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A-100 Makes Maiden Flight: Qualitative Leap in AWACS Capability
[StrategicCulture] November 18 was a historic date for the Russian Aerospace Forces. The A-100 Premier airborne early warning and control (AWACS) aircraft, nicknamed "a flying mushroom" due to the distinctive rotating radar dome above the fuselage, completed its maiden flight. The test was conducted by the Taganrog Aviation Scientific and Technical Complex (TANTK), located near the Sea of Azov.The aircraft is intended to replace Russian Aerospace Forces A-50 and A-50U Mainstay aircraft beginning in 2020 ‐ about the same time as the S-500 air defense system enters service. The A-100 will be another important component of Russia’s anti-access/area-denial arsenal monitoring potentially contested air space. "This is one of [the] priorities of the current arms procurement program," Russian Deputy Defense Minister Yuri Borisov said in March 2017. Based on the Ilyushin Il-76MD-90A military transport aircraft, the new AWACS plane will feature completely new systems: avionics, mission systems, and work stations to help reduce the workload for the flight crew and systems operators. Posted by: Anomalous Sources 2017-12-17 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=503870 |