MOSCOW. April 1 (Interfax-AVN) - Many officials of the Russian defense industry believe that currently available funds should be spent on modernization of existing aircraft engines, not development of new ones for promising aircraft, Yevgeny Fomin, chief constructor of the Soyuz aircraft engine research and technical association, said on Monday.
"Russia lacks the research and production base for development and mass production of a fifth-generation engine," Fomin told Interfax-Military News Agency. Moreover, the Russian Air Force is unlikely to need an engine of that kind before 2010, he said.
"Many billions of rubles must be invested in the production base to develop a new-generation engine," Fomin noted. Investments must not be limited to design bureaus and mass- production plants specializing in aircraft engines, extra financing is also needed by enterprises of special and non- ferrous metallurgy, research centers designing new composite materials, etc.
According to Fomin, Russia is unable to provide the necessary volume of funds for the development of a new engine for a fifth-generation fighter.
Production facilities of aircraft engine building enterprises have not been renewed for 10 years and need thorough rearmament, the designer said.
In addition, it is not yet clear what kind of fighter the Russian Air Force needs. A discussion on the number of engines to be mounted on the plane is underway. Fomin believes that the thrust of existing AL-31F engines can be boosted to 14-15 tonnes, but it is insufficient for a single-engined fighter and excessive for a two-engined fighter.
Development of a new-generation engine is "in full swing" abroad, Fomin said. "The gap between the level of aircraft engine development in Russia and in the West is expanding constantly," he stressed.