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    UAVs in Russian Armed Forces: News

    GarryB
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    Post  GarryB Wed Dec 14, 2011 1:21 am

    I rather suspect that this was a planned operation and as part of the planning I would think the whole point of taking control and landing it intact was for intel purposes.

    I would like to see this operation lead to Iran getting S-300 missiles from Russia as their presence there would likely act as a significant deterrence to a US or Israeli attack.

    I think this would also be in the interests of Israel and the US as an attack on Iran will not solve their problems and only make things worse.

    If I was in Iranian shoes an attack on nuclear facilities would lead to an immediate direct response and the creation of a real nuclear weapon program... because they wouldn't try that sht with a real nuclear power.

    I would suspect that this drone is not fitted with the best of the best as being a drone it is ultimately expendible.

    For all we know it could be a trojan horse.

    I am sure they were very careful.

    I am sure they will learn a lot from this drone, but I rather doubt we will see a Russian clone.

    With the Sidewinder missile the situation was quite different... they captured a missile intact and found it had a completely modular design that was far more simple than the complex existing Russian designs. The design was so simple and straight forward and so different from what the Soviets were doing it was decided it would be simpler to basically copy the Sidewinder design, but with Soviet components, than it was to wait 5 years while the missile design bureaus absorbed the new concept of modular design to simplify production and maintainence.

    With a sidewinder if there is a problem with the seeker, just pop off the seeker section and fit a new one. With an AA-1 Alkali you discard the missile and build a whole new one.

    It also means upgrading is easier as a new rocket motor can be made to fit the standardised other parts, so remove the old motor and fit the new one.

    All very simple and obvious now, but brand new and revolutionary for the Soviets.

    They actually took that modularity a step further in the R-27 family with a range of different motors and seeker options etc.

    This new drone might help them with material and shaping choices, and I am sure that the datalink and optics and radar technology will be of interest. I am pretty sure they will also be interested in the engine too.

    The wont carbon copy the drone... except possibly to give to Iran to patrol its borders armed with Iglas.... wouldn't that be ironic... Smile
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    Post  Flanky Wed Dec 14, 2011 7:06 pm

    Well at this stage i have no doubt that Russians had many HALE subsystems already worked out.
    However what the Sentinel can bring to them are the miniaturization of its electronic subsystems, the operating system - probably military grade linux from windriver.
    Communications datalink - a satelite uplink or that kind, datalink encryption (but since they have hacked it - they had figured out that one), fail safe systems (but then again since they have brought it down safely they had figured that probably as well), optics are one of the things that could make a differrence and engine... engine inspection might greatly help to eother develop a new design or significantly improve existing ones.
    It might not look like this way, but this can significantly contribute to Russian HALE program. But in a same fashion than you i really dought we will see a Russian copy.
    They will most probably take some revolutionary design which will not be a simple flying wing.
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    Post  GarryB Thu Dec 15, 2011 1:55 am

    Copies are actually a lot of hard work to produce something the enemy is already familiar with.

    Emergency use only.

    I am sure the night vision and day vision optics will be of interest as this drone operates at high altitude. Also stabilisation systems (hardware and software) for those optics will likely be of interest.
    The datalink setup, plus of course the engine design will also be of interest too and the materials the drone is made out of will likely be of interest too.

    High flying would require significant weight economy in the design while retaining stealthy shapes and materials.

    I rather think they will take the solutions that are useful to them and apply them to existing models they are working on, but there will not likely be any copying as such.

    On another note... perhaps Pakistan should approach Russia to buy a few of these vehicles too. A few CIA drones to take apart should help the Pakistani Drone development programme too. Smile

    Apart from the modularity of design the Soviets learned that their IR seekers were better than the one used in the captured American missile, and that their rocket motors were more powerful, but the thing that surprised them was the fin tip gyros that stabilised the missile in flight. The Soviet missiles had internal gyros that needed mechanical winding up and took up a bit of space inside the missile. The gyros on the Sidewinder were external and spun up by the air flowing past the missile and therefore took up no internal space and did not use internal power and were much smaller... it was about the only US component they copied, though I think the American servo motors for the control surfaces were smaller and were copied too.

    BTW the Russians already make operating systems of their own, and miniturisation is not an issue now that they can source electronic components from foreign countries.

    They are currently working on a domestic multicore CPU for military purposes too.
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    Post  Flanky Thu Dec 15, 2011 12:41 pm

    Maybe Pakistan will be inspired by Iranian success... who knows.


    I rather think they will take the solutions that are useful to them and apply them to existing models they are working on
    Definitelly - they are not Chineese.
    Chineese are known to copy the systems nearly to scratch.


    BTW the Russians already make operating systems of their own, and miniturisation is not an issue now that they can source electronic components from foreign countries.
    They are currently working on a domestic multicore CPU for military purposes too.
    Well the Russians are very carefull when designing their subsystems in choosing a foreign company as subcontractor to supply electronic components. The reason for this is that the company (Texas Instruments is very popular in Russia) like TI might design a component with the exact properties as Russians would want but additionally with a hardware "backdoor" - meaning software layer is completelly out of the circle, and in case of mission critical systems like Radars, like missile seekers, Command and Control network structure and so on - you don't want to have a "hole" in the system such as a backdoor be it software or hardware would normally meant. This is why they are bit by bit driving away from the concept of buying foreign electronic parts for their military systems and even systems of national importance - they are not all military but could be for example meteorologic, economic, climate monitoring, space systems, catastrophy management and so on.
    So its a bit outdated view and they are trying to produce everything themselves although we all know its not allways possible and some components still needs to be bough abroad. But as years come and go this is a retreating trend. One thing they are still very dependend on is the abroad production of their processors - they do design them themselves, but they have to manufacture them abroad. I believe they should have atleast 2 45-32 nano metre production facilities in Russia one located maybe in the european part of the country and one deeply in Siberia for strategic reasons.
    GarryB
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    Post  GarryB Thu Dec 15, 2011 2:54 pm

    I agree, and they should make their CPUs commercially available too, I am sure there would be plenty of nutters like myself that don't trust the US/West and would like Russian hardware in their computer setups.

    Obviously however even hardware backdoors require some form of direct connection to access, you could design an array of barriers and obstacles between electronics and external access to prevent the activation of backdoors.

    Of course the ideal is to not have them there in the first place... Syria was vulnerable because it had French experts helping it with its Air Defence Network, who clearly shared information with Israel.
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    Post  Flanky Thu Dec 15, 2011 6:23 pm

    Well the networking industry is allmost a as a closed vip club where only certain companies got an invitation. But this is changing as well.
    http://pkcc.ru/en - is a promising company to manufacture networking hardware.
    There are others that want to catch up the trend.
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    Post  GarryB Fri Dec 16, 2011 1:35 am

    Thanks for the link.... will have a look. Smile

    I think their best bet in many markets will be to emphasise the fact that they are not an American company and as such are not obliged to put spyware in their products to help the FBI and CIA spy on you.
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    Post  GarryB Thu Jan 19, 2012 5:53 am


    Russia Allocates $160 Mln for Drone Development

    Guarding the borders: Russia tests new drone

    Russian Helicopters has received 5 billion rubles ($160 mln) from the federal budget for the development of three types of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV).

    After charging that smaller domestic developers wasted public funds - and pointedly purchasing Israeli drones for military trials - the Defense Ministry has switched to a big holding with sufficient capacity to develop and produce indigenous UAVs.

    According to the Gazeta.ru portal, the company has been contracted by the Russian Defense Ministry to develop light-, medium-, and heavy-weight rotary UAVs for reconnaissance, strike and transportation purposes.

    A prototype of a short-range drone, Ka-135, with carrying capacity of up to 100 kg, must be developed by 2015.

    A heavy-weight UAV, dubbed Albatros, is expected to be developed by 2017. It can be used as a strike or transport drone.

    The most recent contract envisions the development of a medium-weight UAV with operational range of up to 300 km.

    If successful, Russian Helicopters may receive additional funding in the future to develop two more types of UAVs to be delivered to the military and police.


    I have seen a few UAV prototypes from Kamov that include a large simple ball with coaxial main rotorblades called Ka-137.

    Its performance figures are pretty good with a payload of up to 80kgs, though 50kgs is normal and with a normal payload it can operate to a range of 530km.
    4hour flight time and speeds of 145km/h cruising and 175km/h max for a UAV with a takeoff weight of 280kgs is pretty good.
    It can hover in free flight a 2,900m and fly to a ceiling of 5,000m.

    I seem to remember the Ka-135 as being helicopter shaped with coaxial main rotors and a bit larger.

    To deliver equipment or food and water and ammo to separate units, as well as light strike roles, UAV helicopters would be ideal.

    A large UAV helo... say an unmanned helo the size of an Mi-34C1 could even be used for emergency personel evac... fly it in with weapons and rapidly use those weapons on any nearby enemy forces and then land to pick up casualties or personel requiring evac or to deliver specialist equipment like laser target markers for an artillery/air strike.
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    Post  George1 Thu Jan 19, 2012 7:09 pm

    What about Dozor ? it looks like American predator uav
    GarryB
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    Post  GarryB Fri Jan 20, 2012 12:55 am

    There are plenty of branches of the Russian military and paramilitary forces, and each will want their own systems... the Army, the Air Force, the Navy, the FSB, Border patrol, space and air defence forces etc etc.

    Even within the Air Force there is long range aviation, frontal aviation, etc etc.

    Each will want very specific designs for very specific roles.

    For instance in the Army very long range wont be important but long endurance over the battlefield will be important. Speed wont be important, but being quiet will be critical to its effectiveness.

    For the Navy very long range, very long endurance, all weather capability are important things.
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    Post  Austin Thu Mar 29, 2012 8:13 am

    Russia launches MALE-class UAV Project

    Denis Fedutinov

    Moscow Defense Brief

    In the autumn of 2011 the Russian MoD announced R&D contracts for two relatively heavy unmanned aerial vehicles, with an approximate take-off weight 800kg and 4,500 kg.

    Recognizing the need

    The United States is the world leader in MALE-class (Medium Altitude, High Endurance) UAVs. It has been developing the Predator family of drones since the early 1990s. Early models saw their first action during the war in Yugoslavia, which highlighted the practical uses of the UAVs of that class, and stimulated further research and development. The second war in Iraq and the campaign in Afghanistan saw routine and wide-spread use of the Predator and Reaper drones. In addition to providing continuous aerial reconnaissance and target tracking, they have been used to launch missiles against targets on the ground, killing a number of key Al Qaeda operatives.

    Russia has several obvious uses for MALE-class UAVs; many of them have to do with the sheer size of the country’s territory. The prospective users include the armed forces and several other uniformed agencies, especially the Border Service and the Coastguard.

    Import or indigenous design?

    The world’s most capable armed forces either operate MALE-class drones already or are studying how best to acquire them. Some countries pursue indigenous projects (sometimes in cooperation with foreign partners); others buy their UAVs abroad; several nations do both.

    Apart from the United States, only Israel now makes its own MALE-class drones. The Israeli product range includes the Heron and Eitan (Heron TP) systems made by Israel Aerospace Industries. A recent addition to the Israeli product range is the Heron 900, made by Elbit systems. Italy buys Predators from the United States. Germany and France operate specially adapted Heron models. The UAE, India, South Africa, China and several other countries are developing MALE-class UAVs, either independently or in cooperation with foreign partners such as Britain and France.

    Russia has long pursued a policy of developing and manufacturing all its weapons on its own. In recent years, however, it has come to realize that such an approach is no longer viable. Russian defense technology is increasingly lagging behind the foreign competition in a number of key areas. In addition, the Russian defense industry is often unable to deliver the new weapons ordered by the armed forces quickly enough or in sufficient volume. UAVs is one area where the technological gap has become especially obvious. To address the situation, in 2009 the Russian MoD placed an order for a batch of Israeli drones, including the Bird Eye 400 (mini-class) and the Searcher MkII (tactical class, which is closer to MALE). The drones were delivered in 2010, and the training of their operators was completed in 2011.

    But the Russian army still doesn’t have any MALE-class drones. Buying them from the United States is out of the question owing to American export restrictions, and Israel has refused to sell, reportedly after coming under American pressure.

    Contracts


    The Russian MoD has announced contracts for two UAV R&D projects. The first contract, worth about 2bn roubles, is for the smaller of the two drones; the winner must deliver a product ready for mass production.

    The second contract, worth about 1bn roubles, is for the larger of the two drones; it is expected to deliver a working prototype.

    The winners and losers

    Several Russian companies submitted their bids. Three companies were in the running for the contract to build the smaller UAV: Tupolev, which is part of the United Aircraft Corporation (OAK); Luch Design Bureau, a Rybinsk-based branch of the Vega concern; and the Tranzas company from St. Petersburg.

    Luch Design Bureau is the only company which already had an existing prototype when it submitted the bid. The vehicle, also called Luch, is based on Sigma-5, a small trainer aircraft for rookie pilots designed by the Sigma-TS company from Zhukovo, Moscow Region. Experts believe, however, that using a piloted aircraft as a UAV platform is not the best solution, even though this has already been tried in other countries. To make matters worse for Luch, its parent company, the Vega concern, it not held in very high regard in the MoD. Some time ago Vega was designated as Russia’s main developer of UAVs, but failed to live up to the generals’ expectations. Its designs have repeatedly come under criticism from Vladimir Popovkin, a former first deputy defense minister. One of the Vega products, the Tipchak tactical UAV, turned out to be a big disappointment during the 2008 conflict in Georgia, especially when measured against Israeli-made drones used by the Georgians.

    Another bidder for the first UAV contract, Tupolev, is one of the founders of the Russian school of UAV design. Its first drones date back to the 1950s, but most of the Tupolev designs are extremely dated. The company is also struggling financially. In the absence of large new orders Tupolev’s R&D capability has seen a rapid deterioration. It is also finding it difficult to attract and retain the design and engineering expertise.

    The contract for the smaller UAV has therefore been awarded to Tranzas. Its high-tech designs, well-known both in Russia and abroad, focus mainly on simulator systems. It also has experience in developing tactical UAVs.

    The second MoD contract, for the larger of th]e two UAVs, attracted two bidders: Sokol Design Bureau (Kazan), and RSK MiG.

    MiG has developed dozens of combat aircraft over the decades, most of them fighters and interceptors. It also has some experience in designing UAVs, although most of those designs date back to the past century. Its most recent UAV design, the Skat attack drone, was demonstrated at the MAKS-2007 airshow, but it appears that the project has never been completed.

    For these reasons the MoD awarded the second contract to Sokol. The company is one of Russia’s leading developers and suppliers of aerial targets. It also has several active drone projects. In addition to its prior experience with UAVs, one of Sokol’s main advantages is that the company is relatively compact, which makes it a more nimble and effective operator in the new post-Soviet economic environment. The company also has its own manufacturing facilities.

    Outlook

    The winners, Tranzas and Sokol, have announced that they are going to work on the two projects together. Sokol will probably focus on designing the airframe and on the subsequent mass production, while Tranzas will integrate the avionics and design the ground control stations for the two UAVs. Both projects will be led by Nikolay Dolzhenkov, a prominent Russian aircraft designer. He was the lead designer of the Pchela UAV, which is used in the Stroy-P, a regiment-level tactical aerial reconnaissance system. His other designs include the Yak-130 combat trainer.

    It is not yet clear which design and engineering solutions will be used in the two UAVs. Some information will probably appear in the run-up to the MAKS-2013 airshow. It has been reported that both UAVs are expected to take to the air in 2014 and enter a flight test program in 2015.

    Conclusion

    Russia’s decision to design MALE-class UAVs independently has its upsides and downsides. On the one hand, the project will be expensive. It is for a good reason that several European countries have decided to pool their efforts in this area. On the other hand, independent projects provide for greater flexibility and impose fewer restrictions on any subsequent exports. Rosoboronexport already has a lot of foreign customers. Integrating UAVs into the existing Russian reconnaissance and weapons systems would make them significantly more attractive for international buyers.
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    Post  Russian Patriot Tue Apr 03, 2012 5:14 pm

    Russia's Defense Ministry Wants Strike Drone

    RIA Novosti

    12:17 02/04/2012 MOSCOW, April 2 (RIA Novosti) - Russia’s Defense Ministry has issued a technical specification for development of a strike unmanned air vehicle (UAV), Izvestia daily said on Monday quoting a high-level source.

    Tranzas company will build the UAV's on-board electronics as well as its navigation and control systems. The airframe, which will weigh about five tons, will be produced by the Kazan-based Sokol design bureau.

    The new aircraft will have a modular structure, the source said, and will be able to carry various types of equipment and armament.

    Russia’s Defense Ministry sealed contracts worth an estimated 3 billion rubles ($101.9 million) with Tranzas and Sokol in October 2011 for research work into creation of strike and reconnaissance UAVs.

    In late March, Russian Air Force commander-in-chief Col. Gen. Alexander Zelin, told Moscovsky Komsomolets tabloid that strike drones will enter service before 2020. He did not specify how many drones will be acquired.

    The United States has relied heavily on UAVs including the Predator system to carry out missile attacks on insurgents in the Afghanistan-Pakistan border area.

    http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/library/news/russia/2012/russia-120402-rianovosti01.htm

    So , they finally are starting this critical area of development, whether its Male class , I don't know but based on the company, that prediction has some merit
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    Post  TheArmenian Tue Apr 17, 2012 11:11 pm

    Some UAV news for today:

    1) Presentation at ENICS :
    Video: http://prav.tatarstan.ru/rus/pressa/1video.htm/video/401164.htm
    Photos: http://prav.tatarstan.ru/rus/pressa/photo.htm/photoreport/401164.htm

    2) New Orlan-10 (Sea-Eagle-10) to be tested for Reconaissance/Scouting
    http://izvestia.ru/news/522006
    http://www.vz.ru/news/2012/4/17/574738.html

    Quick points:
    Already tested in Akhtubinsk range. Will be tested in Alabino range.
    Already in service with some services. Very pleased.
    Controlled range: 125 km
    Maximum ferry range: 1000 km (acts autonomously at long ranges)
    Endurance: 10 hours
    Equipment: Cameras, high-rez videos, thermal imaging, relay/communication systems etc.
    Control vehicle: UAZ-like SUVs that can control up to 4 UAVS.

    By the way, the Orlan-10 is made by "Special Technology Centre"
    http://bla-orlan.ru/index.php/english/orlan-10.html


    Last edited by TheArmenian on Tue Apr 17, 2012 11:16 pm; edited 1 time in total
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    Post  victor7 Tue Apr 17, 2012 11:14 pm

    Unmanned Vehicles area is something where Russia needs to do some serious catching up. 2020 is like 8 years and US already has UCAVs on the go.
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    Post  GarryB Wed Apr 18, 2012 1:11 am

    Unmanned Vehicles area is something where Russia needs to do some serious catching up. 2020 is like 8 years and US already has UCAVs on the go.

    Lets not exaggerate.

    The US needs UAVs to manage it global empire.

    Russia doesn't need to murder people in Pakistan or Yemen... and if it did it would likely use cruise missiles or planes... or FSB teams to do it.

    Russia is a huge country and will find UAVs and UCAVs cheaper and more flexible than manned aircraft to cover that area more efficiently.

    Thanks for that info TheArmenian... already voted today so I will vote for your post tomorrow... Smile
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    Post  Sujoy Mon Jun 04, 2012 7:05 pm

    Russia to buy Israeli UAVs
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    Post  GarryB Tue Jun 05, 2012 10:36 am

    Need to be clear here... this article does no specify who is actually buying these UAVs... it mentions border patrol and homeland security which suggests these drones are being bought for FSB and MVD forces.

    I rather suspect these purchases will be to get something into service and use quickly while Russian UAV makers perfect their products and get them to production ready status.

    Also these are older model Israeli drones, which the Army and Air Forces have already evaluated to work out where to set the bar.

    Murmurs recently suggest they are working on a range of new Russian UAVs in a wide range of sizes and weights and classes including armed models which will likely be made for the Russian military forces before being released to other organisations like FSB and border patrol.

    The article was very specific about models and prices, but very vague about who the actual customers might be... some of these systems might be being purchased by Russia on behalf of countries like South Ossetia and Abkhazia, and indeed for Kazakhstan and the other Stans between Russia and Afghanistan to improve border control.
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    Post  medo Tue Jun 05, 2012 4:29 pm

    It's interesting MVD abd FSB will buy Israeli UAVs, while they use similar UAVs from Zala, Orlan, Eniks, etc. Is the problem in production speed, that domestic producers could not produce them fast enough?
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    Post  GarryB Thu Jun 07, 2012 10:11 am

    I suspect the Israeli UAVs fill a gap that the Russian makers have yet to fill.

    I remember criticisms of Russian UAVs was lack of speed and range and altitude and they are too noisy and their sensors are not up to scratch.

    They have improved the cameras and the stabilisation systems, but as I said many times the Israelis have spent large amounts of money on these things and developed and perfected them over decades, the Russians have had UAVs, though generally for very specific roles like the Pchelka artillery spotter or the Reis long range UAV recon drone.

    The Russian military has been looking but not spending for 2 decades... and only since 2008 have they actually been serious about actually spending money.

    They apparently squandered a large sum of money on a few companies that didn't deliver and there could be a bit of a backlash in that regard, but for the most part up until 2008 the Russian companies that even bothered to put up prototypes at airshows wouldn't have the production capacity to make hundreds and supply them to the military with full documentation and ground support equipment without funding.

    With no money invested the Russian companies couldn't afford expensive but capable high resolution high magnification cameras and thermal imagers and stabilisation systems and navigation systems to allow them to operate autonomously.

    Most people think that UAVs are like model planes but they are not. They are aircraft that have navigation systems that enable them to fly automatically to a target area, that can be rerouted to areas of interest to orbit over things, and can be flown manually, but most of the time they will actually operate autonomously. The communications equipment needs live video with navigation overlay to show where the aircraft is and what it can see and needs to be robust and encrypted to the other guys can't see what you see.

    Most of the time the operators operate the cameras and sensor packages and only rarely will they actually manually fly the aircraft.
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    Post  medo Thu Jun 07, 2012 4:59 pm

    Critics were made by MoD, not from MVD or FSB, which use quite a number of domestic UAVs like from Zala, which also improve its UAVs through years.
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    Post  Sujoy Thu Jun 07, 2012 6:48 pm

    New generation firms in Russia have also joined UAV development for the state defense order, such as Tranzas from Saint Petersburg, which is known for the development of navigation systems, simulators and avionics. New generation aircraft are still undergoing tests, but we can already say that the army will receive drones.
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    Post  GarryB Fri Jun 08, 2012 1:53 am

    Critics were made by MoD, not from MVD or FSB, which use quite a number of domestic UAVs like from Zala, which also improve its UAVs through years.

    This is quite true, but different UAV requirements are needed for different roles.

    Most of the criticism from the MoD came from the Air Force that wanted long range and high altitude... which means of course a fairly large and expensive aircraft with powerful high quality cameras and powerful datalinks etc etc.

    The previous FSB and MVD requirements have been short range close by observation around a patrol vehicle for instance.

    Now they are likely looking at longer range longer endurance UAVs that are not operated by front line troops but communicate with front line troops and pass live data to those forces.

    There are plenty of successful Russian UAVs in service with many organisations both government and private company used for checking pipelines or overhead wire networks for problems or damage... like fallen trees or leaking pipes or broken wires. Flying at medium to low altitudes will give a better view of the object of attention that has known coordinates.

    For border protection however you will need to be silent because if the subject knows they are being watched they will take steps to remain hidden. To maximise coverage a high flight altitude will give good coverage, and for the purposes of search and rescue being able to deliver support or rescue equipment could be a plus.

    I have read about a few Russian designs that have a built in glider component that can drop payloads of up to 25kgs of material with a glide capability... this would be very useful to supply troops behind enemy lines as it would be silent, and 25kgs of food and water and ammo would be useful, but in a survival situation if the UAV spots people on the ground in the middle of the desert or Siberia then dropping them food and water and a tent or cooking stove for hot food or just warmth could be very important. After dropping the rescue material with flares and tents or whatever the main UAV can circle the area till a ground team reaches the people or person in distress providing a communications relay source for ground searchers and directing them to the people needing rescue.
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    Post  Sujoy Fri Jun 08, 2012 5:30 pm

    VOICE OF RUSSIA

    Russian engineers have come up with a one-of-a-kind drone, which can fly indoors.

    With no wings, tail and fuselage, it can glide freely between buildings, lift off vertically and land just about everywhere.

    Ideal for aerial reconnaissance, cargo hauling and street patrol, the aircraft is already being eyed by the Emergency Situations Ministry, police and the military.
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    Post  medo Sat Jun 09, 2012 11:12 am

    They are for some time in the use with MVD and maybe with others too like ZALA 421-21.
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    Post  GarryB Fri Jun 15, 2012 12:45 pm

    So even if the Mig SKATE didn't get funding they will be working on something perhaps similar to it.

    If they can make the UCAV LO it can operate at medium altitudes which maximises flight range and speed and keeps it safe from low altitude SAMs and trash fire.

    The F-117 was a subsonic bomber able to carry two laser guided bombs as a payload at a speed of about 800km/h and a flight range of 2,000km or so.

    The Mig Skat was supposed to be about the size of a Mig-29 in width but shorter in length and obviously LO, and with two internal bomb bays for guided bombs or even ARMs like the Kh-31 and a single engine it would have had a performance very similar to the F-117 but presumably at a fraction of the cost.

    Using satellite guided bombs the aircraft itself could be made fairly cheap and simple with most of the cost in the stealth design.

    In fact you could send a dozen into an unknown area armed only with ARMs following specific courses where you suspect the enemy has SAMs set up and just use them to orbit certain areas looking for threats just before sending in an Su-34 flight to attack targets. Any SAM sites becoming operational can be fired upon by the UCAVs as the Su-34s penetrate at low altitude at high speed.

    One of the UCAVs could be designed as a UAV without weapon bays, but with optical, IR and radar sensors to find targets for the UCAVs it will be operating with... hardly something new for the Russians... the Granits and Onyx Anti Ship missiles have been doing that sort of thing for decades...

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