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Russia’s Defense Ministry Discussing Development of VTOL Plane for Aircraft Carrier

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Naval Aviation News - Russia
 
 
 
Russia’s Defense Ministry Discussing Development of VTOL Plane for Aircraft Carrier
 
Russia’s Defense Ministry is currently in talks with aircraft makers to discuss the development of a promising vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) plane for a future aircraft carrier, Russian Deputy Defense Minister Yuri Borisov said.
     
Yak 141 aboard a Soviet Kiev class aircraft carrierA Yak-141 aboard a Soviet Kiev-class aircraft carrier
     
The fighter jet will derive from a group of vertical take-off and landing planes manufactured by the Yakovlev Company, he added.

"The Defense Ministry is planning to launch the construction of an advanced aircraft carrier in the distant future, at the final stage of the 2018-2025 state armament program. Of course, the production of new-generation aircraft will begin by that time," Borisov said at the MAKS 2017 international airshow.

"Today, the Sukhoi Su-33 [NATO reporting name: Flanker-D] and Mikoyan MiG-29 [Fulcrum-D] fighter jets are the basic planes for aircraft carriers, in particular, the ship Admiral Kuznetsov. The Defense Ministry is planning to develop a promising reduced take-off and landing or, probably, vertical take-off and landing plane and we are discussing this issue with aircraft producers," he added.

"The plane will be a derivative of vertical take-off and landing aircraft developed by the Yakovlev Design Bureau, which are no longer produced. There are such plans and we are discussing them. The groundwork laid may be used to develop a new plane for aircraft carriers," the deputy defense minister said.
     
Yak 141 Hovering VTOLA Yak-141 in hover mode
     
The Yakovlev Design Bureau started developing the Yakovlev Yak-141 (Freestyle) multirole supersonic VTOL fighter jet in the mid-1970s.

The plane performed its first flight in 1987. The Yak-141 aircraft were planned to make part of the air wing of the heavy aircraft carriers, the Novorossiysk, Baku (the future ship Admiral Gorshkov), Tbilisi (currently known as the Admiral Kuznetsov), Riga (the future ship Varyag) and Ulyanovsk.

The Yak-141 plane landed on an aircraft carrier for the first time in 1991. The production of the aircraft was ceased in 2003.

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Comments by Navy Recognition
Krylov State Research Center completed last year a conceptual design of the Project 23000 Shtorm aircraft carrier intended to displace 95,000 tons and carry an air wing of 65 aircraft. Her power plant may be nuclear. According to Krylov "the Project 23000 multirole aircraft carrier is designed for operations far in the ocean, attacks on land-based and naval targets, provision of combat stability for friendly naval forces and air defense of Marines and supporting ships during amphibious assaults. The future ship is supposed to displace about 95,000 tons, measure 330 m long and have a speed of 30 knots. The carrier is to carry sophisticated radio equipment, radars and self-defense systems. Her complement will be several thousand servicemen, including the personnel of her air wing".

Yak-141 specifications
Length: 60 ft 2.25 in.
Wingspan: 33 ft 1.5 in
Height: 16 ft 5 in
Empty weight: 25,683 lb
Max. takeoff weight: 42,989 lb
Engine: One MNPK Soyuz R-79V-300 turbofan and two RKBM RD-41 hover turbojets behind the cockpit

Performance
Maximum speed: 1,118 mph
Range: 1,305-1,865 mi
Ceiling: 50,853 ft
Rate of climb: 49,213 ft/min

Armament
Guns: One 30 mm GSh-301 cannon with 120 rounds
Hardpoints: 4 underwing and 1 fuselage hardpoints with a capacity of 5,733 lb
Missiles: R-73 Archer, R-77 Adder or R-27 Alamo air-to-air missiles