MOSCOW. Oct 21 (Interfax) - The Russian-Belarusian joint strategic simulated warfare exercises West-2013 were conducted recently to assess the capabilities of certain weapons and military hardware and the ways of them to be implemented, says Army Gen. Valery Gerasimov, the chief of staff of the Russian armed forces.
"For test purposes, Su-34 planes belonging to the Western Military District carried out a maximum range flight followed by combat operations. The conclusion has been made that planes of this type can deliver strikes from airfields located at a significant distance away from the target," Gerasimov said in summing up the exercises' results on Friday.
Su-24 planes also carried out a nonstop flight with midair refueling, and MiG-31 fighters conducted a nonstop flight, were refueled in midair three times "and ensured the fulfillment of their mission," Gerasimov said.
The landing of marines on an unequipped shore confirmed the BTR-82 armored personnel carrier's performance characteristics and once again evaluated the capabilities of onboard weapons in supporting Ground Forces' units, he said.
"In general, the tests helped adjust requirements to be met by prospected types of weapons," he said.