Russian naval aviation received a new combat trainer fighter on January 20, 2007. The two-seat MiG-29KUB took to the skies from the airfield of the Mikhail Gromov Flight Research Institute.
At the controls was the program's leading test pilot, Mikhail Belyaev. And the tests were supervised by Hero of Russia Pavel Vlasov, who mastered more than 35 types of aircraft and has a total flight time of about 3,800 hours.
The carrier-based fighter made a 42-minute flight. This significant event occurred exactly three years after the contract was signed with the Indian Navy for the supply of MiG-29K and MiG-29KUB naval fighters.
The first production aircraft took off in March 2008. At the flight test complex of the Russian Aircraft Corporation "MiG", located in Lukhovitsy, the MiG-29KUB performed traditional taxiing and runs. After that, it made a 42-minute flight in modes that had previously been tested on a prototype.
What is the MiG-29KUB
The two-seat MiG-29KUB is based on the MiG-29K. Representatives of the Ministry of Defense and the Indian Navy took an active part in its creation. They set requirements that significantly exceeded global standards in a number of key parameters.
The MiG-29KUB was designed at the Engineering Center of the A.I. Mikoyan Design Bureau. The chief designer of the MiG-29K/KUB aircraft was Nikolai Nikolaevich Buntin.
At the request of the customer, the MiG-29KUB's avionics were developed using international components. Not only Russian companies were involved in the creation of the aircraft, but also Indian, French and Israeli manufacturers.
The fighter was to become the first domestic combat aircraft capable of taking off from a ship's deck and landing on it in the usual way - with a takeoff and landing run. Prior to this, the Russian Navy had neither such aircraft nor ships capable of receiving them.
Multifunctional fighter
The single-seat MiG-29K and the two-seat MiG-29KUB are fourth-generation multirole fighters designed to solve various tasks: from air defense of ship formations to gaining air superiority. These aircraft are capable of engaging surface and ground targets both day and night, in all weather conditions, using high-precision guided weapons.
The MiG-29K/KUB aircraft are equipped with built-in automatic control and recording systems called "Karat". In addition, a video recording system is installed on board, as well as a computerized system for entering a flight mission into the onboard avionics and an autonomous power generation system that allows ground checks of equipment without starting the main engines.
In 2012, the Russian Ministry of Defense signed a contract for the supply of 20 MiG-29K and 4 MiG-29KUB fighters for the heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser "Admiral Kuznetsov". Today, these aircraft, along with the Su-33, form the basis of the aircraft carrier aviation of the Russian Navy.
Earlier www1.ru reported that Russia continues to work on creating a new Il-212 military transport aircraft. It is expected that by 2026 it will be ready for operation and will replace the outdated An-26 and An-72.
Read also on the topic:
Three unique aircraft that could have changed Russian aviation
Russian airline orders two MS-21 cargo planes for the first time
Russia will not modernize the Tu-214 aircraft: the reason is named
