Army 2020: Top 15 new products and main achievements
From August 23 to 29, the annual international forum “Army” was held in Kubinka and Alabino near Moscow, which became the main platform for displaying the latest weapons systems and military equipment for the Ministry of Defense and enterprises of the Russian military-industrial complex.
This year, at the Army 2020 exhibition, more than one and a half thousand scientific, technical and manufacturing enterprises showed their goods, putting on public display about 28 thousand exhibits.
The Rostec state corporation alone presented over 1100 types of weapons, special equipment for military and civilian purposes, 70 of which had never been demonstrated before.
According to experts, among the most interesting exhibits are anti-drone systems, innovative models of armored vehicles, communication and control systems.
Among the new products, the domestic defense industry presented medical antiviral developments, which are very relevant in light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
It is not possible to cover all 28 thousand exhibits at the Army 2020 exhibition, so we will take the trouble to talk about ten to fifteen samples of military equipment and weapons that have attracted the attention of experts.
1. The RPL-20 light machine gun (belt light machine gun), developed by the Kalashnikov concern at the request of the Russian Ministry of Defense, was shown for the first time on August 27.
The RPL-20 is a further development of the RPK-16 machine gun and should enhance fire support for infantry squads, based on the experience of using similar small arms systems in Western armies, in which infantry squads are equipped with belt-fed light machine guns such as the FN Minimi or M249 SAW.
At the moment, changes are being made to the design of the machine gun based on experimental military operation of the RPK-16. The expected dates and start of testing have not been announced.
2. Deep-sea uninhabited vehicle “Vityaz-D”.
The Vityaz-D deep-sea drone developed by the Rubin Central Design Bureau became the world's first fully autonomous uninhabited bathyscaphe to reach the deepest point of the World Ocean. This event occurred on May 8, 2020. With the help of an on-board control system that uses control algorithms without human intervention, Vityaz-D is capable of independently avoiding obstacles along the course, including exiting a confined space using elements of artificial intelligence in the control system.
The unmanned deep-sea complex is capable of operating at extreme depths (remember that the deepest point of the World Ocean is the Mariana Trench, which lies 10994 meters below sea level). It consists of an autonomous uninhabited vehicle, a deep-sea bottom station and control room equipment.
3. The Remdiesel company brought to the exhibition two samples of multi-purpose tracked tractors MGTT-LB and MGSh-LBU, created as part of the Reconstruction development work on instructions from the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation.
The new tractors are the product of the evolutionary development of a family of highly versatile military tracked vehicles, created on the basis of the legendary MT-LB “motoliga” - the most common transporter in the world, in service in 40 countries.
According to Remdiesel engineers, there are no analogues to the old MT-LB, and there cannot be, but serious improvements can and should be made to the time-tested and combat-tested design. The modernized tractors use a new engine and tracks with a closed joint, which gives a gain in weight (approximately 800-900 kg) and mobility.
MGTT-LB and MGSh-LBU are currently undergoing military tests.
4.Parachute system “Stayer” for special purposes.
"Stayer" is designed for landing groups of troops from altitudes from 700 to 8000 meters. Development of the Technodinamika holding. The parachute is equipped with a suspension system that allows you to attach a cargo container or other equipment to the front.
For skydiver athletes, Technodinamika developed and for the first time demonstrated at the forum Irbis parachute packs in 12 sizes for different types of parachuting.
5.Export version of the 5th generation fighter Su-57E.
Su-57 (PAK FA - a promising front-line aviation complex) is a Russian multi-role fighter of the 5th generation, developed by the Sukhoi Design Bureau. The fighter is equipped with a fundamentally new complex of deeply integrated avionics, which has a high level of control automation and intelligent crew support. Serial deliveries of the Su-57 to the troops are expected to begin this year. At the exhibition, as part of a static exposition, a sample of the Su-57E is on display for sale to foreign customers.
6. Reconnaissance and patrol gliding amphibian "Drozd".
Designed and built by the Baltic Engineering Company (BMK). The machine body is made of composite materials. The patrol and reconnaissance amphibian is capable of speeds on land of up to 100 km/h, and on water – up to 70 km/h. "Drozd" is equipped with a high-speed vertical winch for self-pulling, which is also an anchor system.
7. Attack drone “Thunder”.
The development of the high-speed attack drone "Grom" is at an early stage, but the Kronstadt industrial group decided to show its promising project at the Army 2020 exhibition.
Judging by the published performance characteristics, the Thunder should become a competitor to the heavy UAV Okhotnik, which was tested by the Design Bureau named after. Dry started last year.
The wingspan of the promising UAV will be 10 meters, length – 13,8 meters, height – 3,8 meters. Take-off weight – 7 tons, combat load – 2 tons. Other characteristics of the drone have not yet been reported.
The main purpose of the "Grom" is to work as a wingman in the forward attack echelon, reconnaissance, detection and neutralization of enemy air defenses, and destruction of ground and sea targets with guided high-precision weapons in tactical and operational-tactical depth.
Together with Grom, the Kronstadt group is presenting its other drones - Helios, Sirius and the Orion UAV, already known from MAKS 2019.
8.Hermes high-precision missile system.
The new Hermes multi-platform missile system has a firing range of up to 100 km and is a high-precision fire-and-forget munition. Developed at the Instrument Design Bureau named after. Shipunova.
“Hermes” should replace the “Vikhr” and “Ataka” missiles already in service, but with more modest parameters, and can be installed on aviation, sea and land carriers.
The complex implements a salvo firing mode at six spaced targets, as well as automatic synchronization of laser target designation for hitting targets with high-precision ammunition.
9.Antey-4000 anti-aircraft missile system.
The Antey-4000 air defense system is an export version of the S-300V4, which is in service with the Russian air defense forces. The modernization of the complex was completed back in 2016, but Antey-4000 made its first appearance at the Army 2020 exhibition.
The complex’s armament consists of two missiles – a light one, with a range of destruction of flying targets at a distance of up to 140 km, and a heavy, hypersonic one, with a speed of 7,5 Mach (almost 9200 km/h), capable of destroying targets at a distance of 400 km.
In December 2019, there was official information that the S-300V4 heavy air defense missile had successfully intercepted a target in hypersonic mode.
10. Buggy "Tiger" for special purpose groups.
The machine is “sharpened” for special forces raid operations. The buggy is built on the basis of a special armored vehicle SBM VPK-233136 and has an open body.
Despite its size, the baby buggy is equipped with a powerful 240-horsepower turbodiesel with an automatic transmission and is armed to the teeth: the buggy is equipped with brackets for mounting a large-caliber 12,7 mm Kord machine gun and two 7,62 mm Pecheneg or PKM machine guns , as well as two man-portable anti-aircraft missile systems.
Next to the Tiger buggy, the airmobile light armored vehicle Strela is presented for the first time, which can be transported on an external sling by a Mi-8 helicopter. The exhibition shows the first experimental sample.
11.BTR-82AT.
In fact, this is no longer an armored personnel carrier, but a wheeled infantry fighting vehicle. The BTR-82AT with a set of protective and lattice screens is equipped with a remotely controlled combat module BTR-BM. The developers note that thanks to the implemented measures, its combat effectiveness coefficient compared to the BTR-82A increased by 1,2 times.
12. Tracked infantry fighting vehicle "Manul".
The High-Precision Complexes holding exhibited a new infantry fighting vehicle, Manul, aimed primarily at export customers. A characteristic feature of the Manul is the troop exit through the rear ramp, which is in demand among customers. Taking into account this design feature, the engine and transmission compartment of the infantry fighting vehicle is located at the front.
In the basic version, the Manul is equipped with a Boomerang module with a 30 mm cannon and four guided missiles. The degree of unification with the BMP-3 is about 50%. In fact, the Manul is a hybrid of the BMP-3 and the Boomerang, developed as part of the Armata project.
13.The Tornado multiple launch rocket system will receive the latest high-precision guided missile.
Unlike its predecessors, now each Tornado projectile can hit a separate target. The flight range of the ammunition is up to 120 km.
The Tornado-S missile was the first in its family with a tail block rotating around the longitudinal axis, while the missile and warhead parts themselves remain static. This ensures stable communication with GLONASS satellite guidance, which, in turn, increases the accuracy of hitting a target by 15 - 20 times in comparison with Smerch MLRS projectiles.
14. It is imperative to mention the new products of the Avtomatika concern, part of the Rostec system, developed to combat enemy UAVs.
Among the exhibits at Avtomatika are the portable anti-drone system Bastion, the modernized Kupol-PRO, as well as the automated mobile anti-drone system Rubezh.
“Rubezh” can be installed in open areas, including the roofs of buildings or structures, and has a large detection and counteraction radius (the performance characteristics of the complex are closed). "Bastion" is a compact medium-range complex. Anti-UAV systems can operate in both manual and automatic modes. The developer did not limit himself to showing the equipment in the pavilion, but also demonstrated live how UAVs are detected and identified, as well as examples of their electronic jamming.
“Dome-PRO” affects drones in a limited area, covering the territory with a kind of protective cap. It has a short range (up to 2,5 km), but is at the same time extremely mobile.
Ruselectronics showed its version of suppressing the operation of drones. The Ataka-DBS mobile complex presented by her blocks communication channels and satellite navigation of drones. Under the influence of the complex, the drone loses contact with the control panel and, depending on the selected algorithm, either makes an emergency landing or returns to the launch point. The system response time is 0,1 seconds.
Another anti-drone system is the Rat laser complex based on a KAMAZ truck, which can blind and damage the electronic equipment of reconnaissance UAVs.
15. An amazing cycloplane for landing, which currently exists in the form of a drone weighing 60 kg, but, according to the designers, by 2024 it promises to take the form of a full-size vehicle capable of transporting six people by air.
Flight tests are scheduled for February 2021, during which the cycloplane must confirm the declared characteristics. If the results are successful, the cycloplane designers will move on to developing a larger machine.
The variety of military equipment and weapons on display made visitors dizzy. There were a great many exhibits worthy of mention.
This is the Sprut underwater towing vehicle for reconnaissance divers, developed by order of the Russian Navy, and a model of the small submarine for coastal defense "Serval" (P-750B), a version of the A-19 assault rifle chambered for the NATO 5,56 cartridge, a "smart" gun " Ultima", a sports pistol "Aspid" and a compact, concealed carry "Poloz" for Russian law enforcement officers, a silent PSS-2 for special forces and even an exoskeleton for the army, developed by the Mechanics Research Institute of Moscow State University. Lomonosov.
exoskeleton
new silent special forces pistol PSS-2
“smart” hunting rifle “Ultima” from the Kalashnikov concern
tugboat for military divers “Sprut”
The mascot of the exhibition is a T-54/55 tank painted in Gzhel style.
The exhibition organizers can be rightfully proud. The NATO delegation walked through its pavilions and exhibition grounds with their mittens open, wringing their necks with curiosity and frantically photographing the products of Russian Kulibins.
It should be emphasized that foreigners besieged the exhibition of chemical and biological research institutes of the Russian Ministry of Defense, against which the US authorities recently announced sanctions in connection with ridiculous accusations of developing biological and chemical weapons of mass destruction.
It’s a no brainer that the sanctions are mainly of a political nature: Russia has not been developing or producing chemical and biological weapons for a very long time (unlike the United States and its allies), and the main goal of overseas schemers is to cause damage to Russian pharmaceuticals and a competitive advantage for American developers vaccines using non-economic methods.
Foreign customers were primarily interested in the Sputnik V vaccine against COVID-19, developed jointly by the laboratories of the Center. Gamaleya RAS, GosNIIOKhT, Research Institute No. 33 and Research Institute No. 48.
It is already known that at the Army 2020 exhibition, the Russian Ministry of Defense signed 41 contracts for the purchase of new types of weapons, repair and modernization of military equipment for a total amount of 1,36 trillion rubles.
It is planned to sign contracts worth several hundred million dollars with foreign partners, and some of the deals have already been concluded, including the delivery of the second batch of S-400 air defense systems to Turkey. That is, with “duct tape” for Russia, the efficiency of US efforts does not lead to the expected results: Russian weapons and equipment continue to remain an interesting and competitive product on the international market, and sanctions do not deter potential foreign buyers at all.
Another useful effect from the annual Army exhibition is visual proof to the “hegemon” that Russia is following its own path, without getting involved in a ruinous arms race. The path in this case is a set of asymmetrical measures, when, instead of weapons parity, the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation are given the task of causing unacceptable damage to the enemy, defensive systems become the basis of weapons, and the national military-industrial complex focuses on the production of advanced combat systems at a reasonable price with the possibility of earning money foreign orders.
Despite the fact that Russian defense industry enterprises are the locomotive of the high-tech industry and the main player in the Russian domestic market, covering 40% of the volume of civilian production.
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