Klebanov cautions against expectations of new equipment for the Russian armed forces and emphasises upgrades

Published: 8/26/1999

In his closing speech at the MAKS-99 air show, Ilya Klebanov, Deputy Prime Minister responsible for aerospace, stated that Russian armed forces would start acquiring new leading edge military equipment in three to four years' time. The immediate priority, according to Klebanov, is the modernisation of existing equipment, upgrading it to as close a level as possible to new generation equipment. This is illustrated in the improved capability of the Su-27 and MiG-29 through the addition of night vision capability. Klebanov claimed that: "After the modernisation of fighters' systems and the addition of new capabilities, they become more attractive for many foreign customers". He added that, in the near future, approximately 1,000 fighters, including MiG-21, MiG-23, Su-22, Su-24, would be modernised by Russian producers and offered for sale to foreign armed forces. The revenues from such sales would then be used to purchase modern equipment for the Russian armed forces. There is nothing particularly new in Klebanov's speech, other than his re-iteration of the commitment to new equipment within a set time frame, so making it clear to his primarily military audience that they had to make the best of what they have. The suggestion that existing Russian Armed Force's aircraft might be updated and offered for sale, as opposed to just upgrading the installed foreign base, is, however, intriguing. To date, there has been little such activity. It will be interesting to see how it develops, given a large pool of aircraft and under-utilised facilities.

Article ID: 800