The Soviet Union may be a relic of the past but its aircraft are not. Many of them are still out there, some operated by new friends, others by potential adversaries.
For more than 40 years the U.S. military aviation community trained and equipped to meet the Soviet air threat. The Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force developed tactics, weapon systems, and aircraft to counter Soviet tactics and aircraft. After the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and the Gulf War of 1991, it became obvious that the newest generation of frontline fighters of any country were unlikely to tangle with U.S. Navy fighters and, if they did, probably not in numbers that would have overwhelmed a Navy strike group. That said, Russian aircraft companies and weapon manufacturers have not lost the research and lessons learned from the Cold War. Mikoyan (now the MiG Moscow Aircraft Production Organization), the Sukhoi and Vympel design bureaus, and others are alive and well. As Boeing and Northrop-Grumman are well aware, Cold War defense contracts no longer exist, and export has become a large source of income for both U.S. and ex-Soviet manufacturers. Herein lies the danger of current Russian aircraft and missile designs.
Export Sales High
While it is unlikely a major conflict will occur between Cold War NATO countries and Russia or its former satellites, Russia's exports have gone to many countries with which the United States has had or currently has uncertain relations. Some of these countries have governments that are small, unstable, or hostile to the United States. These include Malaysia, China, Peru, North Korea, Libya, Syria, Vietnam, Cuba, India, Kazakhstan, Iraq, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.
Russia and several of these countries are notorious for their willingness to sell weapon systems to anyone with the requisite cash. The most powerful recipient is China. It not only buys Russian designs, but has been allowed to build its own Sukhoi Su-27s under license.1 In their willingness to appease foreign buyers, the Russians can and have fitted their export aircraft with modern Western avionics, radar systems, and weapons.
Current Russian designs often rival those of Boeing and Northrop-Grumman. The aircraft can maneuver well during basic fighter maneuvers (i.e. dogfighting) at low speeds and high angles of attack, having incorporated vectored thrust and/or canards. Helmet-mounted cuing systems, telescopic infrared trackers, electronically scanned digital radars, and advanced missiles similar to U.S. designs are all available at a comparatively low cost. Sukhoi has been doing well in export and in the last six years China alone has purchased 148 modern long-range Su-30 fighters. Aircraft with similar performance such as the Eurofighter Typhoon and the F-22 Raptor (disregarding the value of the F-22's stealth capabilities) cost approximately $85 million and $338 million apiece, respectively. The upgraded export versions of the Su-SOMKI and MKK sell for $38 million per copy.
Mikoyan is the best known Russian aircraft manufacturer from its MiG designator made famous during the Korean, Vietnam, and Cold War conflicts. MiG produces sturdy, low-cost aircraft that many second- and third-world countries purchase. These planes are still potent enough to cause American aviators concern. The MiG-21 Fishbed, MiG-23 Flogger, and the MiG-29 Fulcrum are all Cold War designs that many countries still use with little modification. As an alternative to newer, more complex, and more expensive designs, some countries are contracting with MiG to provide upgrades to these earlier versions as a way of maintaining their battlefield effectiveness for 20 or more years.
Foreign Upgrades
Even older MiG aircraft designs are being updated by their owners. India and Romania both have upgrade programs of more than $300 million. The Indian designator for the MiG-21 Fishbed is the MiG-21 Bison, and the Romanians operate the MiG-21 Lancer. The Romanian upgrade is slightly more extensive, but both upgrades have glass cockpits with multi-function displays, upgraded digital radars, and heads-up displays.2 The Indian MiGs have helmet-mounted targeting systems, a capability only now coming online in select U.S. Navy squadrons. These old fighters also have hands-on throttle and stick (HOTAS) cockpits that allow the aircrew to maintain better situational awareness since their sight can be directed more outside the aircraft instead of looking inside, or "heads down" for the desired switch. Also included are foreign systems such as French-supplied data link cabilities and new Israeli-developed countermeasure equipment and sensors. These upgrades give an aircraft barely effective in Vietnam as a ground-vectored interceptor a new capability to operate against modern U.S. designs.
MiG-23 and 27 Flogger models are currently receiving upgrades to keep them dangerous through 2015. Upgrades are much the same as in the MiG-21 programs but also include new systems to boost the air-to-ground capabilities of the Flogger design. These include laser ranger, forward-looking infrared, market target designator, and inertial navigation with embedded GPS, plus digital map generator.3 These all combine to allow Floggers to employ precision-guided munitions of many types. Improved hotAS is also included and seems to be the new standard export customers are demanding.
The MiG-29 Fulcrum is well known to the general public. It is also the gold standard that U.S. forces have trained against. The Fighting Omars (VFC-12) of NAS Oceana have flown against German Luftwaffe MiG-29s but have since lost that training opportunity as Germany recently retired that type. Many other countries such as Poland still use and upgrade their remaining Fulcrums and will keep them operational. As can be seen by previous upgrade programs and current orders with both MiG and Sukhoi, India is a major customer, and these eastern countries are the new hotbed for export multi-role fighter sales. India is currently upgrading its fleet from MiG-29A to MiG-29SM configuration with better radar, weapon suite, avionics, and air-to-air refueling capability. These upgraded jets are to remain in service until 2025.4
The Indian Navy has 18 new MiG-29K/KUB on order for next year. These aircraft are capable multi-role platforms. They were designed to counter the F-15 and F-16, and in basic fighter maneuvers can be expected to hold their own. With this upgraded radar and weapon capability the U.S. technological edge has decreased considerably. The countries of Malaysia and Bangladesh reportedly have paid as little as $ 11 million per copy for their Fulcrums. With that sort of cost many smaller countries can afford to arm themselves with an older but capable large fighter.
Sukhoi has been doing even more business than MiG and much more in new purchases. Many of these purchases have been by China for the Flanker family Su-27 and Su-30K models. China currently manufactures its own Su-27s and plans are rumored for Su-30 production to start in the near future.5 The Su-30 represents the most capable Russian design as a new aircraft, featuring all the modern appointments, including thrust vectoring and canards. The Su-27 is a close cousin and is the aircraft used by the White Knights, the Russian version of the U.S. Navy's Blue Angels. These aircraft are highly sought after by the United States and its allies for training/aggressor roles. Jane's database notes that the United States took delivery of the first of two Su-27s from Belarus in 1995. Japan reportedly inquired about buying two, sending Japanese pilots for a $300,000 training course. And the United Kingdom is said to have obtained an Su-27P from Ukraine in 2001. In today's market it is not difficult to obtain "threat air" information, even on an unclassified database such as Jane's.
Don't Forget the Missiles
All the aircraft described would be useless without weapon systems, so it is important to mention the Russian missiles currently sold and used by many countries. The Vympel design bureau is the major manufacturer of air-to-air missiles on Russian aircraft these days. It is reported that the AA-8 Aphid and AA-Il Archer do not compare to the new AIM-9X, but development is ongoing and new variants could be coming out in the near future. Vympel confirmed in August of 2005 that an R-73 Archer upgrade was under way to be ready by 2006.6 This new digital format and other improvements should give the missile significantly better detection and maneuverability to include 360° firing angles.
Even the older infrared guided missiles are still capable and transferable to helicopters, ground launchers, and other applications. The AA-12 Adder, called the "Amraamski" by the press when it came out in 1992, is similar in function to the AIM-120 AMRAAM. Vympel exports a large number of these, called the RVV-AE, and is reported to be currently designing a major upgrade to have an 86-nautical mile range and a dual infrared and active radar seeker heads to allow passive operation. The next generation of Vympel missiles is promised in 2014.7
Soviet-era equipment is still used in the world, and enough of it is being maintained and upgraded to pose a threat to U.S. aircraft should a conflict develop with one of these operating countries or a sale is made to one already hostile to the United States. While no longer posed by the Soviet Union, what we used to call the "Soviet aircraft threat" still exists. Enough are in friendly countries to offer remarkable training opportunities to U.S. squadrons deployed abroad. That is, unless the United States has taken delivery of Sukhois that Jane's has missed.
1 Douglas Barrie and Robert Wall, " Market Forces," Aviation Week & Space Technology Vol. 164, Issue 8 (2006), 74-78.
2 Jane's Online, "MiG-21- Sokol/HAL MiG-2H Bison Indian Air Force Upgrade," in Jane's Aircraft Upgrades (posted 22 Febuary 2006).
Jane's Online, "Elbit Defence Systems LTD, Elbil/Aerostar MiG-21 Lancer Upgrade," in Jane's Aircraft Upgrades (posted 10 September 2001).
3 Jane's Online, "MiG-27- HAL MiG-27M Upgrade For Indian Air Force," in Jane's Aircraft Upgrades (posted 8 February 2006).
Jane's Online, "MiG-23 UPGRADE," in Jane's Aircraft Upgrades (posted 11 November 2005).
4 Jane's Online, "MiG-29," in Jane's Aircraft Upgrades (posted 22 February 2006).
5 Jane's Online, "Sukhoi Su-30M," in Jane's Aircraft Upgrades (posted 19 December 2005).
Doug Sample, "Bejing Leaders Believe U.S. 'Poses a Challenge,' Pentagon Report Says" DefenseLINK News, 31 July 2003.
6 Jane's Online, "AA-11 'Archer' (R-73, R-74)," in Jane's Air-Launched Weapons (posted 13 December 2005).
7 Jane's Online, "AA-12 'Adder' (R-77, RVV-AE)," in Jane's Air-Launched Weapons (posted 13 December 2005).
Ensign Kingsman is a 2006 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy. He is currently stationed in Pensacola, Florida, awaiting the start of Naval Flight Officer training.