Waiting for a Russian heavy attack drone. Modern weapons of Russia

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. 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 with air-to-ground guided missiles and bombs, but also with optical-electronic systems, electronic reconnaissance systems and even a radar.

As Izvestia’s interlocutor in the aircraft industry noted, 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, previously not 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, one of the project participants told Izvestia. - 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 high-speed, 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 Izvestia’s interlocutor, using modern technologies, you can even make 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 aircraft are equipped with information and control systems (ICS), which make the aircraft work 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.

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 with air-to-ground guided missiles and bombs, but also with optical-electronic systems, electronic reconnaissance systems and even a 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, even a stool can be made to 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 aircraft are equipped with information and control systems (ICS), which make the aircraft work 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 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.

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 complexes unmanned reconnaissance tactical and 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 B-2 Spirit bomber or its a smaller version is the X-47B maritime unmanned aerial vehicle.

"Scat" is designed to strike both previously scouted stationary targets, primarily air defense systems, in conditions of strong opposition anti-aircraft weapons the enemy, and against 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 of a characteristic shape, smoothly connected to the 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 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. The relatively small 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, total weight 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 aerial system was to be the first working together relevant units of the Sukhoi and MiG Design Bureaus (Skat project). 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 attack 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 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. In addition, taking into account the 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. 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 with air-to-ground guided missiles and bombs, but also with optical-electronic systems, electronic reconnaissance systems and even a radar.

As Izvestia’s interlocutor in the aircraft industry noted, 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 an apparatus of this form would not be able to fly at all,” one of the project participants told Izvestia.

“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 high-speed,” said the aircraft manufacturer. “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 Izvestia’s interlocutor, using modern technologies, even a stool can be made to 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 on-board systems - navigation, engine control, etc. - taking into account the design of the aircraft and its characteristics - optimize their work so as to complete the given maneuver without disruptions, explained a representative of the aircraft manufacturer 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 aircraft are equipped with information and control systems (ICS), which make the aircraft work 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 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.”

The Yak-133BR is an unmanned reconnaissance aircraft created based on the developments of the Yak-130 combat training aircraft. OKB im. Yakovlev considered a number of interspecies promising unmanned multifunctional aviation complexes. The development of the Raven and Klest UAVs was carried out in the usual way, but in the construction of more expensive and complex UAVs of the Proryv family, it was planned to use an unconventional scheme. An important point is that the drone project was based on the scientific and technical basis that was obtained during the development of the Yak-130 UBS.

Most of the elements of the aircraft's control system and avionics were transferred to the drone. This made it possible to develop an unmanned aerial system at a lower cost than during traditional design; production time and technical risks are also reduced.

The Yak-133BR family UAV has 3 modifications: a radar patrol reconnaissance aircraft and an attack aircraft, in which there is a large number of interchangeable systems and units.

Drones are capable of performing almost all tasks relatively aerial reconnaissance and carry out special operations. According to the concept of creating the Yak-133BR model, the new unmanned vehicle will have much in common with the Yak-130 training vehicle, which is currently at the final stage of flight testing.

These 3 unmanned aerial vehicles are connected structurally and ideologically with each other. In order to successfully implement development programs for aircraft complexes with UAVs, it is necessary to invent a mechanism for organizing the production process at all its levels, right down to the target orientation of the devices.

As practice shows, the primacy in the creation of UAVs in Russia is given to aircraft manufacturers design bureau, because these design bureaus have extensive experience in creating aircraft using complex technical units and systems.

Yakovlev Yak-133BR characteristics: