Translated material
Inflatable tank
A record number of new products were shown at the MVSV-2008 arms exhibition
The third International Salon of Arms and Military Equipment (IMSV-2008) in Moscow, which ended last Sunday, became the most visited in the history of this military exhibition - the number of visitors exceeded 400 thousand people. They came to see the latest weapons and military equipment from more than 400 Russian and foreign companies from 23 countries. Foreign enterprises that modernized military equipment for Georgia were also not refused participation. But the main difference of this exhibition is the abundance of new products.For example, the new wheeled armored personnel carrier BTR-90 manufactured by Military Industrial Company LLC. The model is made in a new armored body and is equipped with a new weapon system. The frontal armor of the new armored personnel carrier is capable of resisting armor-piercing shells from cannons with a caliber of up to 30 mm inclusive; the hull protects the crew, components and assemblies of the vehicle from fire from small arms with a caliber of up to 12.7 mm. If necessary, additional modular armor is installed on the BTR-90. Inside, the habitable compartments of the vehicle are covered with a special anti-fragmentation material. The BTR-90 with the Berezhok weapons system is equipped with a 30-mm automatic cannon, a machine gun, an automatic grenade launcher, and four launchers of the Konet-E anti-tank missile system. The mass entry of this armored personnel carrier into service with the Russian army is scheduled for 2009-2015.
The Ulyanovsk Cartridge Plant has mastered the production of a new cartridge for a 12.7 mm caliber sniper rifle with increased penetrating effect. Delivery of new items to troops under the state defense order began this year. The cartridge is designed to destroy manpower with personal armor protection, as well as to destroy ground vehicles and low-flying air targets. The bullet shell of the cartridge is bimetallic, the core is made of steel and lead. Manufacturers guarantee “at least 80% penetration” when firing at a 10 mm thick armor plate installed perpendicular to the line of fire at a range of up to 800 meters. In general, the effective firing range is up to 2 thousand meters.
The Perm Research and Production Instrument-Making Company promised Russian artillerymen in 2009 a new topographic navigation system for more efficient shooting. A prototype based on fiber-optic gyroscopes was presented at the Moscow exhibition. The use of the new complex increases the accuracy and accuracy of artillery fire, reduces the time to prepare the gun for firing - the crew can fire within three minutes after receiving the task.
Another step has been taken towards providing our army with navigation receivers. The personal navigation device was shown by the Moscow design bureau "Compass". The new development is nothing more than a wearable receiver-indicator of satellite navigation systems - Russian GLONASS and American GPS. The device helps to navigate the terrain in the field; it is also necessary when driving vehicles for various purposes in unfamiliar areas. The device weighs 550 grams and can be placed on a soldier’s unloading vest.
A participant in the exhibition, LLC "Trade and Industrial Company "Saro" from the city of Vorsma, Nizhny Novgorod Region, showed a new type of naval officer's dagger. Their production has resumed after a three-year break. Already this year, the Saro enterprise will supply 6.5 thousand units of this to the order of the Ministry of Defense edged weapons If previously the company produced souvenir daggers with a blade hardness of 22-24 units, then for weapons for military sailors the hardness has been increased to 48-54 units.
Unfortunately, the Russian military admits that at MVSV-2008 they did not see new means of protecting armored vehicles from anti-tank guided missiles (ATGM). It became known that some of the Russian tanks deployed to support peacekeepers in South Ossetia were not covered with dynamic protection means. Yes, on television screens Russian tanks were “covered” with explosive reactive armor boxes that should contain plastic, but the boxes were empty. The fact is that bringing protective equipment into combat condition is a very labor-intensive operation that takes up to 10 hours. The principle of active protection is as follows: about 300 boxes filled with plastic are hung on the armor of the tank; when hit, the charge seems to be repelled from the armor by the exploding plasticite and protects the crew.
Based on the results of two more Chechen campaigns, a program for modernizing the tank fleet was developed, which included strengthening protection, but the program was soon curtailed. Now we are talking about resuscitating it. Perhaps there will also be room in it for an automatic transmission for T-90 tanks. At the salon, the federal state unitary enterprise Rosoboronexport held negotiations with foreign partners on this topic.
The Russian army has already received the new automatic 40-mm grenade launcher system "Balkan", although so far only for military tests. The new product was created by the federal research and production center "Pribor". “Balkan” will in the future replace the AGS-30 “Plamya”, which is in service. The new product is ahead of its predecessor in range (2.5 instead of 1.7 km) and in combat effectiveness - thanks to the larger caliber and power of the explosive.
Another grenade launcher - the RPG-32 Hashim hand-held multi-caliber grenade launcher system - was first presented as a joint development between Russia and Jordan. This is the world's first grenade launcher that fires grenades of various calibers, including 72 mm and 105 mm. 105 mm caliber grenades, the developers say, will penetrate the armor of all existing and future tanks. The complex will first be put into service in Russia, and then in Jordan, where it was tested.
The company "Rusbal" ("Russian balloon") is fulfilling an order from the Russian military department for the supply of inflatable simulators of military equipment. In particular, inflatable models of S-300 anti-aircraft missile systems (ZRS). In addition, the Ministry of Defense finances development work to create promising models of camouflage equipment - inflatable models of tanks and aircraft, in particular the Su-27 fighter.
The Enix company from Kazan presented at MVSV-2008 unmanned vehicles of various types for military and civil purposes with a take-off weight from 1.5 to 200 kg. These unmanned aerial vehicles can be used to adjust mortar and artillery fire, radio monitoring, and photographic reconnaissance of the area. New opportunities for using drones - delivery of military cargo (ammunition, medicine, communications equipment and spare parts) in combat conditions. The military says that the battalion must have at least one UAV. To do this, there is no need to change the staffing structure of the units - the device can be serviced by a serviceman who has undergone 30 hours of training. In general, Kazan residents say, a new generation of unmanned aerial vehicles has been developed that are of interest to the Ministry of Defense.
While Russian weapons are not inferior to their foreign counterparts in terms of tactical and technical characteristics, we are still far behind in service systems. And as part of the MVSV-2008 exhibition, a conference was held dedicated to the problems of integrated logistics support for Russian arms exports based on digital technologies. This support becomes mandatory for applications from foreign buyers. Electronic cataloging in the field of emergency supplies of weapons and spare parts for them is a worldwide practice. Today, 56 countries have already switched to the NATO cataloging system in this area, including the largest buyer of Russian weapons - India. Foreign customers already impose fines if the purchased military products do not have electronic codification. So, at the next arms exhibitions we should expect a reaction from the Russian military-industrial complex to the modern requirements of military-technical cooperation.
Perhaps this will happen as early as May 2009 at an exhibition of weapons and military equipment in Minsk, organized by the countries of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO). Let us recall that the presidents of the CSTO states signed an agreement on joint advertising and exhibition activities. In addition, the countries of the organization are developing a common weapons program until 2020. By that time, according to experts, the possibilities for modernization and the service life of Soviet-era equipment will be exhausted. And certainly the topic of cataloging and codification will be discussed at the next MAKS next summer. By that time, it is planned to put into operation the Rossiya transport and exhibition complex in Zhukovsky near Moscow, which is being built by the Russian Technologies State Corporation.