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RUSSIA unveiled its first stealth fighter to the public, lifting the curtain on a secret project. Russia aims to flood the market with cheaper versions of better-known US jets. The Sukhoi Tu-50, being developed jointly by Russia and India, made its maiden flight at a Far East airbase in January 2010 and was rolled out for public viewing at the MAKS international airshow outside Moscow. Two of the sleek silver prototypes are due to perform air stunts today under the watchful eye of Russia's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, in a show of Russian military confidence in the much-delayed project. "The...

New stealth fighter to top the bill at Moscow Air Show A new generation prototype fighter is set to make its first public appearance at the Moscow Air Show this week. The Sukhoi T-50 will be the jewel in the Russian Air Force’s crown. The service has relied on the Mikoyan MiG-29 and Sukhoi Su-27 family of combat aircraft as the core of its fighter force since the mid-1980s, but these aircraft are seen as approaching obsolescence. The T-50 is Russia’s first new major combat aircraft design to fly since the end of Soviet Union. When an operational fighter based...

Seoul wants to swap T-50s for stealth fighters By Lee Tae-hoon Seoul is eyeing a barter deal with the Pentagon under which a local aircraft developer would provide supersonic trainer jets to the United States in exchange for stealth fighters, the head of the country’s arms procurement agency said Wednesday. When asked about the feasibility of a swap deal with Lockheed Martin for its F-35 Lightening II Joint Strike Fighter, Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) Commissioner Noh Dae-lae said, "We are considering requesting an offset deal using the T-50." "If we buy stealth fighters from the U.S., we will push...

Indonesia Opts for Korean Supersonic Trainer Jet Korea Aerospace Industries has been selected as the preferred bidder for Indonesia's next supersonic trainer jet, raising expectations for the first ever export deal for the homegrown T-50 Golden Eagle. KAI chief Kim Hong-kyung told the Defense Ministry on Tuesday that the Indonesian government notified it of the decision and asked to start negotiations for a final contract. The two sides apparently hope to sign a memorandum of understanding in the next nine months. "A deal with Indonesia would make Korea the world's sixth exporter of supersonic aircraft after the U.S., Russia, Britain,...

[Exclusive] Korea set to endure bad terms for T-50 export to Indonesia Jakarta asks Seoul to buy more planes, accept penalty write-offs By Jung Sung-ki Indonesia has asked South Korea to write off $20 million in penalties over the former’s delayed delivery of CN-235 transport aircraft in return for buying the T-50 Golden Eagle supersonic trainer jet, which can also be used as a light attack plane, according to government and industry sources Tuesday. Jakarta also requested Seoul purchase four more CN-235s under a barter deal, the sources said. The Seoul government is reviewing the offer positively as it has...

Death of a Soviet Aviation Legend By Dr. Richard Weitz 03/22/2011 – The famed Russian aircraft designer Mikhail Simonov died earlier this month, at the age of 81, after a long illness. His Sukhoi fighter jets represented the best of the Soviet defense industry and continue to dominate Russia’s arms sales to foreign countries. Mikhail Simonov (Credit: http://www.legacy.com/legacies/2011/obituary-photo-gallery.aspx?photo=mikhail-simonov&pid=149081887) Born in 1929 in Russia, Simonov began working as an aviation engineer in the 1950s. He joined the design bureau of the state-owned OAO Sukhoi aircraft corporation as the first deputy chief designer in 1970. During the following nine years he led...

Jet sale to Indonesia may crash after break-in February 22, 2011 Concerns grew in Seoul yesterday that the reported involvement of Korea’s spy agency in data theft from a visiting Indonesian delegations could derail the Lee Myung-bak administration’s attempt to land a lucrative defense export contract. A high-powered Indonesian delegation, which included the defense minister, made a three-day visit last week, and local media reported yesterday that the National Intelligence Service was behind a Feb. 16 break-in of a delegation member’s Lotte Hotel room, from which a laptop was temporarily taken. Seoul denies the agency was involved. Since his inauguration,...

The Russian-Indian joint development of a fifth generation fighter jet will cost some $6 billion, Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL) Financial director D. Shivamurti said Russia and India signed in December last year a contract to jointly develop a design for a new 5G multirole fighter. Russia's Sukhoi holding and India's Hindustan Aeronautics Limited agreed in early 2010 to jointly develop a fifth-generation fighter jet based on the T-50 design. "A detailed design phase, including the cost of the project, is likely to cost more than $6 billion," Shivamurti said. "The work between us and them [India and Russia] will be...

Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) rolled out its first T/A-50 lead-in fighter trainer on 24 January and has told Jane's that it expects the platform to compete for export deals as it responds to shifting international requirements. The Republic of Korea Air Force (RoKAF) has ordered 22 T/A-50s, with deliveries starting next month and to be completed by 2012, KAI said. The aircraft will supplement the T-50 Golden Eagle advanced jet trainer (AJT), more than 50 of which have been inducted by the RoKAF, although requirements for additional AJT platforms exist. The T/A-50 is the same baseline version as the T-50...

dogfight over Israel By Arie Egozi on January 27, 2011 10:29 PM Italian premier Silvio Berlusconi and Barack Obama may soon be engaged in a "dog fight" over Israel. The competition aimed at selecting a new advanced trainer for the Israeli air force (IAF) already has inputs that are not directly connected to the quality and capabilities of the two potential aircraft. The request for information (RFI) for an advanced trainer for the IAF has been issued to KAI from South Korea and to Alenia Aermacchi from Italy. One is making the T-50 the other one the M-346 . It...

S. Korea rolls out armed version of T-50 trainer jet 2011-01-24 18:27 South Korea on Monday rolled out the first armed version of its T-50 supersonic trainer aircraft, designed to carry out entry-level tactical training missions, according to the state military acquisition agency. The armed variant of the T-50, the nation’s first homegrown trainer jet, is intended to train fledgling military pilots on air-to-air and air-to-surface missions before their full operational deployment, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration said. The TA-50 can mount precision-guided weapons such as AIM-9 Sidewinder air-to-air missiles and TGM-65 Maverick air-to-ground missiles, according to DAPA officials. The...

The appearance of two all new attack and defend aircraft at the beginning and end of the year just over have both raised issues of substance for the Joint Strike Fighter JSF or F-35 program, and reasons for the US and its allies to carefully review their plans to maintain air superiority. The first bookend for a poor year for the JSF program was the first flight last January of the Russian PAK-FA The last bookend was the appearance on Chinese internet sites of photos of its J-20 prototype making ground taxi runs. These aircraft provide western defence organisations with...

With first flight out of the way, the discussion about China’s new J-20 stealth prototype is switching to the aircraft’s mission (fighter or, more likely, long-range strike), sensors (strike missions would require a high-resolution long-range radar) and communications (which would demand high-speed datalinks and sophisticated integration). (snip) The Chengdu J-20 design has struck most analysts and observers as familiar and somewhat different that the Lockheed-Martin F-22 and F-35 as well as the Sukhoi T-50. “The J-20 is reminiscent of the Russian MiG 1.42 both in terms of planform, and also with regard to the rear fuselage configuration,” says Douglas Barrie,...

ISRAELI AIR FORCE MULLING RENT-A-JET SCHEME WITH KOREAN AIRCRAFT Trainer would be first not made either locally or by the U.S. in 40 years The next fighter jet trainer Israeli cadets may be flying may be made in South Korea. The Israel air force has issued an official request for information from Korea for its two-seater T-50 Golden Eagle fighter jet trainer. The Israeli Air Force is also examining the M-346 built by the Italian firm Alenia Aermacchi. Unlike the T-50, the M-346 is a transonic aircraft. The jet chosen would replace the aging A-4, or Skyhawk, an aircraft developed...

Russia and India signed a contract on Tuesday to jointly develop a design for a new fifth-generation multirole fighter. The document was signed between Russia's state arms exporter Rosoboronexport and India's Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) during Russian President Dmitry Medvedev's current visit to India. Russia's Sukhoi holding and India's Hindustan Aeronautics Limited agreed in early 2010 to jointly develop a fifth-generation fighter jet based on the T-50 design.

From the Admiral Gorshkov to the T-50: on the new renaissance in military-technical cooperation between Russia and India Admiral Gorshkov © RIA Novosti. Sergey Safronov RIA Novosti military commentator Ilya Kramnik Russia and India have now signed an agreement on the preliminary design of the fifth-generation FGFA fighter for the Indian Air Force. The fighter will be based on the Russian T-50, which is currently undergoing flight tests. The history of the FGFA spans more than a year - the preliminary agreement on its design was signed in 2008, when the Future Airborne Complex - Frontline Aviation (PAK-FA) program entered...

The Russian-Indian second prototype T-50 fighter aircraft will take to the skies in early 2011, United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) President Alexei Fyodorov said on Monday. "We have put the deadline forward to the start of 2011," he said. "It is important for us that the second prototype is a development of the first, not simply a repeat," he added. Work is underway on the third prototype, incorporating even more advanced systems, he said. Russia's Sukhoi holding and India's Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) agreed in early 2010 to jointly develop a fifth-generation fighter jet based on the T-50 design. They later...

Russia and India have agreed the estimated cost of a design contract for their joint fifth-generation fighter project at $295 million, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) Chairman Ashok Nayak said in an interview with RIA Novosti. "The cost of preliminary design is estimated at $295 million. The work is expected to be complete within 18 months," Nayak said. Russia's Sukhoi holding and India's Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) agreed in early 2010 to jointly develop a fifth-generation fighter jet based on the prototype T-50 design. India confirmed that it had finalized a draft contract at a meeting with Russia in early October....

Russia’s development of the PAK FA fifth-generation stealth fighter could challenge American air supremacy, especially if Russia sells the PAK FA to its usual buyers of military equipment. In the U.S., closure of the F-22 production line has severely limited America’s ability to respond to PAK FA proliferation by building more F-22s and potentially selling them to U.S. allies. The U.S. needs to revise its assessment of U.S. air superiority needs and then explore ways to modernize and strengthen the U.S. tactical fighter force.With America’s closure of the F-22 production line and the recent debut of Russia’s PAK FA fifth-generation...

The Government of India entered into an agreement with the Russian Government for the development and production of a Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft on October 18, 2007 for cooperation in the Joint Development and Certification of Prospective Multi-Role Fighter Aircraft. The agreement envisages joint production, joint marketing to third countries, sales, after sale support and disposal of aircraft after completion of their life-cycle. Subsequent to this Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) has signed a Confidentiality agreement on July 11, 2008, a General Contract on December 22, 2008 and a Memorandum on March 10, 2010. The estimated expenditure which is likely to...