I see they’ve transitioned from the blue-green paint to just a blue paint. Looks nice.

So Huitong’s pictures are the same as the one I’m attaching which is the same as the one Flanker Man attached? Or huitong’s = model with the orange ventral fins != Flanker_man’s (the real A-50I I presume?) Or huitong’s model != (orange fin model | Flanker_man’s model) and Flanker_man’s picture = orange fin model?

Haley, I asked the webmaster to delete your thread because it was denigrating into an Indian vs. Pakistani flamewar. I didn’t want that to exacerbate the situation into the horrible flamewars we had just a few months back.

Nah, EH-101 and NH-90 still look better. This one still looks too much likes its brothers.

Here’s an easier to read summary of basically the same discussion.
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Date Posted: 16-Jan-2004

JANE’S DEFENCE WEEKLY – JANUARY 21, 2004

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Russian air force details plans for 2004
HENRY IVANOV JDW Correspondent
Moscow

Russian Federation Air Force (RFAF) Commander-in-Chief Col Gen Vladimir Mikhailov has announced that one battery of the new-generation Almaz-Antei S-400 long-range surface-to-air missile (SAM) system will become operational in 2004.

The announcement follows comments by Russian President Vladimir Putin that the RFAF’s share of overall Ministry of Defence (MoD) expenditure for this year was too small, placing the air force in eighth position on the MoD’s list of budgeting priorities.

Gen Mikhailov attributed the air force’s small share to “inertia of thinking”. Before absorbing the then-independent Air Defence Force, the two independent services “each received 15-16%” of the defence budget. “Now we are merged, but the air force share remains at almost the same level,” Gen Mikhailov said. To raise funds, the air force is permitted to sell “redundant and excessive hardware” to industry or, via the Rosoboronexport state weapons export agency, to foreign countries. “We have had some success and intend to continue this in 2004,” Gen Mikhailov added.

Once Putin requests the defence ministry to revise its acquisition plans, the RFAF is expected to receive additional funding in 2004-05. During this period the service will continue to focus funds on upgrade programmes for in-service strategic and tactical aircraft and SAMs.

Deliveries of new-generation weapons – notably S-400 SAMs, Su-34 combat aircraft and Ka-52 and Mi-28N helicopters – will take place in small numbers “to start operational evaluation and prepare manuals”, Gen Mikhailov said. Also eyed is the 9M335 Pantsir SAM – an improved version of the SA-19/SA-N-11 system. Developed for export, “the system has scored well in recent exercises, so we are going to order it for our own units”, he said.

Gen Mikhailov admitted that the withdrawal of the S-125 and S-200 SAMs “exposed us to much criticism”, but added that “the remaining S-300 series is able to better fulfil the same tasks”. The RFAF continues to progressively upgrade the S-300 system and will add “an extended-range missile”. It is also focusing on extending the S-300’s service life and improving maintenance on ageing missiles. “We are revising the maintenance manuals and fielding modern mobile test-and-repair stations on wheeled chassis in order to conduct testing on the ageing missiles and perform field repairs, if required,” the general said. Older electronic modules are being replaced with modern variants.

The number of upgrade programmes for in-service aircraft was considerably reduced in 2003 in order to concentrate funding on surviving programmes. Only two out of seven Su-27 interceptor/ground attack aircraft modernisation projects have survived: the Su-27SM and Su-34. In December 2003, the first five 15-year-old Su-27s to be upgraded to Su-27SM configuration at Sukhoi’s plant in Komsomolsk-on-Amur were returned to service (JDW 17 December 2003).

The Su-27SM features a strengthened fuselage, wing and landing gear to allow for a higher weapon load. The aircraft has received “a totally new avionics set” using systems from the Su-30MKK/MKI export models. “The Su-27SM is nearly a fifth-generation aircraft. It needs a lower signature characteristic and new weapons to be one,” Gen Mikhailov said. The RFAF is currently handing over the next batch of 20 Su-27s to Sukhoi for upgrade, with the intention of having one regiment converted to the Su-27SM this year.

In December 2003 the eighth Su-34 (Su-27IB) flew for the first time from Sukhoi’s plant in Novosibirsk. It features a revised avionics package, compliant with a revised air force specification demanding commonality with the Su-27SM. Two earlier airframes are to be retrofitted to the new standard this year.

Interest in upgrading the Su-25 attack aircraft has decreased due to its high cost. Existing plans call for only one regiment to be re-equipped with the Su-25SM. Gen Mikhailov suggests that it is “time to think of a new design”. The Yak-130 twin-jet trainer is to have a secondary strike role. Built to RFAF specifications, the second airframe is now being prepared for its first flight, expected “within weeks”. The air force continues negotiations with Russian Aircraft Corporation MiG on the lease of 10-12 MiG-AT jet trainers to equip one squadron. The current Aero L-39 primary trainer will not be upgraded.

Russia’s L-39, along with its MiG-27s, are being considered for conversion into unmanned combat air vehicles (UCAVs). Gen Mikhailov said “redundant aircraft” can be turned into UCAVs by installing automatic flight control systems, “for which we have developed the technologies”, while issues of automatic weapon release are being worked on.

RFAF Tu-160 and Tu-95MS bombers will undergo a mid-life upgrade, focusing on using conventional bombs and new cruise missiles. “We shall concentrate not on engine or airframe improvements, but on navigation, sighting and weapons,” Gen Mikhailov said, noting “our bomber fleet has spent little time in the air since 1991”. Existing maintenance procedures demand expensive checks on a calendar-based period and these are now being revised to cut costs.

Helicopter units in the Northern Caucasus region will continue to receive additional Mi-24PN and Mi-8MTKO units with night-attack capability. “Out of numerous proposals, we have selected one solution for upgrading the Mi-24 and another for the Mi-8,” Gen Mikhailov said. This year one regiment will be fully re-equipped with night-capable helicopters, while other units will be taking limited numbers of upgraded helicopters. A handful of Ka-52s will go to “special units” in the intelligence-gathering role. The Mi-28N is being considered as a next-generation attack helicopter. A second Mi-28N built to meet air force requirements will fly “within one-and-a-half to two months”. A further three Mi-28Ns are to be built for a 600 flight-test programme.

Gen Mikhailov said that during 2003 the average time flown per pilot continued to rise, passing the 40-hour mark. Younger pilots flew 70-80 hours, compared with their more experienced colleagues with 20-30 hours. “We must increase the average figure to 80-90 hours,” he said. Russia’s flying training programme is being reorganised to reduce pilot preparation time from six to four years and provide a graduate with 200 flying hours.

Helicopter units, transferred from the army to the RFAF in late 2002, have considerably improved their degree of fleet readiness. “Some units used to be at a mere 7-8% [readiness]; now it is over 40% on average,” Gen Mikhailov stated.

For 2004, the RFAF’s share of the military budget for combat training has been boosted to 16%, according to Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov. The air force “is in line” with other services in this respect, Gen Mikhailov said. Last year the number of air defence exercises involving missile firing “more than doubled” and more are planned for this year, he added.

Excuse me, I was mistaken. It combines active jamming, in addition to passive ‘smoke screens’ from grenades, and combines protection over a much larger spectrum.

All that jamming makes me hungry- mmm… raspberry jam.
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See this Kanwa article: China has sped up the development of laser earlier warning and jamming systems. For this purpose, NEIET recently developed the Bodyguard E/O integrated laser jamming system. The system is capable of automatic laser warning and jamming. It is vehicle-based and mainly disposed at airports, industrial centers or the residences of the important officials to resist LGB air raids. The protection coverage of the system is 6,000 to 7,000 square meters. Bodyguard E/O adopts a combined jamming mode of the active direction-deception and passive smoke shell coverage. The design of the system is modulized and can be used to tackle the enemy’s semi-active laser, TV, mm-wave radar-guided bombs and missiles.

The whole system is carried on two trucks and two trailers, in other words, fixed on the vehicle. It is composed of 4 sub-systems and two optional systems. It functions include laser earlier warning, active laser jamming and passive laser jamming, passive mm-wave frequency earlier warning and jamming. The reaction time of active and passive jamming is less than 4 seconds or 7 seconds respectively. The earlier warning identify angle is 22.5o. The active jamming falls into two types: missile-search jamming and missile-guidance jamming. Single smoke shell coverage is more than 1,000 square meters, with a launching distance of 110 meters and an altitude of 70 meters. The smoke shell jamming can last for as long as 40 seconds. The power of the laser jamming system is 10MW+, and the repetition frequency is 100pps. The earlier warning distance of the MM wave passive jamming sub-system is greater than 12 km. Bodyguard E/O laser weapon system can guarantee that in each direction, 6 sets of smoke shells can be launched to establish smoke jamming. Besides, the same research institute also developed “Shaobing (guard)” land-based jamming system which can automatically intercept and capture laser signals and then conduct passive laser jamming against any threatening assault. The land-based jamming system is an integration of modules and communication network, and is capable of extending to the whole system.

This indicates that in recent years, the optical electronic jamming systems China has developed give special emphasis to the significance of systematic jamming. The maximum coverage of the system is 2 km and can jam 1-64 lasers. The effective earlier warning coverage is 40×40 square meters, the jamming wavelength is 1.06um, and reaction time is less than 6 seconds. The working temperature of the system is -40 to +50 degrees, while the storage temperature is -40 to +70 degrees.

😀

say, did you check your Life the universe and Everything DVD Garry? 🙂

The fact that people even know the answers to those questions is disturbing.:D