How the Syrian campaign revealed shortcoming of long-range and strategic aviations

The first example of new Tu-160M2 strategic bomber can take off for its first flight in 2019, OKB Tupolev´s director has said. This project, together with current programme of long-range aviation modernisation will help to compensate complicated status of this part of Aerospace defence forces (ADF), revealed during Syrian campaign, “but we need to continue work on PAK-DA project (next generation bomber)”, contributor to the Gazeta.ru, Mikhail KHODARENOK explains. Earlier, Yuri SLOSYAR, president of United Aircraft Corporation revealed, that serial production of this aircraft should start in 2021. First prototype of future serial production Tu-160M2V has been delivered to the Kazan aviation plant, receiving fuselage number “804”. The factory was able to restore massive titanium beam for this aircraft, by unique welding process. Samara´s

The Samara-based Kuznetsov Scientific and Technical Complex is implementing a program for the renewal of engines for long-range aviation: the overhaul procedure of NK-12MP engine for Tu-95MS aircraft is being expanded, the overhaul and production of NK-25 engines for Tu-22M3 and the second stage of NK-32 engine overhaul procedure aircraft is being restored (designed forTu-160).

Russian long-range aviation demonstrated its modern capabilities in real combat operations during the war in Syria.

Previously, only the United States used strategic aircraft for air and missile strikes against the enemy, achieving success with minimal risks for its soldiers and civilians. The Bomber Command of the US Air Force used its most advanced vehicles even against a technically much weaker enemy: FB-111 in Libya, B-1 in Afghanistan and Iraq, B-2 in Yugoslavia and Iraq. In addition, in practically all local wars, the US-based veteran of US strategic aviation, the B-52 bomber, was effectively used.

Russian long-range aviation (Tu-16 and Tu-22 bombers of various modifications) was last used actively in the war in Afghanistan. In just three months of 1988, 289 nine-ton FAB-9000M-54 bombs were dropped from Tu-16 aircraft.

After almost a 20-year hiatus, three combat sorties of Tu-22M3 squadrons in Georgia in August 2008 were deployed.

 In Syria, the Tu-22M3 demonstrated a much higher accuracy of bombing than in Georgia. This was facilitated by equipping the aircraft with a new sighting and navigation system SVP-24-22 developed by “OAO GEFEST i T” company.

In 2015, for the first time in the history of Russian Federation, the strategic bombers Tu-95 and Tu-160 were involved in the military conflict, when they attacked their targets from significant distance with new cruise missiles such as the X-101.

The revealed shortcomings showed that the current modernization of long-range aviation had to start at least five to seven years earlier.

Now, before resuming production of new Tu-160M2 machines, it is important for the leadership of Russian Aerospace forces, first of all to preserve the existing fleet of strategic and long-range aircraft - literally to cancel the decommissioning and utilization of aircraft.

Over the past decades, a huge deficit of components has accumulated in strategic aviation. Many of their developers remained after the collapse of the USSR abroad, mainly in Ukraine and the Baltic states. To organize import substitution in the absence of a mass order proved to be very difficult. Of course, for domestic enterprises in the majority it was unprofitable to return to the manufacture of components, the production of which was mastered more than 40 years ago.

The long-range aviation fleet has not been modernized for almost 25 years. During this time, in electrotechnical circuits even electrolytes have dried up.

Even less attention was paid to the aging of non-electronic aircraft systems: steering units, chassis assemblies, pipelines, pumps and mechanization.

In 2000-2001, it was difficult to persuade the military to at least begin testing new precision weapons for the rearmament of the long-range aviation fleet, so as not to leave it unarmed in connection with the massive write-off of the missiles' service life that had expired by that time.

However, the customer has allocated a meager amount of funds for this. Aircraft weapon control systems left in the old version.

Therefore, in Syria, new missiles had to be used from old airborne complexes. That's when the shortcomings connected with the use of outdated equipment, with the interaction of digital and analogue calculators of missiles and carriers, were manifested.

Nevertheless, against the general background of the demonstrated effectiveness of the use of carriers, these shortcomings were not so significant.

At the same time, long-range aircraft operated in Syria in the absence of an enemy air defense system. In order to avoid the repetition of the Georgian tragedy when the Tu-22M3 was shot down, three of the four crew members were killed, it is necessary to equip all long-range aircraft with a more effective electronic countermeasure system and fire or laser protection equipment.

In this direction, the main modernization of carriers of long-range aviation is underway. The electronic equipment is changing and improving. New communication and navigation complexes are being installed, and control systems are being substantially improved. Modernization was facilitated by the prolongation of the service life of the aircraft, due to the small incidence of carriers at the beginning of the 21st century, when long-range aviation financing was carried out practically according to the residual principle.

The current shortage of components for strategic bombers, the development of their assigned service lives and the late modernization of fleet of aircraft in the near future will begin to be compensated by the return to the construction of repaired aircraft and the supply of new Tu-160M2 complexes.

However, resuming production of the Tu-160 is not capable of completely solving the numerous problems of long-range aviation accumulated lately.

In addition to the deep modernization of the Tu-160 and other types of long-range aircraft from Tupolev has orders for the development of a new long-range aviation aircraft (PAK DA), the timing of which is constantly shifting. It should replace the retired airframes of this class of aircraft of aerospace forces.

The development of PAK DA has been going on since the end of the last century. Even in the beginning of the 21.st century, "Tupolev" received an order for the performance of research work, the result of which was the advance design of the new machine, which received a positive evaluation from the Ministry of Defense. The development was transferred to the stage of experimental design work.

Today the PAK DA project is implementing the most advanced and promising constructive and technical solutions. For example, the weighting of the new aircraft, according to experts, will exceed all modern and developed counterparts. In this regard, Russia will finally have a significant advantage in comparison with its competitors.