MOSCOW, July 31 (AVN) - The Defence Ministry 929th state flight testing centre is carrying out state tests of the SVP-24 special computer subsystem developed by the Gefest i T JSC, the company's Director General Alexander Panin told the Military News Agency on Monday.
The Air Force task for the Metronom research and production work on modernisation of the SU-24M Fencer frontline bomber's on-board and ground equipment with the SVP-24 system was to increase the plane's combat capability at 25 percent and decrease annual expenses on the plane's use at 17 percent. Moreover, the modernisation should envisage both main and export variants.
During the flight development tests and combat estimates which took place in the 4th centre for fight personnel combat use and retraining from December 1998 to June 25, 2001 the place with SVP-24 system flew 89 sorties, made 296 bombings, 32 launches of projectiles and two launches of wire-guided missiles. The flight testing training at the 929th centre on April 16 to 21 involved three SU-24M Fencer planes with the system. The tests results proved the considerable increase of combat potential of the SU-24 Fencer all-weather attack plane.
While using the system the crew does not need to stick to tasked straight flight on combat line near the target where it is always being attacked by air defence means. The dropping of aviation bombs takes place from free flight without entering the air defence means zone while the accuracy of hitting targets can be compared to one produced with wire-guided means. The plane's peculiarities with the system are all-weather, survivability and minimal expenses.
Moreover, the possibility of using tactical skills during searches, exits, aiming and inflicting strikes on surface targets is being extended as well. Particularly, the precise specifications were increased at 3.2 times, reliability of aiming and navigation system was increased at three times while the daily combat flight was raised at four times.
According to Panin, the crews and command of the 4th centre expressed their will to speed up the production and replacement of piloting sight with collimating indicator developed by the company.
Currently the 929th centre is carrying out state tests of the system and the results already exceed the Air Force demands.
The system can be slightly developed and mounted on other aircraft such as fighters, attack planes, bombers, passenger and military transport planes as well as on various purpose helicopters.