Russian Jet Buzzes Highway Drivers In Russia

Russian Fighter Jet Buzzes Highway Drivers -- RT News

Have you ever seen a supersonic attack aircraft roar right over your head? A driver in southern Russia had this exact experience when an SU-24 warplane flew just a few dozen meters over his vehicle.

The driver managed to record the incident with a dashboard camera. The footage of the warplane flying extremely close to the ground went viral, sparking heated online debate over whether the video was genuine or fake.

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My Comment: Nuts.

The Russian Air Force Turns 100

100th Anniversary Of Russian Air Force: What Are We Going To Fly? -- RIA Novosti

The Russian Air Force has turned 100. But what kind of aircraft are we going to fly in the future? That’s the question that worries military pilots across the world, especially in Russia.

Tactical aviation: A strong point

Fighter aviation is about the only thing that poses no problems. The Sukhoi Design Bureau made a huge leap forward in the 1990s.

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My Comment: Congrats to an incredible achievement .... 100 years and still flying.

Russia To Modernize It's Airforce

A fifth generation PAK FA T-50 jet fighter did a overflight at the air show attended by Russian President Putin on Saturday, August 11, 2012. Credits: armarbg.com

Moscow To Spend Over $720 Bln On New Military Aircraft -- RT

Russia’s air force will get 1,600 new warplanes and choppers by 2020, announced President Vladimir Putin. The program will cost Moscow some US $723 billion.

­“We are talking primarily about providing our forces with state-of-the-art modern technology,” Putin said at an air show in the Moscow Region ahead of the 100th anniversary of the country's air force. “Over 600 new warplanes and 1,000 helicopters will come into service by 2020 – not mentioning the upgrade to already existing systems.”

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More News On Russia's Plans To Modernize It's Air Force

Putin Promises to Boost Air Force -- Moscow Times/AP
Vladimir Putin: Russia Military To Get Hundreds Of New Warplanes, Helicopters By 2020 -- Huffington Post/Reuters
Russian Air Force to get hundreds of advanced aircraft by 2020: Putin -- Xinhuanet
600 new combat planes, 1000 helicopters by 2020, says Putin -- Examiner

Russian And U.S. Air Force

Hat Tip: Asian Defense

Russia's First Stealth Fighter Performs Successfully In Its Maiden Flight

The T-50 is believed to combine supersonic cruising speed
and a range of up to 5,500km (3,430 miles)

Russia Unveils Its First Stealth Fighter Jet - The Sukhoi T-50 -- Times Online

Russia showed off its first stealth fighter jet today, immediately proclaiming it a challenger to American military dominance of the skies.

The Sukhoi T-50 prototype, a “fifth generation” fighter, completed a 47-minute maiden test flight in Russia’s Far East. The project, three years behind schedule, has been shrouded in secrecy during almost two decades of development and aims to rival the F-22 Raptor flown by the US Air Force, which began flight tests in 1997.

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More News On Russia's First Stealth Fighter

Russia tests stealth fighter jet built by Sukhoi -- BBC
Russia unveils top secret new fighter -- AFP
As F-22 Raptor Production Winds Down, Russia's Stealth Fighter Makes Maiden Flight -- Daily Tech
New Russian stealth fighter makes first flight -- Reuters
Official: Russia tests 5th-generation fighter jet -- Washington Post/AP
Russia's Fifth Generation Jet Tested Successfully -- Pravda
Russia draws back veil of secrecy with peek at future fighter -- RIA Novosti
Russia to start receiving fifth-generation fighters in 2013 -- RIA Novosti
Vladimir Putin praises Russian stealth fighter -- The Telegraph

Russia Could Start 5th Generation Fighter Tests By Yearend

From RIA Novosti:

Russia could start tests of its fifth-generation fighter in late 2009 or early 2010, a deputy prime minister said on Wednesday.

"We are not making any New Year presents, but flight tests will start in the very near future," said Sergei Ivanov, who oversees the defense sectors of industry.

He said on December 8 the trials would begin in 2010.

Deputy Defense Minister Vladimir Popovkin has said the fighter, which has been under development since the 1990s, will enter service with the Air Force in 2015.

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My Comment: I have a sinking feeling that the Russians (unlike the Americans and their F-35 program) are not spending $300 billion for their 5th generation aircraft.

Mig: The High-Flying Family

From RT:

One of Russia's oldest and most famous aircraft, the Mig, was the star of the MAKS air show on Friday. Despite being 70 years old, the Mig remains a world leader in military aviation.

Since the first MIG took to the skies about 70 years ago, these Russian planes have become one of the world's most heralded fighters. Thousands of them were used by the Soviet Union in the Second World War.

The MIG strikes a mean and moody figure when stationary on the ground but once airborne it cuts the figure of a bird of prey; graceful yet deadly.

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Hat Tip: Defense Technology News

My Comment: 70 years .... wow.

Russia To Build A New Strategic Bomber

Tu-160 Blackjack

Tupolev Aircraft Maker To Develop Russia's New Strategic Bomber -- RIA Novosti

ZHUKOVSKY (Moscow Region), August 19 (RIA Novosti) - The Russian Defense Ministry and the Tupolev aircraft maker have signed a contract on the development of a new-generation strategic bomber, the company's general director said on Wednesday.

"We signed a contract this year on research and development of a future strategic bomber for the Russian strategic aviation. It will be a conceptually new plane based on the most advanced technologies," Igor Shevchuk said at the MAKS-2009 air show near Moscow.

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My Comment: I have to give the Russians credit .... designing a bomber that will probably be out of date when it is finally flying.

The Russian MAKS Air Show Begins

Vladimir Putin watches flights. Photo AFP

Russian Aviation Show Opens Under Clouds -- AFP

ZHUKOVSKY, Russia — Russia's top aviation show opened Tuesday with the annual extravaganza of aerial acrobatics and self-promotion muted by the industry's difficulties and the death of a fighter jet ace.

The Russian aerospace industry has already been hit hard by the economic crisis but a long shadow has been cast by the death of the commander of the air force's aerial stunt team in a mid-air collision in practice for the event.

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More News On The Russian Air Show

Putin Brings Reproaches, Money to MAKS -- Moscow Times
Putin says Russia will not save plane builders -- Forbes

Commander Outlines Future Of The Russian Air Force

SU-35

From RIA Novosti:

MOSCOW, August 5 (RIA Novosti) - New and modernized aircraft will comprise 70% of the Russian Air Force by 2020, the Air Force commander said on Wednesday.

"We expect 70% of the Air Force strength to be new and modernized aircraft by 2020," Col. Gen. Alexander Zelin told reporters.

"The development of the Russian Air Force will be carried out through extensive acquisition of new advanced aircraft and continuing modernization of the existing fleet," he added.

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My Comment: 70% .... the Russian authorities are optimistic.

Russian Air Force Withdraws 90 Faulty MiGs

The MiG-29 is internationally recognised as a high-performance combat aircraft, and has often been compared to the USAF F-16. Photo from Airforce Technology

From The Times Of India:

MOSCOW: Ninety of Russia's MiG-29 fighter jets have been rejected by military inspectors during checks after a crash last December, an air force
spokesman said on Friday, quoted by Interfax.

"So far from the overall fleet of MiG-29s, about 200 planes have been examined, of which 100 have been permitted to fly. About 90 MiG-29s have been withdrawn from flying," said Colonel Vladimir Drik.

He added that checks were continuing on the rest of the MiG-29 fleet and that faulty planes would be repaired and put back in service as funds became available. Interfax estimated Russia's total number of MiG-29s at 300.

Russia suspended MiG-29 flights in December when one of the jets crashed in Siberia, killing its pilot.

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My Comment: The key phrase in this news article is the following:

faulty planes would be repaired and put back in service as funds became available.

Translated .... they do not have the funds to repair their planes.

This morning's big news was the possibility that Russia will install some of their bombers in Venezuela and Cuba. Hmmmm .... I am skeptical for the simple reason that they cannot even keep their basic jet fighters operational on their home front.

The Russian Airforce is just a shell of what it once was. Their pilots do not have the training. The equipment is old. The infrastructure needs to be completely upgraded.

The logistics and infrastructure to maintain even a skeleton of a bomber fleet in the Latin Hemisphere is years away from now .... and even then.

This is all theatrics and positioning for next months U.S. Russian talks on U.S. missile defense in Europe, and for Russian public consumption.