Howard Gethin/LONDON
A Russian team including Sokol and Fazotron has made the first firing trials of Vympel R-73 infrared and R-77 active radar missiles from a modified prototype Mikoyan MiG-21bis fighter for the Indian air force. The tests give an impetus to the much delayed MiG-21-93 modernisation programme for the ageing fighter.
The tests, at the Russian air force's weapons and tactics development centre at Akhtubinsk in Kazakhstan, will verify the performance of the weapons with the Fazotron Kopyo (Spear) lightweight multimode radar, says Vasily Pankov, director-general of the Sokol aircraft plant in Nizhny-Novgorod, which is carrying out the upgrade work in partnership with the Mikoyan design bureau.
The combined radar, avionics and missiles will allow the MiG-21 to carry out beyond-visual-range (BVR) attacks on two targets simultaneously, and to track up to eight. The Kopyo, developed for the stillborn MiG-29M, also has ground mapping and air-to-surface modes, allowing cueing of precision guided munitions.
While India is the first customer for the Russian upgrade, Sokol hopes to sell the conversion to other MiG-21 users, including Croatia, which has chosen an Israeli upgrade, but is to examine the performance of the MiG-21-93 later this year.
If India acquires the R-77, it will be the first country in the region to operate the BVR weapon, which has hitherto been delivered only to Russia and Malaysia. India will also be the launch customer for the Kopyo radar. Delivery of the first two modernised MiG-21bis to India is due later this year.
• India's indigenous Light Combat Aircraft will make its first flight in July, says outgoing defence minister George Fernandes in a report to parliament. India hopes to put the aircraft into production by 2003.
The report says: "Five prototypes are being developed, to compress the timeframe by simultaneous testing and logging of the required flight hours."
Source: Flight International
