Sens

In fact, GarryB’s statement has in fact got a lot of substance to it. Only he may be mistaken in two small details.

A. The Russian jet trainer powerplant he has in mind is not the Motor Sich/Ivchenko-Progress AI-222-25, but the NPO Saturn AL-55I.
B. The jet trainer is not the Yak-130, but India’s HAL Hindustan HJT-36.

According to the source in front of me, the AL-55I is to a certain extent derived from the
AL-31F in so far as mathematical modeling was somehow employed to scale down the central core (is that how you translate “????????? ?????”) of the Su-27 engine to produce an efficient enough propulsion unit with less than 30% the dry thrust of its big brother. Seemingly; NPO Saturn were able to save a lot of time and money using this method. Saturn also offer the AI-55I for use on the Yak-130 and the MiG-AT.

Its interesting to note just how many different types of powerplants that the Russians and Ukrainians have used, or offered for use, on their latest generation jet trainers. Not only the AL-55I and AI-222-25, but also the TMKB Soyuz RD-1700, which is been tested at the moment, the Ivchenko-Progress DV-2S (RD-35) as used on the L-39MS and L-59, along with various modernized versions of the Ivchenko-Progress AI-25TL as used on the original L-39C/ZO/ZA.

Lets also not forget about the SNECMA Lazarcs used on the early MiG-ATs,
and to to think people use to say that there was too much product duplication in Western Europe (Bae Hawk/Alpha Jet/MBB339)…

Good points regarding product duplication etc.

It would also appear that the idea to fit the AL-55I to at least one variant of the Yak-130 isn’t yet dead. Presumably this news item refers to the proposes “Yak-130UBT” mentioned in another thread on the forum:

Russian Light Attack Aircraft To Be Fitted With Saturn AL-55 Engine

The light attack aircraft, being developed by the Yakovlev Design Bureau, will be powered by the AL-55 engines, President of the Irkut Corporation/Director General of the Yakovlev Design Bureau Oleg Demchenko told Interfax-Military News Agency.

“Designers of the light attack aircraft have shown interest in the AL-55 engine, being developed by the Saturn Scientific Industrial Association under a contract with India,” Demchenko said.

According to him, the light attack aircraft will be based on the Yak-130 combat trainer.

“If AL-55 designers increase its thrust up to 2.5 tons, we may consider it an alternative to the AI-222-2.5 aircraft power plant, designed by the Ukrainian Progress Design Bureau, which is currently mounted on Yak-130s,” Demchenko said.

According to him, the AI-222-2.5 is also an option, if its final assembly is carried out at the Moscow-based Salyut Engineering Enterprise and the necessary documentation is handed over to Salyut.

According to Demchenko, in 2007 the Yak-130 is expected to be fitted and tested with the Kopyo-M radar, developed by the Fazotron-NIIR Corporation.

“The Yak-130 is fitted with the radar in the interests of both the Russian Air Force, and future foreign customers,” he said.

The Saturn AL-55, featuring a thrust of about 2,200 kg and a weight of 355 kg, has won the tender for the power plant to be mounted on the Indian HJT-36 trainer and HJT-39 combat trainer.

Saturn is an engine-building corporation, specializing in developing, manufacturing, and providing maintenance to military and civil gas turbine engines, power plants, and gas compressor units.

Source: Agentstvo Voyennykh Novostey (5th June, 2006)

Steve Rush

Probably because the writer wrote nonsense. AI-222-25 powering the fifth-generation aircraft? Nonsense and impossible. That’s “Article 117S” / AL-41F1A.

If it is in error, it doesn’t look like it was the writer who made the mistake, as the same press conference is reported elsewhere:

Speaking of the fifth generation airplane, air force commander-in-chief, General of the Army V. Mikhaylov, announced that the experimental examples of this aircraft will be lifted into the air in 2007 and temporary ((PROMEZHUTOCHNYE)) AI-222-25 engines from the Yak-130 airplane will be installed on them. The requirement which will be produced for the fifth generation engines are, most likely, reliability and sustainability ((RESURSNOST’)). According to General of the Army V. Mikhaylov, many ideas already have come to fruition. As the general director of MMPP Salyut, Yuriy Eliseev, noted, while being involved in the program for the steady upgrade of engines, the enterprise already has created the necessary reserve for productions of the engine for the fifth generation airplane.

Steve Rush

The entire L-159 project was just a way to keep Aero going a bit longer. A pity it ruined the Czech air force in the process. Should have been an order for a batch of new L-59s for training, & spend the rest on Gripens. Now they’re lumbered with 47 L-159 stored, out of 72 built, with no customers on the horizon, the development money down the tubes, & just one squadron of real fighters …

Somewhat ironically, Aero also have the contract for “care and maintenance” (read; storage) of the surplus L-159As.

I think the candidates for conversion to L-159B come from this pool, whilst the AF keep their hands on 24 aircraft to facilitate an operational strength of 18.

Steve Rush

The only thing slightly disappointing about the Yak-130 programme is the slow delivery rate. It was confirmed in another news item (from a reputable source) that only two regiments (48/50 airframes) will be equipped by 2025. Also, only the initial 12 examples have been funded so far.

Let’s hope the porgramme gathers pace as it progresses.

Steve Rush

In one rare occassion even Su-25 Frogfoot took off against an unauthorized home-made aircraft.

That also happened in Belarus just a week or so ago with a light aircraft which strayed across the border from Lithuania.

Steve Rush

what’s a WIG?

Wing-in-Ground effect aircraft (Ekranoplanes etc.)

Nice find indeed!

Export! FLANKERs seem to be selling pretty well these days, given the state of the worldwide market for fighters.

Great point.

Evidently Sukhoi’s unfilled order book currently stands at around $5.1 billion with, IIRC, only around $350,000 consisting of civilian work (A.320 and RRJ related business). So dare I suggest they’re doing pretty well?

Far too much negativity in this forum these days! Although I’m a huge sceptic when it comes to believing PR/marketing BS disguised as facts, am I alone here in being hopeful this programme comes off in a timely fashion!? Personaly, I’m rather looking forward to what comes of this in the next few years.

Steve Rush

Is it KnAAPO that makes the Su-34?

No, Sean; I’m pretty sure the Su-34 is a NAPO (i.e. Novosibirsk) product, not one of KnAAPO’s (Komsomolsk-na-Amure).

The TV item stated categorically that it was only undertaking upgrade work for the Russian AF (Su-27SM mods, presumably).

This is what it went on to state, word-for-word:

[Correspondent] This work, however, is not enough to have the plant work to full capacity. A new state defence order for the production of fifth-generation fighters may partially save the situation.

[Vyacheslav Shport, captioned as Russian State Duma deputy] Our plant has won the tender and this plane will be assembled here, by this plant and nobody else. This is also very important. I think they will start already in 2007.

[Correspondent] According to the deputy’s forecast, the plant will be able to receive the order from the Defence Ministry already this year. The KnAAPO management is also looking for customers who would commission it to produce aircraft for export. Vyacheslav Shport asserts that there are already two candidates for that. Nevertheless, he declined to give names or countries – just to be on the safe side.

Best regards

Steve Rush