djnikIn 1991,an Iraqi delegation came for a visit to Moma Stanojlovic overhaul facility at Batajnica AB in order to oversee the progress on their Mig-21s and Mig-23.As you know, the first Gulf War started that year and the airplanes were retained in Serbia. Interesting detail is the Serbian AF marking on Mig-23s tail and all that already in 1991!
djnikNever before seen photos of Mig-29s and their pilots in 1988,a year after introduction to service in Yugoslav Air force at Batajnica AB.
djnikThey already have access to a base. Slatina airbase is in Pristina and is one of the “superbases” built in the 80’s. It has hardened bunkers, tunnels, and storehouses in the mountainside as well as two 3000m long runways. I believe it’s one of the 10 largest airbases in Europe?!?! And definitely one of the (if not THE) largest in the balkans. It has space and accomodations for 4 or 5 squadrons, their crews, maintenance, and AD needs (space, crews, radars, etc.) Djink – Ink, do you guys have an exact ratio of Slatina’s size in comparison to European Bases?
You are probably thinking of Zeljava Air Base that was destroyed in 1991. That base was one of the largest airfields in europe (if not the largest)having 4 enterances to tunnels in the mountain and ability to store well over 60 Mig-21s in them. It had 5 runways. If you look at it on Google Earth,you can find it near the town of Bihac,although the resolution isnt that great. I also suggest that you look at the thread “underground hangars” as i posted several photos of it there.If you have more questions or photos,send me a PM and i will give you a nice link.
Slatina,near Pristina only has one 2500m long runway and two roads leading to the undergound hangars. Batajnica airbase with two 2500m long runways is larger than it.
I am posting here for you a satellite photo of Slatina and drawings of Batajnica and Slatina base so you can come to a conclusion about their size.
djnikWheres that base in Serbia or bosnia or croatia or somethin that is nuclear proof. And is really big.
There are about 50 different bases/shelters in ex-Yu that are nuclear proff.But you are probably thinking of Zeljava near Bihac,on the border between Bosnia and Croatia.
djnikAre those MiG-23’s operational? If so they would be the last Floggers flying in Europe (at least as operational fighters).
It’s a shame they don’t have have Su-15’s…
Those Mig-23s are probably operational. They look like they are kept in a pretty good shape.The camouflage bothers me a bit,doesnt look really effective.
djnikI compiled this list of all known Mainstays (pluss the Chinese relative) with the help of Yefim Gordon’s “Red Star Volume 23: Soviet/Russian AWACS Aircraft”.
Can anyone help me fill in the blanks, or correct me if something is wrong?
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Very nice list.Thank you for using your time to compile it:)
Does anyone know if all of these A-50s are currently operational?I mean what is the force strength in percent that can be deployed at any given time?
Also,it would be quite interesting to know where they actually patrol during their sorties.
Over here,EA-3 AWACS rotate every 8 hours approximately.
djnikOther people did…
Good for you that you trust so many people you do not even know.
An AF with no money and no aircraft for it…isn’t going to be stocking up on a missile it can’t use. If 60-70 aircraft can use them…60% of them having been introduced into service only last year and this year…there aren’t stocks of these missiles rolling off a factory.
Again you state everything with such a confidence,like you know everything.We should really stop countering your words,as you are always right.
And the fact that these aircraft CAN use them…doesn’t mean they do.
So they make missiles just for fun?
Ok…pointless argument. I didn’t say the need them or don’t need them…I’m just saying they’r not there…as opposed to what Garry is making up.
Does Russia or any other country in the world have to publically ackowladge all the weapons that they produce or put in service?There are some things that are not released to the public.
Playing down qualifies as telling you that Su-30s and PAK-FAs ain’t happening?? Thats downplaying?? No its reality…as is the fact that there aren’t more than 30 aircraft in total airworthy…
I did not state anything about Su-30s and PAK-FAs.I was merely speaking about you having negative comment about each aspect of Serbian AF and you being bothered to contribute to this discussions all the time,as you are obviously constantly present with yoru superior comments.But whatever floats your boat.
To do what?? Enjoy the view from 15,000 feet?? Ok…go fly that high…it won’t bother anyone on the ground.
Ok well if that happens stand outside and we will see if it wouldnt bother you?
IF that is the argument…which is all you people seem to be making…Albania this Albania that…MiG-29s will kick everybody’s as*s.
It cannot kick everbody’s a$$,but it can deter intrusions into Serbian airspace.And as i said before,that is what it is supposed to do.
That is not the reason they should be kept in service…the reason should be for air patrol during peacetime or for keeping pilots flying…and neither of these reasons makes sense either. If you want to keep pilots flying…do it with a much more appropriate and cheaper plane…MiG-21s or G-4s. If you want to patrol airspace…4 of them won’t do you much good anyway.
Nothing everyone else says makes sence for you anyways.
And what does this have to do with neighbours performance?? There you go with the pissing contest again. Yes its true…thats the REALITY of the WORLD you live in…you do something stupid…NATO will bomb again…which is why you shouldn’t do stupid things…and think about the future…and hand over the war criminals…and forget about Mother Russia. This is the reality…whether you like it or not.
I know what reality is,and it is certanly far more obvious to me than to you.
djnikI know the upgrade isn’t hard to do…but it hasn’t been done. Its not “impossible” to tell…its easy to tell…there aren’t more than 35 MiG-29s of this series in Russia.
How is it easy to tell? Did you count them?
Yes Russia can field about 60-70 aircraft capable of carrying R-77. How many missiles do you think are actually IN USE by these units for these aircraft? How many do you think were delivered to the Russian AF so far??
And how do you know all the numbers,what has been delivered and what not? Are you there to personally overview the deployment?
That may be “operational”…but hardly so by an AF the size of Russia…certainly its not a system “operational” in the same way as AMRAAM is operational for example.
Russia does not need to speed up the introducing of R-77 in the service as there are no immediate dangers. NATO and China arent going to attack them for any reason as they know the Russian nuclear deterrant capabilities that the Russian has publically said they are not afraid to use if attacked even conventionally.
I wasn’t here comparing the two air forces…but of course people here insist on doing that (if they really want to do that…they should think how well 4 MiG-29s should fare against a few hundred MANPADS and several hundred AAA and Sa-2s we have…well 4 aircraft of any type won’t even be used in such circumstances…period). You don’t keep aircraft thinking “well the AAF so and so”…if thats the way you think…then as I said earlier…
You are never comparing but playing down the Serbian Air Force.It comes to about the same. Mig-29s would fly first of all above the altitude MANPADS could reach and as for SA-2-a museum piece. But as we said before,they are not going to be used for attacking but for airspace patrols.
you really ought to have learned soemthing from 1999 not to mess with any of your neighbours again. If instead they’r for patroling the airspace…than 4 MiG-29s are hardly worth the investment and the plan for the future should look like a very different one.
Yes,dont mess with neigbours cause they will call NATO for help. It shows nothing on how the “neigbours” performed.
djnikAs promised,photos of Cypriot National Guard Helicopters.
Gazelle with HOT missiles and Mi-35s.
djnikVery interesting photos!Thank you a lot!
I found very interesting especially that they have a Mig-29 on alert with its missiles covered.I was always of the opinion that missiles are stored nearby as the weather conditions affect them.
djnikI think it is a thread missing from The Aviation Forum, to have in gathered latest news pictures, videos stories and general discussion for (my favorite) Hellenic Air force.
so for start some significant news! ๐
According the Defencenet.gr, MIRAGE 2000-5MK2 passed succesfully all the tests satisfying all the objections – remarks HAF raised over Dassault/Thales witch concerned the ICMS 2000MK3 EW system after a very long time of tests and political mediation of Hellenic and French gonverments. ฮote particularly that the performance of the RWR was “very satisfactory” as HAF officers noticed. With this development opens the way for delivering the 15 new M2000-5MK2 witch are ready and waiting in France. Six (6) former “-EG/BGs” are at the final stage of modernization at the Hellenic Aerospace Int. facilities and 4 more are going to follow. Note also that with the combination of Mirage 2000-5MK2 and the SCALP EG/Storm Shadow cruise missile, HAF attains for the first time capability of a substrategic strike.
Is it also ok to post about Cyprus,as i have several photos of helicopters in service there?
Also,when is HAF going to acquire Storm Shadow missiles and in what quantity?
djnikCheck out this thread:
http://forum.keypublishing.co.uk/showthread.php?t=56696
You are a bit late but you can still catch up:;)
djnikWell, if we purchase them from Turkey, i think theyve already been upgraded to block 50 or being upgraded. But of course, its a big IF.Other than Turkey, i dont see Albania acquiring them from anyone else.
There you are right.With Turkey,you have a good chance of acquiring their second hand F-16s (any version), but this will happen only when they start obtaining F-35 ,if they do not change their mind of course.
F-5s would be a good stop gap,just like in the case of Austria that obtained theirs from Switzerland.I do not know in what state Turkish F-5s are in.
djnikThat sounds like good serbian to me…
Sounds, but spelling in everything he writes is totally off. Also his reasoning about the keyboard is silly. Did you see me type Serbian above without any problems. A keyboard is a keyboard and typing Serbian on it is as easy as typing english.
“ax joj. shta radish sada. da idesh i da kazesh vebmasters i neshto.” – No one in serbia types like this,sentence formulation is totally wrong. Ask ink as well if you would like.
I am just trying to prove my point,so all of us (both Serbians and Albanians) do not get in another conflicts due to spammers like him and continue to discuss the relevant points in aviation (not some museum pieces like Mig-25s,Mig-23s and Mi-6s).I am sorry that i am accusing him of being maybe Gon4z or someone else with intentions to provoke, but the way he acts raises my suspicions. I told you,just read what he wrote in the Serbian air force thread of his.
As i said,i will let the moderators deal with it.
djniknah man the Mig-21 deal has long been cancelled (thank god)….if the F-16 is going to be old in 10 yrs time.I think F-16s operation period largely depends on what new aircrafts enter service.Theres probably nothing of its magnitude that matches it nor that there will be in the near future. You might say F-22 but how many countries can afford them?
i personally like Taulants deal….maybe a mixture as you suggested. Its only a matter of finances though. A block 30 is still probably too expensive for Albania to maintain on its own.
I was refering to the fact that the Block 30 will be old in 10 years,not the newly made Block 50 models for example. It is a very potent and versatile airplane but everything lasts only so long (airframe and avionics).
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