Russia & CIS Observer, January 2013

Russia & CIS Observer www.ato.ru/rco

â„– 1 (36) january 2013

Russia & CIS Observer № 1 (3 6) j an ua ry 2013

from the publisher of

10

2 23

15

Russia/CIS Observer is produced by:

19

•DEFENSE

Russia builds competence on

Another successful year for Russian Publisher Evgeny Semenov Editior"in"Chief Maxim Pyadushkin Art Director Andrey Khorkov Commercial Director Sergey Belyaev Advertising Manager Oleg Abdulov All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced in whole or in part without the written permission of A.B.E. Media.

helicopter engines ..............................16

defense exports ....................................2 •AIR TRANSPORT

Radars for India and other customers ............................................6 Helicopters for New Delhi ..................8 New orders for Su-30MKI fighters ....10

Sustained growth ..............................18 Vnukovo boosts capacity ....................19

Russia develops new airborne

Volga-Dnepr Group set to expand

weapons ............................................10

its MRO capability ............................20

Hopes for heavy lift ............................11 •SPACE BUSINESS •AEROSPACE INDUSTRY The Russian government supports the

The Russian space industry becomes more pragmatic ..................................22

A.B.E. Media cannot be held responsible for any claim,

national aircraft industry ....................12

error, omission or inaccuracy in advertising

The SSJ 100 regional airliner expands its

Russia eyes more joint space projects

operating envelope ............................14

with India ..........................................24

material supplied by advertisers.

© № 1 (36), January 2013 Tel./Fax: +7 (495) 933 0297 Correspondence: P.O. Box 127, Moscow, 119048, Russia

Visit our website at www.ato.ru/rco RUSSIA/CIS OBSERVER № 1 (36) JANUARY 2013

1

DEFENSE

Another successful year Aircraft and airborne weapons continued to dominate Russian arms exports in 2012 Konstantin Makienko

D

espite the loss of the Libyan and Iranian markets and the suspension of military supplies to war-town Syria, Russian official reports claim a continuing nominal growth in arms deliveries and contracts.

According to the Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation, Russia exported $15.2 billion’s worth of armament last year and landed new contracts for a total sum of $15 billion.

To put these figures in perspective, 2011 deliveries amounted to $13.2 billion and the total value of arms export contracts concluded during that year is estimated to have stood at $8-8.5 billion.

As in previous years, most of the 2012 deliveries and (presumably) newly signed contracts were related to military aircraft, associated equipment and weaponry.

Deliveries Aviation equipment accounted for 37% of all Russian arms exports in 2012.

India appears to have remained Russia’s largest customer for such assets since 2005. Irkut Corporation has yet to re-

lease its performance results for 2012 but we may safely assume that it delivered at least 30 to 35 assembled airframes and knock-down kits of the Sukhoi Su-30MKI fighter jet variety to the Indian Air Force and to the license manufacturer HAL. Algeria received its second and final batch of eight Su30MKI (A) fighters under the 2010 contract for 16 of the type; the first eight airframes had been delivered in 2011.

Sukhoi last year completed Su30MK2 deliveries under the 2010 contracts with Vietnam and Uganda. The first four of Vietnam’s 12 fighters had been delivered in 2011, the same year that Uganda received the first four of its six aircraft on order.

In total, Sukhoi delivered 10 Su30MK2 airplanes last year and Irkut presumably made at least 38 deliveries of Su-30MKI/MKI (A) fighters and knock-down kits. Combined deliveries of Su-30 family fighters thus amounted to at least 48 airframes.

MiG-29 deliveries continued as well.

Six MiG-29B/SE fighters were shipped to Myanmar, completing the 2009 contract worth €410 million for 10 MiG29B, six MiG-29SE, and four MiG29UB aircraft. Myanmar had received

its first 14 airframes back in 2011. In a separate development, RSK MiG began deliveries to India under the 2010 contract worth $1.5 billion for 29 MiG29K carrier-borne fighters. The contract is an addendum to the original 2004 accord under which Russia undertook to develop the MiG-29K modification and supply 16 such fighters for the Indian aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya. Three to four of the type were reportedly delivered in 2012.

Work continued to upgrade Indian Air Force MiG-29s to MiG-29UPG standard under the $964 million contract signed in 2008. Work was completed on three of the 63 airframes lined up for upgradation. The rest of the batch will be upgraded at HAL facilities in India.

Despite reports by some media, it is too early to assume that deliveries of the 12 MiG-29M/M2 fighters to Syria under the 2007 contract have been suspended. The first six aircraft are not scheduled for delivery until the second half of 2013. The situation in Syria may have stabilized by then, making it possible for RSK MiG to either go ahead with the contract or put it on hold indefinitely.

ATO.ru

India continues to be the largest importer of Russian arms

2

RUSSIA/CIS OBSERVER № 1 (36) JANUARY 2013

MARKET SUPPLEMENT

SRSAM system Tor-M2KM

WITH ITS MODULAR COMBAT AND SUPPORT VEHICLES

Izhevsk Electromechanical Plant KUPOL, JSC, being part of the ALMAZANTEY Air Defense Concern, unveils its new surface-to-air missile system TorM2KM, which differs from the widely known SAM systems Tor-M2K and TorM2E in a modular design of the combat and support vehicles.

SRSAM system Tor-M2KM with its modular combat and support vehicles is designed for air defence of vital public facilities. It is very reliable and effective against high maneuvering targets, guided and gliding areal bombs, anti-radar and cruise missiles, UAVs, aircraft and helicopters within the SRASAM engagement area day and night under adverse weather and countermeasures environment.

Independent combat module (ICM) of the SRSAM system is an autonomous missile launcher which incorporates radar and optical facilities, special equipment, surface-to-air missiles, primary and backup power supply sources and crew. A shelter with unified mount adapters has been specially designed for the ICM, allowing its arrangement on truck, semitrailer, trailer or other platforms of appropriate load-carrying capacity.

ICMs mounted on various platforms can significantly expand application range and scope of missions carried out by the SRSAM system, besides modular design results in substantial reduction of operational costs.

Being deployed on various platforms SRSAM system Tor-M2KM is capable of accomplishing AD missions of Land Forces, Air Forces and Navy, protecting vital strategic military and civilian facilities against air attack.

Due to modular design, the ICM can be slingloaded beneath a helicopter MI26T or its analogs.

Helicopter-transported ICM can be deployed in very hard-to-reach places, for example, in mountains and roofs of buildings.

Tor-M2KM is the first system to fully meet air defence needs of the big cities (megalopolises).

The system is fitted with up-to-date computers and radars, making it possible to destroy four aerial targets simultaneously.

Combat operation of the SRSAM system Tor-M2KM is fully automated, operator only needs to select a target to hit from the list given by computer and then press Start button. Surface-to-air missile is guided to the selected target automatically, and SAM warhead blows up in a target impact point. The missile carries irregular shape fragmentations made of special tungsten-nickel-iron alloy, providing high non-ricocheting penetrating efficiency of fragmentations. Radio fuse adaptation to the air target type along with special missile munitions make the system very effective against all types of targets.

Independent combat module provides transportation, storage and launch of four surface-to-air missiles.

Transporter/loader module can be mounted on the automobile chassis similar to the ICM chassis.

ICM is fitted with power supply source ensuring its autonomous operation in any weather conditions irrespective of the platform the ICM is placed on. The ICM has also a backup power source allowing ICM (if deployed without platform) to operate from commercial network or any mobile power plant generating voltage of 220V 50Hz and power of not less than 80 kW. Maintenance tools and spare parts for the SRSAM system are placed in the unified shelters which can be mounted on any trucks, semi-trailers and trailers.

The maximum weight of the loaded ICM does not exceed 15 tons.

The combat crew is 2 men.

SRSAM system Tor-M2KM can successfully accomplish AD missions both independently and as part of various AD units, and be integrated with Russian and foreign AD systems.

Over 50 years Izhevsk Electromechanical Plant KUPOL, JSC has been manufacturing high quality surface-to-air missile systems. High technologies, skilled personnel and many years’ experience in production and modernization of the military equipment make the company successful in the foreign and domestic markets.

Through creation of air defense missile systems for today’s and tomorrow’s army KUPOL company upholds its reputation as a Russian high-grade weapon manufacturer.

Air Defense Concern ALMAZ-ANTEY, JSC 41 Vereyskaya str., 121471, Moscow Tel.: (495) 276-29-65, fax: (495) 276-29-69 E-mail: antey@almaz-antey.ru Izhevsk Electromechanical Plant KUPOL, JSC 3 Pesochnaya str., 426033, Izhevsk Tel.: (3412) 90-3211; fax: (3412) 72-6819 E-mail: iemz@kupol.ru

China is again increasing defense imports from Russia through purchases of helicopters and aircraft engines

Another important event was the resumption of military aviation exports to China. The contract for seven Ilyushin Il-76MD military transports currently operated by the Russian Air Force may appear to be fairly modest but it does indicate a new phase in RussianChinese arms trade.

Open-source data suggests that about $1.4 billion’s worth of rotary-wing deliveries were made last year. India was the leading recipient; under a $1.3 billion contract signed in 2008, it is to get 80 Mil Mi-17V-5 transport helicopters.

A total of 42 airframes were delivered in 2011 and 2012; the rest are expected to follow in 2013. Other major deliveries of Mi-17 family aircraft in various versions were made to Azerbaijan (presumably 16 units), Afghanistan (12), China (eight), Egypt (at least six), Indonesia (six), Mexico (three), and South Sudan (two). Twelve Mi-35M gunships went to Azerbaijan and another six to Brazil. Myanmar took delivery of four Mi-35P rotorcraft previously operated by the Russian military.

China was the major recipient of aero engines last year after placing massive orders in 2011 and 2012 for 150 AL31F, 123 AL-31FN, and 184 D-30KP2 powerplants. Thanks to these contracts China returned to the fold of major Russian armament importers and may have made it to the top five customers with up to $1 billion’s worth deliveries a year, after India, Vietnam, Algeria, and Venezuela.

4

New contracts Although Russia continued to suffer a bad streak of failures in Indian Air Force tenders last year, India topped the list of new contracts for Russian military aviation equipment.

Indeed, Washington’s 2012 win in the IAF heavy transport helicopter tender came on top of Boeing’s 2011 success with its bid to supply 22 strike helicopters to that country. Nevertheless, winning a contest does not automatically mean landing an actual contract; none of India’s recent major tenders, including those for the MMRCA medium multirole combat aircraft, for the combat and heavy-lift transport helicopters, and for the air tankers, has yet eventuated in the award of a contract to the winning bidder. The parliamentary election to be held in India in the second half of 2013 may well result in a change of government. This does not seem to be the best time for signing major contracts, which might be hijacked by politicians for their own ends and eventually get revised or cancelled.

Russia for its part has been signing new contracts with India under on-going arms export programs that are devoid of political risks and technology hiccoughs. During Putin’s visit to New Delhi in December last year the countries inked the long-awaited deal for the delivery of 42 Su-30MKI knock-down kits to India. The press looked at previous similar contracts in estimating the deal’s value at $1.6 billion. However,

RUSSIA/CIS OBSERVER № 1 (36) JANUARY 2013

Russian Helicopters

DEFENSE

seeing as armament prices grow incessantly, we may assume that the actual sum is greater than that.

In a separate development, under an additional agreement to the 2008 contract, India will get 71 Mi-17V-5 helicopters for $1.3 billion; 59 rotorcraft will be delivered to the IAF and the remaining 12 to the country’s paramilitary forces. A framework agreement signed in October 2012 envisages deliveries of 920 AL-31FP engines for IAF Su-30MKI fighters through 2030. The engines will come in batches; the value of each batch will be calculated according to a formula agreed by the parties, but the overall price tag of the contract is estimated at $5 billion in 2012 prices.

Under another contract signed during Putin’s visit to India, 216 BrahMos missiles will be supplied for the IAF’s upgraded Su-30MKIs to the tune of $1.2 billion. Russian missile design house NPO Mashinostroyenia will receive half this sum.

Last year’s contract to deliver 36 Mil Mi-28NE gunships to Iraq for $2 billion produced quite a stir in the press but the Iraqi government subsequently voided the deal, citing an overstated price and suspected corruption. The status of this contract is currently unknown but negotiations are understood to be continuing. Among other major customers for Russian rotary-wing aircraft were China (52 Mi-171E helicopters for $624 million), Afghanistan (10 aircraft, to be purchased with Pentagon money), Sri Lanka (14 Mi-171Sh helicopters), Nigeria (about 10 Mi17/171s), Ghana (six Mi-17s) and Argentina (three examples of the Mi171E modification).

China continued to shop for Russian powerplants by ordering 140 AL-31F engines from Salyut for $700 million and 184 D-30KP-2 engines from NPO Saturn for $500 million.

Overall, 2012 proved a fairly successful year for Russian manufacturers of fixed- and rotary-winged aircraft, aero engines and airborne weaponry, both in terms of deliveries and newly signed contracts.

United Engine Corporation Bldg. 141, 29 Vereyskaya st., Moscow, 121357, Russia Tel.: +7-499-558-1671, fax: +7-499-558-1694 www.uk-odk.ru

DEFENSE

Radars for India and other customers

Phazotron-NIIR

India is perhaps the largest export customer of Russia’s leading radar design house Phazotron-NIIR. General Designer Yuri Guskov told Russia & CIS Observer about the corporation’s on-going Indian contracts and new development programs.

— What programs for India is Phazotron-NIIR currently working on?

— There are two major on-going programs for Indian customers. One of them is to design and deliver MiG29K/KUB carrier-borne fighters fitted with the FGM-129 variant of our Zhuk-ME radar. These aircraft performed successfully in trial landings on INS Vikramaditya last summer, but so far the Indian Navy is operating them from airfields in the state of Goa. As part of after-sales support for our radars we pay great attention to any criticisms and requests made by the Indian customer.

Deliveries of an additional batch of these fighters have begun to India; four aircraft have been handed over so far.

6

The next two airframes will be used to coach Indian pilots in arrested landings at the NITKA land-based carrier trainer in Yeysk, Russia.

Our other program is to upgrade Indian Air Force MiG-29 fighters with the Zhuk-ME radar. A total of 55 single-seat and eight twin-seat aircraft of this type will be upgraded this way. In the course of the program we work to meet a number of additional requirements set by the project team. These include preferences related to identification of target classes and types, to the radar library, etc.

Under the terms of the contract, four single-seat and two twin-seat fighters have undergone tests at the Russian Air Force base in Akhtubinsk under the supervision of the project team. Based on the results of the tests, a preliminary decision was made to permit series production of the upgraded aircraft. A final production decision is expected to follow by the end of this year.

Two single-seaters and one twinseater from the test batch, all equipped with the new Zhuk-ME radar, have already been delivered to India and will be formally handed over in late January. These aircraft were test-flown in Russia by an Indian pilot, who had to test about 50 different radar operating modes in the course of a single sortie. There were some criticisms of the radar but we have fixed these issues by now.

The other two single-seaters and one twin-seater from the trial batch remain in Russia to be brought up to India’s additional requirements. They should

RUSSIA/CIS OBSERVER № 1 (36) JANUARY 2013

be delivered to the customer in March 2013. Six upgrade kits including our radars and other systems were sent to India last December to be installed on IAF fighters at the Nasik repair facility.

Also last year Phazotron-NIIR offered India to sign an agreement to jointly develop an active electronicallyscanned array (AESA) radar. We held a presentation of AESA radars and our Indian counterparts got interested in the possibility of using such a solution on their future MCA military transport aircraft.

— Will your proposed solution be based on the Zhuk-AE radar?

— The Zhuk-AE AESA radar, which we proposed as part of Russia’s bid in the Indian MMRCA tender in 2010, is a production item. This means there would be no critical issues that could affect series production. We are currently designing an all-new 3D AESA radar but we need another 1.5 to two years before we can launch its series production. The problem is not creating the 3D transmit/receive modules [TRM], which we already have. At the moment we are focusing our efforts on making all components located behind the array, i.e. the power sources, the steering devices, and so on, as thin and compact as the array itself.

Phazotron-NIIR is working to design a 3D AESA radar for a future unmanned aerial vehicle. Kamov, on the other hand, would like to install a similar radar on its Ka-52 helicopter.

— How expensive will the new radar be to buy and operate?

— Designers of 3D AESA radars aim to bring the price down to a level

DEFENSE

comparable to that of a radar with a traditional mechanically-scanned array. So far AESA radars remain about 30% more expensive; our goal is to further narrow this gap to 8-10%. The bulk of the price is the cost of monolithic integrated circuits which are used in the TRMs. If purchased abroad they hike the price of a single TRM to between $800 and $1,000. We are planning to launch domestic production of such circuits, thus reducing the TRM price to about $400 to $500 apiece.

I am also getting better at convincing people that an AESA is cheaper to operate than a mechanically-scanned array because it is thrice as reliable. You require fewer spare parts so your aircraft grow more mobile because you no longer need to move large SPTA stocks when relocating from one air base to another. The service life of the TRMs is comparable to that of the airframe. Our goal is to bring the reliability of all radar components up to the same high level.

— What are you plans for the ZhukAE radar?

— We continue to improve the ZhukAE; Phazotron-NIIR is partially financing the manufacture of a full-scale array but we would also like to receive some funding from customers to complete this work.

Indian specialists liked the Zhuk-AE radar installed on the Russian MiG-35 fighter proposed for the MMRCA tender. I am bringing to Aero India several presentations for the Indian military and defense companies. It says in these presentations that the Zhuk-AE will be totally interchangeable with the mechanically-scanned Zhuk-ME model.

In Bangalore I am planning to suggest to IAF representatives that we upgrade the last two of their MiG-29 fighters with our AESA radar, to demonstrate that the airframe would not require any alterations at all.

— Would the Russian Air Force like to get this radar?

— Our military would like to have two fighter types, including the AESAequipped MiG-35 medium fighter. But the industry keeps insisting that this

Zhuk-ME radar

type should be delivered with the Zhuk-M radar.

What the industry wants is fast orders, so if we are talking about the 2013 [state defense] order for example then of course these aircraft should have the tried-and-tested Zhuk-M radar installed. Nevertheless we must still continue to improve EASA technology, build two Zhuk-Aequipped fighters and send them for trials. After the testing is completed

sea and switch to the millimeter radar during support missions over land.

You are certainly aware that tests of the upgraded Kamov Ka-27M helicopter with our Kopye-A radar are progressing successfully. The official trials should be completed in May. Our other development is the Arbalet-D missile approach warning radar. It was initially intended for the Mil Mi-26 helicopter, then it was installed on the Ka-52, and now the Russian Navy is testing a pyramidal

“AESA radar is cheaper to operate than a mechanically-steered array because it is thrice as reliable” in late 2014 we could launch production of AESA-equipped fighters. This would be the most rational solution, but a final decision has not been made yet.

— What other programs is PhazotronNIIR pursuing at the moment?

— We are working on several helicopter programs, including on the Ka-52 gunship which is currently fitted with the mechanically-scanned Arbalet millimetre-wave radar. More than 30 such helicopters have been delivered to the Russian Air Force to date. In the future the Ka-52 could also be used as a shipbased reconnaissance asset, so we are now considering additionally fitting it with a 3 cm-waveband AESA radar, which has a greater range than its current radar. The helicopter could use the centimetre radar during operations at

multi-array installation based on this radar. The Arbalet-D takes just one to two seconds to provide comprehensive situational awareness for a surface ship complete with target designation, mainly for artillery systems.

We also have orders from anti-aircraft systems developers who need air defense radars. There are a great number of orders for radar solutions to protect armoured convoys against aerial assaults. Previously my greatest concern was the absence of a dedicated production plant for our developments. This is no longer an issue: Ryazan State Instrument-making Plant has been identified as the primary production facility for our designs. My greatest concern now is whether we will be able to carry out all our current orders.

RUSSIA/CIS OBSERVER № 1 (36) JANUARY 2013

7

DEFENSE

Helicopters for New Delhi Russian rotary-wing products enjoy steady demand in India

W

ith its current fleet of about 300 Russian-built military and civilian helicopters set to grow in number and variety in years to come, India is and will remain one of the most lucrative rotary-wing export markets for Moscow.

Most of the Russian-made helicopters operated in India represent the Mil Mi-8/17 family, which remains in high demand on the subcontinent. Last December the Indian military and paramilitary agencies ordered an additional 71 examples of the Mi-17V-5 version for $1.3 billion, with deliveries through 2015.

The previous such contract, worth $1.34 billion and signed in 2008, was

could be contracted to upgrade previously delivered helicopters of this family.

India has historically remained a major importer of Russian armament, so Moscow’s interest in selling military rotorcraft to that country is only logical. Russian helicopter manufacturers have run in several Indian Defence Ministry tenders, offering the most advanced products optimally matched to the customer’s requirements.

The Kamov Ka-226T model, powered by two Turbomeca Arrius 2G1 turboshafts and fitted with an upgraded avionics suite, has been proposed for the Indian tender to procure 197 light helicopters. Prototypes of this aircraft successfully completed a series of comparative ground and flight trials in India in 2010. The Russian Helicopters hold-

Pavel Novikov

Maxim Pyadushkin

Russian Helicopters is offering to set up a Kamov Ka-226T assembly line in India

for 80 Mi-17V-5s. The Indian Air Force received the first 12 aircraft from that batch in February last year; the contract is expected to be completed in 2013. Konstantin Makienko, deputy director of Russia’s Centre for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies, notes that apart from the new Mi-8/17 sales to India the Russian manufacturers 8

ing company expects the tender results to be announced shortly. The Ka-226T is pitted against the Eurocopter AS550 Fennec model. To make its bid more attractive Russian Helicopters has announced its readiness to move manufacture of certain Ka-226T structures to India. The relevant agreement was signed in New Delhi last December be-

RUSSIA/CIS OBSERVER № 1 (36) JANUARY 2013

tween the Russian company and Elcom Systems, part of the Indian investment firm SUN Group. The partners intend to set up a facility which would initially produce key airframe components, moving gradually on to final assembly of helicopters, their ground and flight testing.

Apart from Ka-226T work, a Russian Helicopters source says, the joint venture should grow into a production centre for promoting Russian hi-tech rotorcraft products on the Indian market. It will be tasked with implementing offset programs related to Russian helicopter bids in various Indian tenders.

Russian Helicopters and Elcom Systems also agreed to jointly found a rotary-wing academy for pilots and ground personnel in India.

In an earlier tender for 15 heavy transport helicopters, Russia proposed to India a modernized Mil Mi-26T2 heavy-lifter with a new glass cockpit, digital autopilot, and Navstar/ Glonass-enabled navigation system.

The upgraded helicopter has the crew headcount reduced from five to two and supports international IFR flights.

With an MTOW of 56 tons, the Mi26T2 can transport up to 20 tons of freight and has a range of 800 km.

Representatives of the customer were left satisfied with the results of the familiarization flights.

Russian Helicopters continues to market civilian rotary-wing equipment to India. The Indian Directorate General of Civil Aviation in 2011 granted permission to operate Kamov Ka-32A11VS all-weather coaxial-rotor helicopters in that country. Also that year, Russian Helicopters and Vectra Group of India set up the joint venture Integrated Helicopter Services Private Ltd. to run a local service center for Russian-built civilian helicopters.

DEFENSE

New orders for Su-30MKI fighters ast year was very successful for one of Russia’s major defense bestsellers, the Sukhoi Su30MKI two-seat fighter.

Irkut Corp., a subsidiary of United Aircraft Corporation, managed to secure new orders for these aircraft at the end of 2012, boosting the total backlog to almost 400 units.

On December 19, Irkut signed a deal with the Russian Defense Ministry for the delivery of 30 Sukhoi Su-30SM fighters through 2016. This is the second such contract with the Russian military for this type; the previous order, for the same number of Su-30SMs with deliveries through 2015, was

The first Su-30SM fighters were delivered to the Russian Air Force in November 2012

placed in March 2012. The first two fighters from that batch were handed over to the Russian Air Force in late November last year. Another 10 airframes are expected to be delivered in 2013.

The Su-30SM is a variant of Irkut s Su-30MKI fighter, customized to meet the

Irkut Corp.

L

Russian Air Force requirements. It has new radar, communications and IFF equipment, new ejection seats, and can also use new types of air-launched munitions, the Air Force says.

According to the military, the two-seat Su-30SM will also be used to train the pi-

lots of future highly maneuverable single-seat fighters.

The Su-30MKI baseline was developed in the 1990s under the requirements of the Indian Air Force. Since 1997 India has ordered 230 of the type, including 180 airframes to be locally assembled at Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. The Indian order backlog further grew in December 2012 with a contract worth $1.6 billion for the delivery of a further 42 assembly kits. At present the Indian Air Force operates about 170 Su30MKIs. In addition, Algeria has ordered 44 airframes in the Su-30MKA version, while Malaysia received 18 fighters in the Su-30MKM modification.

Russia develops new airborne weapons ussian missile design house Tactical Missiles Corporation (TMC) has successfully developed several new products. CEO Boris Obnosov was quoted by the media as saying in January 2013 that TMC had completed the testing of the Kh31PD, RVV-MD, RVV-SD, and RVV-BD missiles.

The Kh-31PD is the latest modification of the AS-17 Krypton missile family powered by a combined rocket/ramjet motor. It is equipped with a passive radar seeker and can hit radar stations at a maximum range of up to 250 km.

Obnosov also mentioned that the Kh-31AD anti-ship variant is nearing the end of trials too. Both missiles can 10

be delivered by such hi-tech platforms as the Sukhoi Su30MK, Su-35, and Mikoyan MiG-29/35 fighters.

The short-range air-to-air RVV-MD is a further development of the R-73 heatseeking design (NATO reporting name AA-11 Archer), while the mediumrange radio-guided RVV-SD is believed to be an improved

RVV-BD missile

RUSSIA/CIS OBSERVER â„– 1 (36) JANUARY 2013

version of the RVV-AE (AA12 Adder). Both missiles were unveiled in 2009 and are believed to be intended for Su-35 fighters.

The RVV-BD, first presented in 2011, is based on the in-service R-33 (AA-9 Amos) design and has a reported range of 200 km. The RVV-BD has an active radar seeker supplied by the Agat

Robert Hewson

R

Moscow Research Institute and is designed to be carried by the modernized MiG31BM supersonic interceptor as well as by the RussoIndian FGFA aircraft.

The Russian Air Force in December 2012 reportedly added to its inventory another TMC-designed missile, the Kh-38 air-to-surface modular design with up to 40 km range. The Kh-38 can be tipped with various seekers including satnav capability.

It is expected to be carried by various Russian combat aircraft including the Sukhoi T-50 fifth-generation fighter. T-50 weaponry payload trials will begin after more prototypes of the aircraft join the testing program, Obnosov notes.

DEFENSE

Hopes for heavy lift Commercial operators remain the only supporters of the proposal to resume An-124 production

Maxim Pyadushkin

Once an An-124 production plant, Aviastar-SP merely repairs the Russian Air Force Ruslans these days

ATO.ru

T

he plans to resume production of the giant Antonov An-124 Ruslan transport aircraft in Russia may never be implemented. The Russian Air Force, which was previously viewed as the potential launch customer, has not yet made up its mind, while commercial operators are looking for alternative options to set up an assembly line for the heavy-lifter.

Some Russian media in January 2013 cited Alexey Isaikin, head of the largest An-124 commercial operator VolgaDnepr Group, as saying his company was considering the possibility of launching Ruslan assembly outside Russia. The airline would like the newly built An-124s to have Western avionics and engines. Isaikin mentioned Leipzig as a possible location. Volga-Dnepr Group’s subsidiary Volga-Dnepr Technics opened an 8,500-square-meter MRO hangar at Leipzig/Halle Airport this January to provide maintenance services on heavy transport aircraft such as the An-124-100, the Ilyushin Il76TD and the Boeing 747. According to Isaikin, the facility was built due to the lack of progress in the airline’s protracted negotiations with Russia’s United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) over a possible resumption of An-124 production at the Aviastar-SP plant in Ulyanovsk.

Aviastar-SP assembled its last two An-124s in 2004, delivering them to Volga-Dnepr Group and to the Ulyanovsk-based freight operator Polet. Since that time Volga-Dnepr Group has been the prime driving force behind the plans to restore Ruslan assembly in Ulyanovsk. The company announced in 2011 that it was ready to contract UAC for 20 such newly-built

aircraft, with an option for 20 more, with deliveries through 2030.

A UAC source has told Russia & CIS Observer that reviving the An-124 production program requires government support and also a launch order from the Russian military in order to cover the costs of the development work and production launch. “Financing is the main problem,” she noted. “UAC’s primary goal now is to start turning a profit, meaning we cannot afford to operate at a loss.” Representatives of Ukraine’s Antonov company, the original designer of the An-124, declined to comment on the Volga-Dnepr Group proposal.

The new Russian re-armament program through 2020, which was adopted in 2011, reportedly envisages the purchase of 25 newly built Ruslans for the Air Force and a potential subsequent order for another 15 after 2020. However according to industry sources, the Defense Ministry has not yet commissioned an associated development effort, meaning that the provisional delivery timeframe is likely to slip beyond 2020.

UAC says Aviastar-SP nowadays merely repairs the in-service fleet of Russian Air Force Ruslans; the plant is

busy setting up production of another upgraded transport, the 210-ton MTOW Ilyushin Il-76MD-90A, which has been ordered by the Russian Air Force.

The An-124 was originally designed to carry ICBM launchers. It is powered by four Ivchenko D-18T turbofans and has an MTOW of 392 tons with a 120-ton payload capacity. The Ruslan first flew in December 1982; the An-124-100 commercial variant was certified in 1992.

Volga-Dnepr Airlines currently operates 10 Ruslans to transport oversize freights around the world. Polet has four of the type, while Ukraine’s Antonov Airlines has seven. Volga-Dnepr and Antonov make their airframes available for NATO strategic airlift operations under the SALIS program. In December 2012 the contract with NATO was prolonged until the end of 2014.

Even if the hopes to restore Ruslan production fail, Volga-Dnepr will still be able to operate its current fleet for quite a long period of time. The airline’s oldest aircraft of the type were built in the early 1990s. Several years ago the An-124’s service life was officially extended to 50,000 flight hours, 10,000 cycles, or 45 years.

RUSSIA/CIS OBSERVER № 1 (36) JANUARY 2013

11

AEROSPACE INDUSTRY

From the government with love The Russian government is looking for better ways to support the country’s aircraft industry and air transport sector

Maxim Pyadushkin

T

he Russian aircraft-making industry is still struggling to find a new identity. For nearly two decades now it has been rolling out a handful of airframes per year. The country’s aircraft manufacturers, merged under the umbrella of United Aircraft Corporation (UAC), saw a modest growth in output last year as series production started of new models developed in the postSoviet era. Meanwhile, the Russian government wants to see the national aircraft manufacturers among the global leaders and is prepared to continue supporting the industry.

The year 2012 appeared to be fairly successful for UAC. Although the corporation has not yet posted its operating and financial results for the year, UAC CEO Mikhail Pogosyan forecast in December that the 2012 revenue

would have reached 180 billion rubles (about $5.8 billion), or 12.5% up on 2011, when it amounted to 161.7 billion rubles (the net loss for 2011 stood at almost 12 billion rubles).

UAC delivered 102 military and civilian aircraft in 2011. According to Pogosyan, last year’s deliveries to the Russian military amounted to 35 aircraft, outnumbering military aviation exports for the first time in the corporation’s history. The Russian Air Force received 10 Sukhoi Su-32 bombers, six single-seat Su-35 multirole fighters, its first two Su-30SM twin-seaters, and 15 Yakovlev Yak-130 advanced jet trainers.

According to unofficial estimates, UAC assembled 18 commercial airliners last year, including 12 examples of the new Sukhoi Superjet 100 regional jet and three copies of the smaller Russian-Ukrainian An-148 passenger aircraft. UAC also assembled one each of the Tupolev Tu-214 narrowbody and

RUSSIAN AIRCRAFT INDUSTRY REVENUE AND GOVERNMENT SUBSIDIES 600 Industry revenue, bln rubles Subsidies from the federal budget, bln rubles

bln rubles

500 400 300 200 100

12

RUSSIA/CIS OBSERVER № 1 (36) JANUARY 2013

2011

2010

2009

2012 (estimated)

Source: Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade

2008

2007

2006

2005

2004

2003

2002

0

the Iluyshin Il-96 widebody, as well as the first prototype of the re-engined Ilyushin Il-76MD-90A freighter.

Production grew by 50% compared to the 2011 results, although UAC is still far behind the output levels of the Soviet aircraft industry, which would roll out hundreds of airframes annually.

Last year’s commercial deliveries totaled 15 airframes, including some assembled back in 2011. Russia’s largest carrier Aeroflot received six SSJ 100s while Yakutia Airlines and Indonesia’s Sky Aviation each received one aircraft of this type. Three An-148-100Es were handed over to Siberia-based carrier Angara; one An-148-100EA version went to the government air service Rossiya. The latter also took delivery of two Tupolev Tu-204-300 and one Tu214 airliners assembled in 2011.

Pogosyan expects UAC’s revenue to reach 200 billion rubles in 2013 thanks to ramped-up deliveries to the Russian military, which is in the middle of a massive re-armament program. The corporation also plans to boost civilian deliveries with a consolidated order for commercial airliners from a number of Russian government agencies, some of which are already among UAC’s civilian customers. Rossiya, for example, remains the only recipient of Tu204/214 family aircraft and of Il-96 widebodies, while the Russian Ministry for Emergency Relief is to get two An148s in 2013.

According to Pogosyan, the consolidated government order will comprise more than 100 civilian aircraft of various types and is expected to be finalized by the end of 2013. UAC is currently in

AEROSPACE INDUSTRY

discussions with the government customers over the technical requirements for these aircraft, he says.

The massive government order is viewed as a measure to support the national aircraft industry, replacing direct subsidies from the federal budget that were practiced in previous years. The Russian government is keen to continue backing the country’s aircraft manufacturing industry, but it is understood that this support will become less straightforward now that Russia joined the World Trade Organization last summer.

In late 2012 the government approved the program to develop the national aircraft industry through 2025. In previous years budget funding would be allocated directly to aircraft manufacturers for specific programs. The volume of these subsidies had been steadily growing since the mid-2000s to reach 69 billion rubles in 2011. Now the government wants to refrain from direct financial support and switch instead to helping manufacturers develop competitive products through financing technology research and technical retooling and assisting the industry’s sales efforts. According to Minister of Industry and Trade Denis Manturov, the budget of the government program amounts to 1,706 billion rubles; 71% of this sum will be allocated from the federal budget, while the remaining portion is to be provided by the manufacturers. Budget funding will peak in 2016-18 and is expected to be gradually substituted afterwards with extra-budgetary investments.

Commenting on the commercial aspect of the program, Manturov mentioned that the government will support several new aviation development efforts including the Irkut MC-21 narrowbody airliner and the associated Aviadvigatel PD-14 turbofan engine, as well as prospective high-speed and light helicopter designs and research into future all-electric aircraft. Manturov also mentioned the Sukhoi T-50 fifth-gen-

UAC

From direct subsidies to technology support

Russian government agencies are buying increasingly more commercial aircraft from UAC

eration fighter and the Russian-Indian MTA medium transport aircraft as the priority military programs of the future.

The government believes the approved program will help increase revenues of the Russian aircraft industry 3.5 times from the current 579 billion rubles and improve labor productivity in the sector 9.4 times compared to the current levels by the year 2025. The country’s manufacturers are expected to preserve their current 12% share on the global defense market, while their share of the world market for commercial aircraft should grow from 1.1% in 2011 to 3.6% by 2025.

Focus on population mobility The air transport sector, which has been growing steadily since the early 2000s, also remains a focus of government support. In December last year the Cabinet approved a program to develop Russia’s transport system through 2020. Transport Minister Maksim Sokolov says the primary objective of the program, which covers all means of transportation, is to increase mobility of the population from the current 7,000 to 10,000 kilometers per person per year by 2020.

As for air transport, the government plans to improve the ground infrastructure by putting into operation 96 newly built and repaired airstrips, i.e. a runway for almost every third of the country’s 315 airports. The program also calls for creating international and domestic airport hubs across the country,

while the introduction of a new air traffic management system should help increase the number of flights by 80%.

The program pays special attention to the development of regional air transport in certain areas of Russia.

According to the ministry’s estimates, only 4.5 million passengers out of the country’s 143 million population travelled on regional and local flights in 2011, which translates to just three flights per 100 people. The government wants to increase this ratio to seven flights per 100 population by 2020 by subsidizing regional air services. An additional 5 billion rubles (about $160 million) will be allocated for this purpose annually, and the number of subsidized flights is bound to grow.

Subsidies from the federal budget will cover 35% of the air fare on about 100 routes in the Far Eastern, Siberian, Northwest and Urals federal districts.

Fares on about 50 local routes in the Volga Federal District will be subsidized by 25% from both the federal and regional budgets. The government first started subsidizing regional flights in 2009. While subsidized fares were previously only available to young people aged under 23 years and pensioners, the new program will lift the age limitation.

The Transport Ministry expects these measures, combined with continuing subsides for leasing of regional aircraft and the creation of stateowned regional air carriers in Siberia, to increase the volume of regional air traffic by 15%.

RUSSIA/CIS OBSERVER № 1 (36) JANUARY 2013

13

AEROSPACE INDUSTRY

Pushing the boundaries The Sukhoi Superjet 100 regional airliner further expands its operating envelope

T

he Sukhoi Superjet 100 expanded its geographic presence in 2012 as new customers emerged for Russia’s new regional jet. The manufacturer, Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Company (SCAC), plans to ramp up production this year and to begin deliveries to Southeast Asia.

SSJ 100 commercial operation began in 2011. Russia’s largest carrier Aeroflot currently operates 10 of the type, including the six airframes delivered in 2012. Another Russian airline, Yakutia, took delivery of its first SSJ 100 at the end of last year. The other aircraft on order should be delivered shortly. The two Yakutia SSJ 100s come in the 93-passenger, twin-class cabin layout (eight seats in business class and 85 seats in economy). Yakutia is the first customer to have received a production SSJ 100 with individual passenger air vents.

The first Yakutia SSJ 100 revenue flight, with 49 passengers on board, was performed from Yakutsk to

Khabarovsk on January 23, 2013. In the future the carrier will use these aircraft on routes between Khabarovsk, Magadan, and PetropavlovskKamchatsky in Russia’s Far East.

Given favourable operating performance, Yakutia will firm up its option for two more SSJ 100s.

The airline’s CEO Pavel Udod says that, owing to the region’s harsh winters (temperatures in Yakutsk can drop below -60 degrees Celsius), performance of Yakutia s SSJ 100s may differ from that of the Aeroflot fleet, which is operated in the milder central regions of Russia.

In order to expand the aircraft’s cold-weather operating envelope, a series of additional certification tests were held last spring at Tiksi, one of the main diversion airports for Yakutia. An SSJ 100 prototype performed 11 flights, including a 4,300km non-stop flight from Ramenskoye airfield outside Moscow to Tiksi.

Eight performance check flights followed, and also the flight back via Krasnoyarsk. The flights were aimed at verifying the operation of the INS,

The SSJ 100’s cold-weather operating envelope was expanded ahead of the first delivery to Yakutia

14

RUSSIA/CIS OBSERVER № 1 (36) JANUARY 2013

GPS and Glonass systems in northern latitudes (up to 78 degrees) and outside temperatures down to -54 degrees Celsius. All components of the avionics suite performed nominally. In December 2012 the CIS-wide Interstate Aviation Committee issued a relevant supplemental type certificate for the SSJ 100.

Breaking into the foreign markets Yakutia became the third SSJ 100 operator after Aeroflot and Armenia’s Armavia Airlines. In late December 2012 SCAC announced the formal handover of the first airframe to another new customer, the Indonesian carrier Sky Aviation. The aircraft will shortly arrive in Indonesia. Sky Aviation has 12 on order under the contract signed in June 2011.

It is noteworthy that Sky Aviation’s plans to purchase the Russian type were unaffected by the May 9, 2012 crash of an SSJ 100 prototype, which collided with a nearly vertical cliff face 50 km off Jakarta during a demonstration flight.

SCAC

Maxim Pyadushkin

AEROSPACE INDUSTRY

The first SSJ 100 will be delivered to Lao Central in the first quarter of 2013

In December 2012 the Indonesian aviation authority officially named human factor and the absence of detailed terrain charts on board as the two primary causes of the crash.

Tatang Kurniadi, head of the Indonesian National Transportation Safety Committee (NTSC), said in an official statement that the crew had ignored repeated TAWS alerts and had even switched the system off, believing the warnings to be down to a database error. The aircraft had been fully serviceable immediately prior to the collision. According to the NTSC, the tragedy could have been avoided had the crew reacted to the TAWS warnings. Despite the crash the Indonesian aviation authority in November 2012 officially validated the SSJ 100 type certificate, permitting operation of the aircraft in that country.

In late 2012 the SSJ 100 was validated in Laos, whose carrier Lao Central has three such aircraft on order and an option for six more. The aircraft will be delivered in the 93-seat, two-class cabin configuration. The first Lao Central SSJ 100 has already been painted in the carrier’s corporate colors. SCAC says it will be delivered in the first quarter of 2013. Lao Central plans to use its Russian-made airliners on domestic and international routes, including to

Bangkok, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh, and Singapore.

Also this year SCAC should start SSJ 100 deliveries to the Mexican carrier Interjet. Final completion of these airframes is being done at the Venice, Italy-based Russian-Italian joint venture SuperJet International (SJI). The first “green” SSJ 100 for Interjet was flown to Venice for customization work in October 2012, where it will be fitted with a Pininfarina passenger cabin and painted in the Interjet livery. SJI is planning to receive an additional EASA-STC type certificate for this variant. The first Interjet SSJ 100 will be delivered to the customer in March 2013; the airline’s second aircraft on order is currently undergoing flight tests. Interjet has ordered 20 Superjets and has an option for another 10. All the aircraft will be delivered in the 93seat configuration.

Training capabilities The Interjet SSJ 100 pilots will be trained at the SJI center in Venice, which has recently received a full-flight simulator jointly developed for the type

by Thales Training & Simulation and SCAC. It emulates normal, complex, and emergency scenarios for all flight phases and can be used to train pilots for all-weather, day and night operations. The SSJ 100 FFS is based on the

SCAC

SCAC gets new President On January 28, the SCAC board appointed Andrey Kalinovsky, former First Vice-President for Production and Director of the SCAC Komsomolsk-on-Amur facility, to serve as new President. He took his new position as of February 1. Before coming to SCAC Kalinovsky was CEO of another Sukhoi subsidiary, the Novosibirsk-based NAPO facility.

According to SCAC, the changes in the company’s management reflect the new stage of the SSJ 100 program, which will now focus on increasing the output rate and improving the aircraft’s quality.

latest-generation Reality 7 simulation technology. It has a cost-effective electro-hydraulic motion system and an advanced visualisation system with LCOS projectors.

Similar simulators are operated by the Aeroflot flight school and by the air crew training center for SSJ 100 customers in Zhukovsky outside Moscow.

Interjet in January 2013 launched a SaM146 powerplant maintenance training program for its technical personnel under the maintenance contract signed in November 2012 with PowerJet, a joint venture between Russia’s NPO Saturn and Snecma Moteurs. The training classes in Montereau, France, cover powerplant line maintenance and boroscopic inspections.

As the global SSJ 100 fleet is growing, further expansion of training capacities will be required. Another full-flight simulator for the type has recently been inaugurated in Ulyanovsk. Unlike the SJI and Aeroflot simulators, this one was developed by the Russian specialist TsNTU Dinamika under a contract awarded by the Federal Air Transport Agency in August 2011. Following certification the simulator will be handed over to the Ulyanovsk civil aviation academy, where it was assembled.

RUSSIA/CIS OBSERVER № 1 (36) JANUARY 2013

15

AEROSPACE INDUSTRY

Growing own competence

R

ussian aero engine designers have reached an important milestone in launching domestic production of helicopter powerplants, which have been enjoying steadily growing demand over the past several years. St Petersburg-based Klimov plant, a subsidiary of United Engine Corporation (UEC), commenced tests in December 2012 on the first VK-2500 turboshaft engine assembled from allRussian components. Klimov, which originally designed the VK-2500, would previously assemble these engines from parts supplied by the Ukrainian manufacturer Motor Sich, currently the largest helicopter engine house in the former Soviet Union. The 2,400-hp VK-2500 powers the new Mil Mi-28 and Ka-52 gunships and is also installed on the latest modifications of the globally popular Mil Mi-8/17 transport helicopter family.

In 2008 the Russian government decided to organize full-cycle helicopter engine production in St Petersburg.

Klimov s plan is to assemble 50 VK2500s from Russian components in

2013 and to ramp up annual production of these engines to 500 units by the year 2015. State-controlled Vnesheconombank in 2011 granted Klimov a 4.95-billion-ruble loan (equivalent to $165 million) for these purposes. “Organizing VK-2500 series production as part of the national imports substitution program contributes to the Russian helicopter industry’s independence from foreign suppliers of engines and engine components,” says UEC general director Vladislav Masalov.

In order to implement the plan, UEC since May 2011 has been building a new 50,000-square-meter production facility on a 12-hectare land plot in the settlement of Shuvalovo outside St Petersburg. Known as St Petersburg Motors, the facility will cost 3 billion rubles to build. Another 1.5 billion rubles will be spent on production equipment whose installation began in the summer of 2012. Total investment in St Petersburg Motors will amount to 6.2 billion rubles. The manufacturing facility began operation in December 2012. Klimov plans to completely move to the new production site at the end of 2013.

The first all-Russian VK-2500 turboshaft on the test bench at Klimov’s new facility

16

RUSSIA/CIS OBSERVER № 1 (36) JANUARY 2013

UEC

Maxim Pyadushkin

Apart from the assembly of TV3-117 and VK-2500 helicopter engines St Petersburg Motors will be developing and manufacturing new powerplant designs, says UEC. Advanced engineering capability and new approaches to production processes are expected to shorten development cycles to between three and four years, reduce manufacturing development times to two years, and increase per-capita labor productivity nearly fourfold to 5.7 million rubles a year.

Klimov is working to design the new 3,500-hp TV7-117V helicopter engine, to be initially used on the Mil Mi-38 medium helicopter. The first flying prototypes of this powerplant will be assembled shortly. A TV7-117V-powered Mi-382 prototype was first demonstrated in 2011, the beginning of its flight trials is set for 2013.

UEC says the Russian helicopters to be built under the state defense orders will be fitted with the engines assembled by Klimov in Russia. The Russian Helicopters holding company is not going to stop using Ukrainian powerplants completely but will only be installing them on commercial helicopters. In the fall of 2011 Russian Helicopters contracted Motor Sich to deliver about 1,300 new rotorcraft engines in the next five years.

Motor Sich is pursuing its own program to modernize the popular TV3117 powerplant for the Mi-8/17 family.

The company is offering the TV3117VMA-SBM4E modification as a reengining alternative to the underpowered TV2-117 engines installed on Mi8T helicopters. A re-engined Mi8MSB prototype has been in testing since 2011. Last year saw the completion of the hot-and-high trials phase in Tajikistan. As was reported earlier, the Mi-8SB has reached a service ceiling of 6,300 m, compared to the standard service ceiling of 4,500 m for the TV2117-powered Mi-8T version.

MARKET SUPPLEMENT

Russian Researchers Expect a Leap in Short-haul Efficiency Russian researchers continue to push forward a proposed medium-haul, widebody aircraft design which has been under development since 2010 in the framework of an expanding joint program involving a number of Russian and international research and consultancy organizations, including the Central Aerohydrodynamics Institute, the International Air Transport Association, the MATs Inter-Sector Analytical Cente), Infomost Consulting, and SH&E/ACF. Widely known as Frigate Ecojet, the project was launched in the form of a self-funded initiative by the private diversified aviation group Rosaviaconsortium, whose activities include the development of civil aircraft in Russia.

Over the last 15 years the Rosaviaconsortium team of aircraft engineers has been behind several development programs, including the cargo version of the Tupolev Tu-204 jetliner (several Tu-204C examples have been successfully operated by TNT in Europe) and also the Tu-204-300, a shrink version of the same baseline.

Frigate Ecojet is based on a fundamentally new, innovative aerodynamic and structural design. Work on the aircraft is being undertaken in conjunction with the Russian center for aviation science at the Central Aerohydrodynamics Institute. It stands to become a major platform for advanced design technology and innovation in the Russian aviation industry. The main objective of the program is the development of the Frigate Ecojet next-generation wide-

body short- and medium-haul aircraft that would be competitive on the international civil aviation market through the application of conceptually new aerodynamic and structural design.

A study of the overall trends in aircraft development and the most advanced Western aircraft design reveals that the conventional aircraft body design has reached the maximum level of aerodynamic refinement, and that future perfection of design stands to benefit most from exploiting the application of new aerodynamic schemes. The completely new design approach of the IS-1 aircraft represents an engineering breakthrough potentially satisfying the needs of next-generation aerodynamics and serving as a prototype for future development in this area.

The result of the conceptual design phase demonstrated the feasibility of a new widebody aircraft for short- and medium-haul routes with low technical risks. The aircraft demonstrates a high level of safety and comfort, as well as a high degree of competitiveness.

Concurrent with the aircraft development process using an integral aerodynamic scheme, engineers have obtained a wealth of experience and taken out more than 50 patents.

Frigate Ecojet is expected to enter series production in 2019-2020. Its operational performance is expected to exceed that of the most advanced civil aircraft of 2010 by 15-20%. The main characteristic of the twin-engine aircraft is an elliptical fuselage which would accommodate 300-350 passengers in a

three-class, triple-aisle configuration.

Contemporary studies of the global air transport market have revealed a segment with a flight range of 3,000 to 4,000 km in which the operation of widebody aircraft is very effective. Over 56% of all global flights of widebody long-haul aircraft is actually for less than 3,000 km. In some regions of the world this percentage is much higher.

Analysis of the Russian air transportation system provides firm data substantiating a flight range bracket between 500 and 3,500 km as the core for a potential target market segment. Consequently, a key market requirement for the range vs. maximum payload criterion could be set at 3,500 km. Another key market requirement is a single-class capacity of 295 to 300 seats.

Analysis of airline route networks has demonstrated that the Ecojet’s 302-seat version operating at ranges of up to 3,500 km will exceed the economic efficiency parameters of all sameclass aircraft currently in operation on these routes by 25%. During flights with 352 passengers to a range of 2,500 km, the economic efficiency gain would reach 30%.

Currently the Frigate Ecojet team is gathering an impressive consortium of international consultants including Ernst &Young, ICF SH&E and Infomost Consulting, as well as Russia’s MATs to study scenarios of future development of the project - either as a standalone effort or a part of certain national, e.g. UAC’s potential wide body program, or international venture.

AIR TRANSPORT

Leonid FAERBERG / TRANSPORT-PHOTO.COM

Sustained growth

Maxim Pyadushkin

R

ussia’s air transport sector continued to grow for the third consecutive year throughout 2012 following a slight decline in 2009. The upward trend has been accompanied by incipient liberalization of international routes and by the government-backed drive to consolidate the industry.

According to preliminary statistics released by the Federal Air Transport Agency, Russian airlines set another post-Soviet record in 2012 by carrying 74 million passengers. This is 15.5% up on the 64.1 million passengers carried in 2011 and 30% more than the 57 million transported in 2010. Passenger traffic jumped 17.4% from a year earlier to 195.7 billion passenger-kilometers, and the average seat load factor rose by 1.1% to reach 78.3%.

Cargo traffic, on the other hand, increased only marginally in 2012. Russian airlines carried 988,000 tons of freight and mail, up 0.7% on 2011. Freight traffic grew by 2.5% to 5.1 billion ton-kilometers. The average revenue load factor was 65.5% against 64.8% in 2011.

The statistics for 2012 indicates that international air traffic was growing much faster than domestic air traffic de-

spite the latter sector having already been fully liberalized. The current growth in international passenger numbers can be explained, among other factors, by the increased airline activity on scheduled routes to destinations in CIS countries and farther abroad. While in previous years the main bulk of international traffic was generated thanks to flights into or out of Moscow, last year saw a growing number of international operations, both scheduled and chartered, originating or ending elsewhere in Russia. This nascent trend gives many medium-size carriers an opportunity to increase the share of their international flights.

By contrast, the domestic route network remains heavily centralized. More than 74% of all domestic passengers in 2011 travelled to or from Moscow, reflecting the political and economic significance of Russia’s capital to the rest of the country. This situation is unlikely to change significantly any time soon, even though some airlines are attempting to develop domestic route networks to connect individual regions.

The Russian air transport sector continues to be dominated by a handful of major players. The largest airline, government-controlled Aeroflot, carried 17.7 million passengers in 2012, or almost 24% of the overall number. The

Key performance indicators for Russian civil aviation in 2010-12 Indicators

2010

2011

Passenger traffic, mln passenger-km 147,118.5 166,759.9 Freight traffic, mln ton-km 4,715.3 4,950.0 Passengers carried, thousand 56,950.7 64,121.6 Freight and mail carried, thousand ton 926.4 981.5 Source: Russian Federal Air Transport Agency

18

RUSSIA/CIS OBSERVER № 1 (36) JANUARY 2013

2012 195,775.4 5,076.3 74,032.6 987.8

2012 vs. 2010 2012 vs. 2011 133.0 107.7 130.0 106.6

117.4 102.5 115.5 100.7

top five carriers, which also include Transaero, UTair Aviation, S7 Airlines and Rossiya, currently account for more than 62% of the country’s passenger traffic, with UTair demonstrating the fastest growth rate among them.

The rampant growth of the top few airlines is accommodated by the philosophy of the Russian aviation authorities, which view slashing the number of carriers as an answer to flight safety concerns. In 2011 alone the aviation regulatory bodies revoked 37 air operator’s certificates, while not a single new airline has been set up in Russia over the past two years.

The government also supports the continuing market consolidation efforts aimed at creating an umbrella holding company under the aegis of Aeroflot that would unite several smaller carriers in which the government holds stakes. The entity in the making has already gained control over Vladivostok Air, Donavia, Rossiya, OrenAir, and Satair.

The other major airlines are also seeking ways to increase their market share through mergers with smaller players, albeit without the government support enjoyed by Aerfolot. UTair Group, for one, includes the feeder carriers UtairExpress, Vostok, and Turukhan, as well as the Kiev-based subsidiary UTairUkraine. In October last year UTair acquired a stake in the Krasnoyarsk-based airline Katekavia as part of its strategic plan to open a hub in Krasnoyarsk for regional flights across central and eastern Siberia. S7 Airlines for its part has a sister airline, Globus, within the framework of S7 Group.

AIR TRANSPORT

Vnukovo boosts capacity Maxim Pyadushkin

Aviation flights currently account for more than 60% of all passenger traffic at Vnukovo, but that the airport has also attracted the interest of such major carriers as Russia’s Transaero Airlines, Lufthansa, and Turkish Airlines.

UTair head Andrey Martirosov says the carrier will avail of Vnukovo’s increased passenger capacity in order to expand its route network from Moscow.

Transaero, Russia’s second largest carrier, first came to Vnukovo in March 2012.

It also operates from Domodedovo and Sheremetyevo. CEO Olga Pleshakova says Transaero will move its Boeing 747 flights to New York and Miami, which are currently performed from Domodedovo, to Vnukovo’s Terminal A. In January 2013, Transaero launched Boeing 777 flights between the new Vnukovo terminal and Paris Orly, the route previously operated by the airline’s single-aisle Boeing 737s. In March 2013 Transaero is planning to introduce new flights to some European and CIS destinations from Terminal A, Pleshakova says. UTair and Transaero have recently signed an interline agreement to share transit passengers in the new terminal.

Lufthansa started to move its flights from Domodedovo to Vnukovo in

Fyodor Borisov

V

nukovo, the smallest of Moscow’s three major airports, considerably expanded its passenger capacity with the opening of a new terminal in December 2012. Construction of Terminal A had begun in 2006 as part of a large-scale program to modernize Vnukovo. At a cost of 44 billion rubles (around $1.4 billion), the program was financed by the Moscow city administration, which is the airport’s largest shareholder, as well as by private investors.

Terminal A became partially operational in July 2010; on December 18, 2012, its capacity was expanded by an additional 96,000 square meters to reach the planned 270,000 square meters. The number of check-in counters grew from 104 to 154. The new five-level terminal now has a total of 52 boarding gates, 31 of them equipped with boarding bridges.

There are two double-bridge gates to service Boeing 747 widebodies and one triple-bridge gate for Airbus A380s.

The completion of the new terminal indicates Vnukovo’s aspiration to compete with the other two major Moscow airports, Domodedovo and Sheremetyevo, which currently surpass it in the number of passengers served.

Domodedovo, Russia’s largest airport, handled 28.2 million passengers in 2012 while Sheremetyevo served 26.2 million. Vnukovo handled slightly over 10 million passengers last year, coming fourth in the country’s airport ranking behind its two Moscow rivals and St Petersburg’s Pulkovo (11.2 million).

Together with the existing two smaller terminals (В and D), the newly opened terminal at Vnukovo brings the airport’s annual capacity to 30 million passengers. According to chairman of the Vnukovo board Vitaly Vantsev, the airport expects to serve 15-17 million passengers in 2013. Vantsev says UTair

March 2012. As of early November last year, the airline had carried 200,000 passengers between Vnukovo and Frankfurt, Dusseldorf, Hamburg, and Berlin. The German carrier is turning Vnukovo into a base for its Star Alliance partners like Turkish Airlines, which came to that airport in March 2012. Star Alliance has no other options to choose from since the other two major Moscow airports are already taken by the rival alliances. SkyTeam is represented in Sheremetyevo, the home airport of Aeroflot, while oneworld carriers are concentrated in Domodedovo, where the alliance’s Russian member S7 Airlines operates from. Sky Alliance has no Russian partner so far, but UTair is considered to be a possible candidate.

In the meantime, Vnukovo is intent on continuing its modernization efforts.

One of the airport’s two crossing runways will become fully operational again in March 2013 after repair work. As part of the plan to consolidate its airport assets, the Russian government aims to create a single managing company by mid-2013 that would operate both Vnukovo and another governmentowned airport, Sheremetyevo.

The new terminal at Vnukovo will bring the airport’s annual capacity to 30 million passengers

RUSSIA/CIS OBSERVER № 1 (36) JANUARY 2013

19

AIR TRANSPORT

Volga-Dnepr set to expand its MRO capability Middle East opportunities

W

In about two months VDT is expected to open an own maintenance hangar in Sharjah, UAE, the MRO destination of choice for Volga-Dnepr Group’s An124 and Il-76 freighters. Construction of the facility started in October 2012.

It will be operated by VDT’s local subsidiary Volga-Dnepr Gulf.

Volga-Dnepr Gulf was established in Sharjah in 1996. Its core activities include maintenance and repair services, supplying components and consumables, as well as sales of aeronautical products and POL (petroleum, oils and lubricants) applicable to a wide range of aircraft. Volga Dnepr Gulf initially provided maintenance on Russianmade freighters such as the An-74, the An-124, and the Ilyushin Il-76, but is now planning to start servicing foreign aircraft types as well.

“Over the past two or three years the share of our work on Russian aircraft has been shrinking due to the ongoing decommissioning of aging fleets and the fact that no new freighters are being built [in Russia],” says Volga Dnepr Gulf CEO Viktor Sherin. On October 4, 2012, the company was certified by the UAE authorities to provide line maintenance on the Boeing 747 family (up to the 747-400 model), the Boeing 737 family (up to the 737-500 model), and the entire Airbus A320 family.

Sherin says the number of these types operated in the Middle East region is constantly growing, and that the two existing UAE-based MRO facilities, Emirates Engineering in Dubai and ADAT in Abu Dhabi, can no longer fully meet the regional demand for maintenance services. “The niche for servicing Boeing 747 cargo variants in the region is unoccupied at the moment,” he notes, adding that 747-400s

hile foreign players are actively entering the Russian commercial MRO market, individual Russian providers are exploring business opportunities abroad.

Russian MRO provider Volga-Dnepr Technics (VDT), part of Volga-Dnepr Group, has inaugurated a maintenance hangar facility at Leipzig/Halle airport. The hangar became operational on 16 January with its first job on an Antonov An124 transport aircraft. Volga-Dnepr President Alexey Isaikin says his company’s plan is to turn Leipzig, which is already the second-largest freight airport in Germany, into а global cargo hub. VDT leases the new hangar from the airport; it will use the facility to provide MRO services both to its parent company and to thirdparty operators.

VTD holds an EASA Part 145 certificate to perform maintenance on Boeing 747-200, 747-300, 747-400, and 747-8 aircraft; the plan is to extend the certificate this year to cover the Boeing 737CL and 737NG narrowbodies and the Airbus A320 family. VTD expects to start offering maintenance up to C-check on Boeing 747s by late 2013; next year it should be capable of offering Cchecks on Boeing 737 and Airbus A320 airliners.

The 8,500-square-meter hangar at Leipzig measures 94 by 90 meters and has a 30-meter-high ceiling. It can provide maintenance on An-124 Ruslans, Boeing 747-8s and, in the future, on Airbus A380s. The hangar accommodates a single An-124-100, Il76TD, or Boeing 747 aircraft, or up to 20

ATO.ru

Alexei Sinitsky

Volga-Dnepr President Alexey Isaikin plans to turn Leipzig into а global cargo hub

four Boeing 737 or Airbus A320 narrowbodies simultaneously. Abutting the hangar space are workshops and offices. Up to five An-124s or Boeing 747s can park simultaneously on apron outside the facility.

The hangar belongs to Leipzig/Halle airport, which invested €17.7 million in its construction. The facility is being exclusively leased for 30 years to Volga-Dnepr Technics GmbH, Volga-Dnepr Group’s representative in Europe. Unofficial sources put the lease contract price at about €45 million.

VDT says up to 55-60% of all workload for the hangar is expected to come from the Volga-Dnepr Group carriers AirBridgeCargo, Air Cargo Germany, Atran, and Volga-Dnepr Airlines. Any unoccupied space could be offered to carriers based in or operating into Halle, as well as to Russian airlines, which are facing shortages of domestic MRO capacity.

RUSSIA/CIS OBSERVER № 1 (36) JANUARY 2013

AIR TRANSPORT

and 747-8s are the mainstay at AirBridgeCargo, Volga-Dnepr Group’s regular cargo carrier.

The construction project in Sharjah was launched because of the EASA Part 145 and local regulations, which mandate that A-, C-, and D-checks be carried out in a hangar, explains Sherin.

The 20,000-square-meter hangar will be able to accommodate six narrowbodies or two Boeing 747s simultaneously, and will become the center for a future multirole MRO facility. It will include repair workshops for wheels, brakes, and batteries and will also offer structural repair services.

According to Sherin, in February or March 2013 his company plans to start offering A-checks on Boeing 747s and 737s, as well as on the A320 family. Ccheck capability is to be achieved by the end of next year. Russian types will not be forgotten either: “If deliveries of Russian-Ukrainian [Antonov] freighters to the region resume we intend to become the center for their warranty and post-warranty maintenance.”

The Sharjah hangar will mainly service aircraft of third-party customers. “Only 5% of all work will be done in the interest of the Volga-

Dnepr Group carriers,” says Sherin.

He explains that the UAE is a historical transit point for flights between Europe and Australia, Southeast Asia, and Africa, so many airlines welcome an opportunity to stop there for their A-checks. In September last year Volga-Dnepr Gulf preformed this type of maintenance on Kalitta Air Boeing

first year of its operation the company’s workload is expected to grow by 3540%; the goal is to eventually reach the level of 400,000 to 450,000 man-hours a year, twice the current figure.

As part of the Volga-Dnepr Technics development plan, by the end of this year the Sharjah-based company intends to open new line maintenance

Volga-Dnepr Gulf plans to perform about 40 A-checks in 2013 and to attract about 30 new customers within the next 1.5 years.

747s under the airline’s certificate.

The US-based cargo carrier has also signed an on-call contract with the Russian company, as has another Boeing 747 operator, Air Atlanta. Line maintenance services are also provided for Vision Air of Pakistan.

Volga-Dnepr Gulf plans to perform about 40 A-checks in 2013 and to attract about 30 new customers within the next 1.5 years. Sherin says: “Everybody is looking forward to the opening of that hangar.” During the

stations in Dubai and Fujairah. In the spring of 2013 VDT will add a new station in Amsterdam to its existing two European facilities in Leipzig and Frankfurt. The possibility of opening a facility in Changzhou, China, is currently being discussed, says Sherin.

Isaikin says Volga-Dnepr Group is interested in building similar maintenance hangars in Moscow and Ulyanovsk, but that such a project is much more difficult to implement in Russia than abroad.

VDT

The 20,000-square-meter hangar in Sharjah will become the center for a future multirole MRO facility

RUSSIA/CIS OBSERVER № 1 (36) JANUARY 2013

21

SPACE BUSINESS

Russian space industry grows more pragmatic Igor Afanasyev, Dmitry Vorontsov

L

Roscosmos

ast year was not marked by any breakthrough achievements in Russian space exploration. The country kept its world-leading position in the number of space launches. A total of 24 launches were performed: four from Plesetsk in Russia and the rest from Kazakhstan’s Baikonur. This list excludes the three launches of RussianUkrainian Zenit-3SL rockets from the Sea Launch international platform and the two Soyuz-2ST launches from the EASA Kourou spaceport. Russian-

In 2012 Russia retained its world-leading position in the number of space launches

22

made launch vehicles orbited a total of 33 spacecraft last year, including nine under foreign commercial contracts.

Russia’s major 2012 achievements included the launch of two same-type new-generation Earth remote sensing satellites, the Russian Canopus-V and the Belarusian BelKA. It is the first time the Russian space industry has managed to build advanced small-sized spacecraft on a non-pressurized platform, carrying an electro-optical ground-imaging system with a spatial resolution of about 2 m. Orbited together with these two satellites was the first Zond-PP spacecraft under the MKA-FKI program to create microsatellites for fundamental space research. These three craft may not set a new world standard for reduced size and mass, but for Russia they signify a certain technological milestone.

Last year brought a number of new developments in the military space sector. Among newly orbited military assets were an Oko-2 early missile attack warning satellite, a Kobalt-M imaging reconnaissance spacecraft (designated Kosmos-2480), as well as a Strela-3 low-orbit comsat (designated Kosmos-2481) and a Meridian high-orbit communications satellite.

Preparations were completed for launching the second Persona third-generation optical reconnaissance satellite capable of providing imagery with a spatial resolution of 0.5 to 3 m. This spacecraft, to be orbited in February 2013, will replace the first Persona satel-

RUSSIA/CIS OBSERVER № 1 (36) JANUARY 2013

lite, whose electronic components failed in February 2009. A closed tender was announced last year under the Obzor-O program for the development of a fourth-generation reconnaissance satellite.

Four Soyuz TMA crew vehicles and four Progress M resupply craft were launched in 2012 to support Russia’s manned space program. Energia Rocket and Space Corporation last autumn completed the design of the PTK NP new-generation manned transport vehicle and proceeded to building a full-scale mock-up. Flight trials are set to begin in 2017.

In another major development, work intensified on the construction site for Russia’s new Vostochny spaceport.

Construction was formally launched in 2010 but did not pick up pace until last year’s decision to abandon the Rus-M launch vehicle program and accommodate Soyuz-2 and Angara launches at Vostochny instead. Thousands of construction personnel are currently engaged at Vostochny; the Soyuz launch site is already partially completed and work has begun to build the technical area and associated infrastructure. If the current pace of construction is kept up, the first Vostochny space launch may take place on schedule in 2015.

However there were also bitter disappointments. The crippled Phobos Grunt mission met its inglorious end in January 2012, burning on re-entry after attempts had been abandoned to send the interplanetary probe on its course to Mars from the initial Earth orbit.

Due to malfunctions in the Briz-M orbit insertion third stage, three navigation satellites ended up in the wrong orbit in two separate incidents.

Telkom-3 and Express-MD2, both

launched on August 6, were abandoned as unserviceable, while Yamal402, built by Thales Alenia Space (TAS) and launched on December 8, eventually reached its intended orbit by using on-board fuel stores. This maneuver reduced the spacecraft’s active life in orbit from 15 to 11 years.

Yamal-402 was put into operation on January 8, 2013.

In fact, these two mishaps represent a significant improvement on Russia’s six failed launches the year before. One reason for this was the overall reduction in the number of Russian space launches last year from 32 in 2011.

Other disappointing developments of 2012 included a delay to the longawaited launch of a Resurs-P Earth remote-sensing satellite. Initially, due to technical defects, the spacecraft was sent back to the Samara-based TsSKB Progress production facility. This was followed by the expiration of Russia’s agreement with Kazakhstan on nonstandard rocket stage drop zones downrange of Baikonur (in order to insert the Resurs-P in its sun-synchronous orbit the launch vehicle must fly north after lift-off).

Both 2011 and 2012 could be described as the years of lessons learned.

The recent string of failures forced the government and industry to investigate the problems besetting the space program. One consequence of this was a sense check on the country’s existing interplanetary ambitions. The PhobosGrunt flop forced Russia to give up on a number of prestigious projects whose implementation would require significant human and financial resources.

Viktor Khartov, head of the PhobosGrunt developer NPO Lavochkin, remarked that, before venturing upon major undertakings, it would be wise to gain experience through smaller-scale space projects. These could include the Luna-Glob and Luna-Resurs lunar probes, expected to be launched in 2015-17. It is only after the successful accomplishment of these two missions that future flights to Mars and other planets could be discussed in earnest.

In parallel, Russia will continue coop-

Roscosmos

SPACE BUSINESS

The long-awaited launch of a Resurs-P satellite was delayed due to technical defects

eration on international space projects with NASA and EASA; an agreement has been reached on Russian participation in the BepiColombo mission to Mercury, and in the ExoMars Martian mission.

The quality of strategic planning improved last year. Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev chaired four consultations on the state of the Russian space industry, discussing ways to achieve high standards of equipment manufacture and to reform the sector in general. A variety of scenarios were discussed, from setting up a state space corporation to forming a number of major holding companies. A final decision on the possible structure of the space sector is due to be taken in spring 2013.

The current plan is to have five to seven holding companies, which would subsequently be turned into three or four diversified corporations. There could also be a separate instrument-building corporation to supply systems and assemblies for space vehicles.

The top priorities of Russia’s space program are outlined in the draft strategy through 2030 and beyond, which was adopted in 2011. A more detailed rundown can be found in the government program of space exploration for 2013-2020, approved by the Cabinet in December 2012.

The new program brings together the existing targeted and federal programs related to space exploration.

According to it, Russia should preserve guaranteed access to space in order to secure its research, socioeconomic, defense and security interests, while unconditionally fulfilling all international obligations.

The government intends to finance the implementation of the program to the tune of 2.1 trillion rubles ($70 billion). Return on this investment is expected to come in the form of Russia getting a modern space industry with twice the current labour productivity.

The country’s satellite constellation should be expanded to 95 spacecraft by 2015 and to 113 spacecraft by 2020.

The number of satellite communications channels should grow 2.5 times by 2015, reaching three times the current value by 2020. Also by 2015, Russian communications satellites should have the capability to transmit data in the millimeter wavelength band and in the optical band by the year 2020. The constellation of Earth remote-sensing satellites is to grow fourfold by 2015; the time intervals between observations should decrease from the current five or six days to one or two days (depending on the region) by 2015, and by the year 2020 they should not exceed eight hours.

Another objective is to improve the qualitative parameters of the Glonass satellite navigation system.

The euphoria that followed the first space-related successes of several years ago, and the frustration from the bitter failures of 2010 and 2011, appear to be giving way to a more sober, pragmatic approach towards strategic planning.

The Soviet spaceflight era is well and truly over, it is now for Russia to maintain its own presence in space.

RUSSIA/CIS OBSERVER № 1 (36) JANUARY 2013

23

SPACE BUSINESS

Russia eyes more joint space projects with India Igor Afanasyev, Dmitry Vorontsov

R

ussia and India share a long history of cooperation in space. India’s first satellite was orbited by a Soviet Kosmos-3 rocket from the Kapustin Yar site on April 19, 1975. The first Indian to travel to space, Rakesh Sharma, flew with the Soviet Soyuz T-11 expedition in 1984. In the mid-1990s and the early 2000s, Russia supplied 12 KRB cryogenic third stages for the Indian GSLV rockets.

The two countries continue to be strategic partners in space exploration, as confirmed by Russian President Vladimir Putin s recent visit to India.

In the course of the one-day visit on December 24, 2012, Putin held talks with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and signed $5 billion’s worth of pacts in a variety of fields. Although defense contracts account for the major part of this sum, the newly signed space-related agreements are of no less significance.

The most important of these is certainly the agreement to jointly operate

During Putin’s visit to New Delhi in December an agreement was reached on building Glonass signal correction stations in India

that India had been invited to join the Glonass development program on a parity basis. New Delhi accepted the offer; in November last year Indian Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai hailed it as “an important component of Russian-Indian space cooperation”.

In the course of Putin s visit an agreement was reached on building Glonass signal correction stations in India to enhance the system’s precision. Russia’s satnav provider NIS Glonass, for its part, inked a deal with Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. and

In 2017 an Indian rover is to be launched towards the Moon atop a Russian Soyuz-2 the Russian Glonass satellite navigation system. Among other things, the deal secures India’s independence from the US GPS system by enabling it to operate Glonass for civilian and military purposes. An earlier accord, signed in late 2011, granted the Indian military access to high-precision Glonass signals for the purpose of dramatically increasing the accuracy of its ballistic missiles (to within half a meter of the target, according to some sources).

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin announced last year 24

Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd. to jointly offer Glonass/GPS-based navigation services in India, using the Russian company’s solutions and the Indian partners existing infrastructure.

The partners are currently discussing the implementation of pilot projects in this area.

NIS Glonass in late 2012 registered a subsidiary firm in Mumbai with a view of setting up a software development office and a hardware production shop that would serve the Indian market. The company runs a showroom for

RUSSIA/CIS OBSERVER № 1 (36) JANUARY 2013

potential customers and partners in Mumbai.

The prospects of the earlier announced bilateral interplanetary projects are less certain. The Chandrayaan2 lunar exploration mission, originally scheduled for launch in 2014, suffered a delay due to the failure of Russia’s Phobos-Grunt probe, which incorporated the same technology as the proposed Chanrdayaan-2 lander.

“Chandrayaan-2, which is a joint program with the Russian Federal Space Agency, has been delayed due to some major reversals suffered by Russia in their launch vehicles, including their mission to Mars, last year,” Parivakkam Subramaniam Veeraraghavan, director of Vikram Sarabkhai Space Centre, told the press on December 7, 2012. “The Russians have decided that they will give a lander, which is the most complex of the Chandrayaan-2 elements, only after flying the same at least once.” In light of this circumstance, India’s ISRO space research organization switched its exploration priorities from the Moon to Mars. India’s first Martian mission is expected to be launched in October or November 2013.

Despite this development, Putin secured an agreement during his recent visit under which Russia and India will continue joint lunar exploration efforts.

A mission is being tentatively planned for 2017 to launch an Indian rover and a Russian lander towards the Moon atop a Russian Soyuz-2 rocket. The lander and rover could spend up to one year studying the regolith and physical processes near the Moon’s south pole.

India intends to invest about $3 billion in space exploration over the next five years. This hefty budget provides a good impetus for further cooperation between the two countries.