The delivery of the Yak-130 to Iran paves the way for another advanced Russian fighter, 09.04.2023.
Recently, Iran's main news agencies reported that the country received Russian-made Yak-130 combat training aircraft. It is believed that the acquisition of this aircraft could mean that the Iranian Air Force will soon add another new fighter to its arsenal from Russia.
Photos and videos confirming the delivery of the Yak-130 were published in the media and are already circulating on the internet. However, Iranian officials and commanders have not yet given details, such as when the aircraft arrived or how many the state expects to receive in total.
According to the Tasnim agency, the Russian-made Yak-130s have already been put into service of the Iranian Air Forces and deployed at the Shahid Babaei airbase in Isfahan. Its main objective will be to contribute to the improvement of the training and combat capacity of the state Armed Forces personnel. According to the publication, the Iranian army may receive unnamed new-generation fighters, and the Russian Yak-130s will be used to train Iranian pilots in piloting the most modern aircraft.
Iran has made significant progress in recent years in the field of its own armament, relying on its own industry. It should be noted that some of the novelties of the Iranian defense industry were presented in August at the Army 2023 International Military-Technical Forum in Russia and attracted considerable attention from visitors and experts. Earlier this year, the state launched the production of a new combined training and close air support aircraft known as Yasin.
In parallel with advances in its defense industry, Iran continues to expand its military-technical cooperation with the world's leading manufacturers. The agreement on the Yak-130 confirms the achievements that are being made on the way to strengthening relations in this field with the Russian partner.
Main features of the Yak-130
It should be noted that the Yak-130 advanced training aircraft was the first aircraft built entirely in Russia after the collapse of the USSR, when it was already clear that the Czech L-39 Albatros had become obsolete. In 2009 the aircraft successfully passed the state tests and in two years began its serial production.
The Yak-130 is a two-seat training, reconnaissance and light combat aircraft designed to simulate the characteristics of 4+ and 5th generation fighter aircraft, from the Su-30 and MiG-29, to the Su-35S and Su-57.
The aircraft of this model feature a full glass cockpit, a four-channel fly-by-wire system (piloting by wire or a system that replaces conventional manual flight controls with an electronic interface), a helmet-mounted aiming system and a GPS/GLONASS dual navigation system. Combined, these features allow pilots to familiarize themselves with the systems of the most modern military aircraft.
The armament of the Yak-130 includes nine suspension points (two at the wing tip, six under the wing and one under the fuselage), which can be equipped with missiles, rockets, bombs and external fuel tanks. The aircraft has a total combat payload capacity of about 3,000 kilograms, does not have an internal cannon, but can carry external 23 mm cannons.
The aircraft has a maximum range of up to 2,100 kilometers, and a combat range of about 555 kilometers, and is designed to fly at subsonic speeds close to Mach 1, with an operational flight ceiling of about 12.5 kilometers. It is powered by two Ivchenko-Progress Al-222-25 turbofan engines mounted under the roots of the wing extensions.
The Yak-130 has been in service with the Russian Armed Forces since the early 2010s and is exported to half a dozen countries around the world, including Belarus, Algeria, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Laos and Myanmar.
Waiting for the Su-35s?
Deepening the issue of the delivery of the Russian Yak-130 to the Iranian Armed Forces, the Military Watch military portal addresses the possibility of the prompt delivery of the Su-35S fighters.
In the opinion of the media, the supply of the Yak-130 corresponds to the Iranian plans to arm its air forces with more advanced fighters, compared to those they have at the moment. "Otherwise, the Yak-130 would have little place in the current force structure of the Iranian Air Force," the publication notes.
The Yak-130 is the first advanced Russian fighter jet to be received by Iran since the deliveries of the fourth-generation MiG-29 and Su-24M. However, that contract was concluded even in the 1990s as part of those of the Soviet era.
In this regard, it is emphasized that the collapse of the USSR has significantly affected the depth of cooperation between Russia and Iran at that time and has damaged Iranian aspirations to rebuild its fighter fleet with MiG-29s. Meanwhile, the situation has changed since that time. Iran has already shared images of its new heavily fortified Oghab 44 airbase, "which is expected to house the first delivered Su-35S," according to the article.
The publication adds that Iran is currently unable to put a number of more advanced aircraft into production, which some see as a sign of weakness in its aviation industry. However, others believe that Tehran only intends to introduce the Russian Su-35S "as soon as possible", and the acquisition of the Yak-130 is the fastest way to achieve this, as modifying the national trainers would take more time and would be less effective, "especially in the short term".
"The Yak-130 retains a formidable combat capability along with its trainer function, and given that the vast majority of Iranian fighters are obsolete third-generation jets from the Vietnam War era, the new aircraft is one of the most capable, and by far the most sophisticated, in service," the article explains.
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