Russian Aerospace Forces will receive a “Super-Defender.” Already this year, serial production of an updated version of the Su-34 bomber will begin (NATO designation Fullback – “Defender”), Eurasia Dary reports citing BulgarianMiltary.com.
The machine is assigned the HBO index – “new features”. The aircraft will be equipped with modern ammunition, improved electronic warfare equipment and unique reconnaissance containers. Modernization is based on the experience gained during the hostilities in Syria.
Deliveries of the Su-34 NVO will begin this year – this follows from the protocol of the joint decision of the Ministry of Defense, Novosibirsk Aircraft Plant and Sukhoi Design Bureau (the document is at the disposal of Izvestia).
“The bomber has excellent characteristics,” the honored test pilot, Hero of Russia Igor Malikov told Izvestia. – The potential of this machine is far from exhausted. Equipping it with reconnaissance equipment will significantly increase the capabilities of our troops in the tactical zone.
“There are no analogues of the Su-34 in the world,” the expert believes. – At one time, the Americans in the same class had the F-11, but in the late 1990s they abandoned it. The Russian aircraft is optimal for combat use. Modern stealth bombers can carry much less weapons. And the Su-34 is able to take up to eight tons on an external sling.
Su-34 bombers have been deployed in Syria since the first days of the Russian operation in 2015. Initially, one unit of four aircraft was transferred there. In the most intense periods of the defeat of the IS (terrorist organization, banned in the Russian Federation) at the end of 2017, up to 14 Su-34s were simultaneously visible on satellite images of Khmeimim.
Aircraft were actively used for the use of precision guided weapons. Including corrected air bombs KAB-500S. Specialized striking machines hit well-defended targets, including small ones: terrorist mountain bunkers, oil production facilities seized by them, and even small armed pickups.
In addition to the updated avionics, weapons, and electronic warfare equipment, Universal Reconnaissance Containers (UKR), created as part of the Sych development work, will appear on the Defenders. They will radically increase the aircraft’s ability to detect ground and air targets.
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