Air Force ordered official testing in May 2005. The full trials of the advanced combat trainer, including spin and combat tactics trials, were completed in December 2009 prior to delivery of the first two production aircraft to the Russian Air Force.

"The Yak-130 production aircraft is slightly different from the Yak-130D demonstrator."

The first Yak-130 ordered by the Russian Air Force completed its flight acceptance test at Sokol in August 2009. The Russian Air Force received the first four of 12 Yak-130s between February 2010 and April 2010. Another five aircraft were delivered in April 2011.

In December 2011, the Russian Ministry of Defence placed an order with Irkut for the delivery of 55 Yak-130 combat trainers by 2015. The first batch of six aircraft was delivered to the Russian Air Force in October 2012. The second batch of three Yak-130s was delivered in November 2012. A total of 15 aircraft were delivered to the Russian Air Force in 2012.
The Russian Air Force commenced pilot training operations of the new Yak-130 combat aircraft in April 2013 however a Yak-130 plane crashed near Akhtubinsk in the Astrakhan region in April 2014.

The aircraft performed a flight with advanced digital avionics suite developed by KRET in June 2014.

International orders and deliveries

In March 2006, it was announced that Algeria had placed an order for 16 Yak-130 trainers. The first flight of the Yak-130 built for Algerian Air Force was completed in September 2009. In September 2011, the Algerian pilots were permitted to take solo flights on the aircraft after completion of three months theoretical and practical trainings. Deliveries were concluded in 2011.
In January 2010, the Libyan Air Force ordered six Yak-130 aircraft. The Vietnamese Air Force has ordered eight Yak-130 aircraft.
In December 2010, the Kazakh Defence Minister signed an agreement with his Russian counterpart to use the Yak-130. Syria and Indonesia have also shown interest in Yak-130 combat trainers.
In December 2012, the Belarusian Defence Ministry signed a contract with Irkut for four Yak-130 combat-trainers. Deliveries are scheduled for 2015.
Bangladesh placed an order for 16 Yak-130s in January 2014. The Russian MoD placed an order for the supply of an additional 12 Yak-130 aircraft in February 2014.
A total of 36 Yak-130 aircraft are expected to be delivered to Syria by 2016. Russia also plans to export the aircraft to the Azerbaijani military.

Yak-130 development

A joint programme for trainer development between Yakovlev of Russia and Aermacchi of Italy began in 1993 and the Yak / AEM-130D demonstrator first flew in 1996. In 1999, the partnership was dissolved and the Yakovlev Yak-130 and the Aermacchi M346 became separate programmes.
By the second quarter of 2003, the Yak-130 prototype had successfully completed 450 flights, including high-manoeuvrability flight demonstrations such as a controlled angle of attack of 42°.
The Yak-130 completed the first stage of state joint tests in April 2009 which includes incorporating basic armaments. It arrived at Lipetsk Air Base in February 2010.
The Yak-130 has a maximum g-loading of +8g to -3g and is capable of executing the flight manoeuvres specific to current operational and developmental combat aircraft, including Su-30, MiG-29, Mirage, F-15, F-16, Eurofighter, F-22 and F-35.
Other variants of the Yak-130 considered included a navalised carrier-based trainer aircraft, a lightweight reconnaissance aircraft and an unmanned strike aircraft.
Combat trainer design

The Yak-130 production aircraft is slightly different from the Yak-130D demonstrator, with lower weight, a more rounded nose to accommodate a radar, a shorter fuselage length and a lower wing area.
The Yak-130 is of classical swept-wing and empennage monoplane design and light alloy construction with carbon-fibre control surfaces. Kevlar armour protection is fitted to the engines, cockpit and avionics compartment.
The moderately swept high-lift wing and the all-moving low-mounted tail plane allow the pilot to choose high angles of attack. For short airfield performance the aircraft is equipped with leading edge slats and three-position Fowler flaps.
The Fowler flaps are split flaps which move rearward and then downward on tracks to give a large increase in lift and high lift and drag for landing manoeuvres. The airframe is designed for a 30-year service life with 10,000 hours flying time or 20,000 landings.

The Yak 130 aircraft can be operated from unpaved runways and small unprepared airfields as the aircraft's landing gear is designed with high take-off. A complex fly-by-wire control system installed enables the aircraft to feature automatic flight control system, active flight safety system, training stability and controllability characteristics.

All-digital cockpit

The aircraft has an air-conditioned and pressurised two-seat tandem cockpit fitted with NPO Zvezda K-36LT3.5 zero-zero ejection seats. The pilots have all-round view through a blister canopy. The forward pilot has a view over the nose to -16°. The rear pilot has a view to -6°.

The production Yak-130 is the first Russian aircraft with an all-digital avionics suite. The avionics meets Mil Standard 1553 and can be adapted to the customer's requirements.
"The Yak-130 combat trainer is fitted with a 30mm GSh-301 cannon or a podded GSh-23 cannon installed under the fuselage."

The aircraft has an all-glass cockpit. Both pilot positions are night vision goggle compatible and equipped with three multifunction 6in x 8in colour liquid crystal displays.
The pilot in the forward cockpit can use the helmet-mounted sight for target designation. The cockpit is fitted with an MS internal and external communication and voice warning system supplied by AA.S. Popov GZAS joint stock company.

The Avionica fly-by-wire flight control system is used to adjust the stability and controllability characteristics and flight safety systems to simulate a number of aircraft such as the MiG-29, Su-27, Su-30, F-15, F-16, F-18, Mirage 2000, Rafale, Typhoon and future fighters such as the F-35.
The pilot selects the software model of the simulated aircraft's control system on the Yak-130 on-board computer. The pilot can select the model during flight. The system can be forgiving to allow cadet pilots the easy acquisition of piloting skills.

The open architecture avionics suite includes two computers and a three-channel information exchange multiplexer. The navigation suite includes laser gyroscopes and GLONASS / NAVSTAR global positioning.
Weapons

The Yak-130 combat trainer can simulate the tactics of different combat aircraft. There is one centreline fuselage hardpoint and the number of wing hardpoints for the suspension of weapons payloads has been increased to eight with six underwing and two wingtip points, increasing the combat payload weight to 3,000kg.
The aircraft can carry weapons, suspended fuel tanks, reconnaissance pods and a range of electronic warfare pods including radar jammers and infrared countermeasures.
An open architecture avionics suite installed on the Yak-130 allows a wide range of western weapon systems and guided missiles to be integrated including the AIM-9L Sidewinder, Magic 2 and the AGM-65 Maverick.

Weapons fits include the Vikhr laser-guided missile, R-73 infrared-guided air-to-air missiles (Nato designation AA-11 Archer) and the Kh-25 ML (Nato designation AS-10 Karen) air-to-surface laser-guided missile. A Platan electro-optical guidance pod is installed under the fuselage for deployment of the KAB-500Kr guided bomb.
The aircraft is fitted with a 30mm GSh-301 cannon or a podded GSh-23 cannon installed under the fuselage. It can also deploy unguided B-8M and B-18 rockets, 250kg and 50kg bombs and cluster bombs.

Yak-130 radar

The Yak-130 is fitted with the 8GHz to 12.5GHz Osa or Oca (Wasp) radar developed by NIIP Zhukovsky. The radar has the capacity to track eight airborne targets simultaneously, simultaneously engage four targets at all angles and simultaneously track two ground targets. The detection range against 5m² cross section targets is 40km in the rear direction and 85km in the forward direction. The lock-on range for operation in automatic tracking mode is 65km.
The radar, which has adaptive waveforms and sidelobes, has a surface mapping mode which includes image freezing and zooming on areas of interest.
An alternative radar fit is the Kopyo (Spear) radar. The aircraft can also be fitted with a podded Platan (Palm Tree) infrared search and track targeting system.
"The Yak-130 combat trainer's electronic warfare suite includes a chaff and flare dispenser, a radar warning receiver and active jammers."
Countermeasures

The electronic warfare suite includes a chaff and flare dispenser, a radar warning receiver and active jammers.

Turbofan engines

The aircraft has a high thrust-to-weight ratio of about 0.85. The demonstrator is powered by two Slovakian Povazske Strojarne DV-2SM turbofan engines, each rated at 2,200kg thrust.
Production aircraft are fitted with two powerful high-economy AI-222-25 turbofan engines, each rated at 2,500kg thrust and developed under a Russian and Ukrainian program by Motor Sich, Zaporozh'e Progress Design Bureau and the Moscow Salyut Motor Building Production Enterprise. The export variant of the Yak-130 can be fitted with the DV-2SM engine.
The internal fuel tanks, comprising two wing tanks and a centre fuselage tank, carry up to 1,750kg of fuel. With two suspended fuel tanks (each 450l) the maximum total fuel load is 2,650kg. The aircraft is fitted with single point pressure or optional gravity refuelling. The aircraft can be fitted with an in-flight refuelling probe.
The export variant of the Yak-130 can be fitted with the DV-2SM engine. According to the customer country's requirement, the aircraft can be fitted with an in-flight refuelling probe.

 

[USAFSS-ColdWarrior]

Here is one you might not be familiar with...the Yakovlev Yak-130.


The Yak-130 combat trainer was selected as the winner of the trainer competition of the Voyenno Vozdushnyye Sily, Russian Federation Air Force, in April 2002. The aircraft is also actively marketed for export by Yakovlev, the Irkut company, and by Rosoboronexport.

The Russian Air Force has a future requirement for 300 Yak-130 aircraft that can be deployed as a light strike aircraft or as a trainer for a range of fourth or fifth-generation fighters. An order was placed for the first 12 aircraft to replace ageing Aero Vodochody L-39 Albatros in 2002. The aircraft entered service in the Russian Federation Air Force at the military pilot training academy in Krasnodar in July 2009 and was showcased in the MAKS 2009 air show.

The production line for the aircraft at the Aviation Plant Sokol in Nizhny Novgorod, known as NAZ Sokol, is fully operational and the roll out of the first production series aircraft took place in May 2003. A series of flight tests of the serial production aircraft was started in April 2004.

The Russian Air Force ordered official testing in May 2005. The full trials of the advanced combat trainer, including spin and combat tactics trials, were completed in December 2009 prior to delivery of the first two production aircraft to the Russian Air Force.

"The Yak-130 production aircraft is slightly different from the Yak-130D demonstrator."

The first Yak-130 ordered by the Russian Air Force completed its flight acceptance test at Sokol in August 2009. The Russian Air Force received the first four of 12 Yak-130s between February 2010 and April 2010. Another five aircraft were delivered in April 2011.

In December 2011, the Russian Ministry of Defence placed an order with Irkut for the delivery of 55 Yak-130 combat trainers by 2015. The first batch of six aircraft was delivered to the Russian Air Force in October 2012. The second batch of three Yak-130s was delivered in November 2012. A total of 15 aircraft were delivered to the Russian Air Force in 2012.
The Russian Air Force commenced pilot training operations of the new Yak-130 combat aircraft in April 2013 however a Yak-130 plane crashed near Akhtubinsk in the Astrakhan region in April 2014.

The aircraft performed a flight with advanced digital avionics suite developed by KRET in June 2014.

International orders and deliveries

In March 2006, it was announced that Algeria had placed an order for 16 Yak-130 trainers. The first flight of the Yak-130 built for Algerian Air Force was completed in September 2009. In September 2011, the Algerian pilots were permitted to take solo flights on the aircraft after completion of three months theoretical and practical trainings. Deliveries were concluded in 2011.
In January 2010, the Libyan Air Force ordered six Yak-130 aircraft. The Vietnamese Air Force has ordered eight Yak-130 aircraft.
In December 2010, the Kazakh Defence Minister signed an agreement with his Russian counterpart to use the Yak-130. Syria and Indonesia have also shown interest in Yak-130 combat trainers.
In December 2012, the Belarusian Defence Ministry signed a contract with Irkut for four Yak-130 combat-trainers. Deliveries are scheduled for 2015.
Bangladesh placed an order for 16 Yak-130s in January 2014. The Russian MoD placed an order for the supply of an additional 12 Yak-130 aircraft in February 2014.
A total of 36 Yak-130 aircraft are expected to be delivered to Syria by 2016. Russia also plans to export the aircraft to the Azerbaijani military.

Yak-130 development

A joint programme for trainer development between Yakovlev of Russia and Aermacchi of Italy began in 1993 and the Yak / AEM-130D demonstrator first flew in 1996. In 1999, the partnership was dissolved and the Yakovlev Yak-130 and the Aermacchi M346 became separate programmes.
By the second quarter of 2003, the Yak-130 prototype had successfully completed 450 flights, including high-manoeuvrability flight demonstrations such as a controlled angle of attack of 42°.
The Yak-130 completed the first stage of state joint tests in April 2009 which includes incorporating basic armaments. It arrived at Lipetsk Air Base in February 2010.
The Yak-130 has a maximum g-loading of +8g to -3g and is capable of executing the flight manoeuvres specific to current operational and developmental combat aircraft, including Su-30, MiG-29, Mirage, F-15, F-16, Eurofighter, F-22 and F-35.
Other variants of the Yak-130 considered included a navalised carrier-based trainer aircraft, a lightweight reconnaissance aircraft and an unmanned strike aircraft.
Combat trainer design

The Yak-130 production aircraft is slightly different from the Yak-130D demonstrator, with lower weight, a more rounded nose to accommodate a radar, a shorter fuselage length and a lower wing area.
The Yak-130 is of classical swept-wing and empennage monoplane design and light alloy construction with carbon-fibre control surfaces. Kevlar armour protection is fitted to the engines, cockpit and avionics compartment.
The moderately swept high-lift wing and the all-moving low-mounted tail plane allow the pilot to choose high angles of attack. For short airfield performance the aircraft is equipped with leading edge slats and three-position Fowler flaps.
The Fowler flaps are split flaps which move rearward and then downward on tracks to give a large increase in lift and high lift and drag for landing manoeuvres. The airframe is designed for a 30-year service life with 10,000 hours flying time or 20,000 landings.

The Yak 130 aircraft can be operated from unpaved runways and small unprepared airfields as the aircraft's landing gear is designed with high take-off. A complex fly-by-wire control system installed enables the aircraft to feature automatic flight control system, active flight safety system, training stability and controllability characteristics.

All-digital cockpit

The aircraft has an air-conditioned and pressurised two-seat tandem cockpit fitted with NPO Zvezda K-36LT3.5 zero-zero ejection seats. The pilots have all-round view through a blister canopy. The forward pilot has a view over the nose to -16°. The rear pilot has a view to -6°.

The production Yak-130 is the first Russian aircraft with an all-digital avionics suite. The avionics meets Mil Standard 1553 and can be adapted to the customer's requirements.
"The Yak-130 combat trainer is fitted with a 30mm GSh-301 cannon or a podded GSh-23 cannon installed under the fuselage."

The aircraft has an all-glass cockpit. Both pilot positions are night vision goggle compatible and equipped with three multifunction 6in x 8in colour liquid crystal displays.
The pilot in the forward cockpit can use the helmet-mounted sight for target designation. The cockpit is fitted with an MS internal and external communication and voice warning system supplied by AA.S. Popov GZAS joint stock company.

The Avionica fly-by-wire flight control system is used to adjust the stability and controllability characteristics and flight safety systems to simulate a number of aircraft such as the MiG-29, Su-27, Su-30, F-15, F-16, F-18, Mirage 2000, Rafale, Typhoon and future fighters such as the F-35.
The pilot selects the software model of the simulated aircraft's control system on the Yak-130 on-board computer. The pilot can select the model during flight. The system can be forgiving to allow cadet pilots the easy acquisition of piloting skills.

The open architecture avionics suite includes two computers and a three-channel information exchange multiplexer. The navigation suite includes laser gyroscopes and GLONASS / NAVSTAR global positioning.
Weapons

The Yak-130 combat trainer can simulate the tactics of different combat aircraft. There is one centreline fuselage hardpoint and the number of wing hardpoints for the suspension of weapons payloads has been increased to eight with six underwing and two wingtip points, increasing the combat payload weight to 3,000kg.
The aircraft can carry weapons, suspended fuel tanks, reconnaissance pods and a range of electronic warfare pods including radar jammers and infrared countermeasures.
An open architecture avionics suite installed on the Yak-130 allows a wide range of western weapon systems and guided missiles to be integrated including the AIM-9L Sidewinder, Magic 2 and the AGM-65 Maverick.

Weapons fits include the Vikhr laser-guided missile, R-73 infrared-guided air-to-air missiles (Nato designation AA-11 Archer) and the Kh-25 ML (Nato designation AS-10 Karen) air-to-surface laser-guided missile. A Platan electro-optical guidance pod is installed under the fuselage for deployment of the KAB-500Kr guided bomb.
The aircraft is fitted with a 30mm GSh-301 cannon or a podded GSh-23 cannon installed under the fuselage. It can also deploy unguided B-8M and B-18 rockets, 250kg and 50kg bombs and cluster bombs.

Yak-130 radar

The Yak-130 is fitted with the 8GHz to 12.5GHz Osa or Oca (Wasp) radar developed by NIIP Zhukovsky. The radar has the capacity to track eight airborne targets simultaneously, simultaneously engage four targets at all angles and simultaneously track two ground targets. The detection range against 5m² cross section targets is 40km in the rear direction and 85km in the forward direction. The lock-on range for operation in automatic tracking mode is 65km.
The radar, which has adaptive waveforms and sidelobes, has a surface mapping mode which includes image freezing and zooming on areas of interest.
An alternative radar fit is the Kopyo (Spear) radar. The aircraft can also be fitted with a podded Platan (Palm Tree) infrared search and track targeting system.
"The Yak-130 combat trainer's electronic warfare suite includes a chaff and flare dispenser, a radar warning receiver and active jammers."
Countermeasures

The electronic warfare suite includes a chaff and flare dispenser, a radar warning receiver and active jammers.

Turbofan engines

The aircraft has a high thrust-to-weight ratio of about 0.85. The demonstrator is powered by two Slovakian Povazske Strojarne DV-2SM turbofan engines, each rated at 2,200kg thrust.
Production aircraft are fitted with two powerful high-economy AI-222-25 turbofan engines, each rated at 2,500kg thrust and developed under a Russian and Ukrainian program by Motor Sich, Zaporozh'e Progress Design Bureau and the Moscow Salyut Motor Building Production Enterprise. The export variant of the Yak-130 can be fitted with the DV-2SM engine.
The internal fuel tanks, comprising two wing tanks and a centre fuselage tank, carry up to 1,750kg of fuel. With two suspended fuel tanks (each 450l) the maximum total fuel load is 2,650kg. The aircraft is fitted with single point pressure or optional gravity refuelling. The aircraft can be fitted with an in-flight refuelling probe.
The export variant of the Yak-130 can be fitted with the DV-2SM engine. According to the customer country's requirement, the aircraft can be fitted with an in-flight refuelling probe.

I did not notice it described in the text, but why do the engine inlets seem to be "closed"/"plugged"/"vaned or throttled or choked" in photo number 5 above???

 

[smashcrashy]

I did not notice it described in the text, but why do the engine inlets seem to be "closed"/"plugged"/"vaned or throttled or choked" in photo number 5 above???

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yakovlev_Yak-130

"The Yakovlev Yak-130 is equipped with the FBWS controlled engine intake blanking doors, in order to prevent the aircraft's engines from sustaining Foreign object damage when operating from unpaved runways and grass strips"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BCp1iaVRY7w

 

[GoldComet6]

I did not notice it described in the text, but why do the engine inlets seem to be "closed"/"plugged"/"vaned or throttled or choked" in photo number 5 above???

Oops...you're right. I saw the intakes closed in the pics, but failed to failed to explain why.

As mentioned already...similar systems are something the Russians have done before to protect the engines.

For example - the MiG 29 has secondary air intakes on the upper surface of the wing. They provide the engine with a source of air when landing and taking off. Plus if the aircraft is taxing to get into takeoff position. I believe anytime it's gear is down they are used. They can also supplement the main intakes if the engine is at full throttle in reheat (afterburner) and needs more air than the main intake can provide. At extreme angles of attack the main intakes may not be as efficient and need help feeding the engines with air.

If my memory serves me right the upper doors have something similar to a spring inside that allows them to open but keeps them closed when not needed. That way they don't create much drag at high speed when they are not needed. Basically a vacuum inside the duct pulls them open.

Russian designers always seem to plan for their aircraft to be used on non-paved runways, like grass or hard soil. Usually their landing gear has larger tires (at lower pressure) that can handle a rougher runway. So the secondary intake system fits right into that thought. There may be a need to use a secondary strip, that isn't used as much and may have debris, if the main runway is not usable.

 

[GoldComet6]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yakovlev_Yak-130

"The Yakovlev Yak-130 is equipped with the FBWS controlled engine intake blanking doors, in order to prevent the aircraft's engines from sustaining Foreign object damage when operating from unpaved runways and grass strips"



Here is the MiG-29 using a similar system.....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=763UjBZcRtU