How Russia Is Modernizing Its Naval Aviation Fleet

The heavy Tupolev Tu-142 ASW aircraft is a variant of the Tu-95 strategic bomber. The easiest way to distinguish the aircraft, designated Bear-F by NATO, from a bomber is by its antennas: The Tu-142 has a large droplet fairing under the fuselage that covers the surveillance radar antenna and a magnetic anomaly-detector antenna that protrudes to the rear on the tail fin tip. Rocket-propelled or electric torpedoes, depth charges (including nuclear ones), mines and sonobuoys are located inside two fuselage weapons bays. The Tu-142 can patrol for 4 hr. 10 min. at 4,000 km (2,485 mi.) from base without inflight refueling. The aircraft are located in two naval aviation bases, each with 12 aircraft. A third of the Tu-142s are not airworthy.

The Tupolev Tu-142MR, developed by the Beriev design bureau, is the most dangerous of all Russian naval aircraft, even though it does not carry weapons. It is a strategic radio-relay aircraft, similar to the U.S. “Take Charge and Move Out” (Tacamo) system, used to give the commanders of submerged submarines the order to fire their ballistic missiles. The Tu-142MR force reportedly was upgraded starting around 2015 to the Tu-142MRM standard, with new communications equipment that is compatible with the latest Russian submarines. The Russian Navy operates a dozen Tu-142MR/MRM aircraft divided between Kipelovo and Mongokhto bases.

From the outside, the easiest way to distinguish the Tu-142MR is by a forward-pointing pod on the tail fin, as compared to the rearward-pointing magnetometer on other Tu-142 versions. The aircraft features a trailing wire antenna for a very-low-frequency radio installed in the forward bomb bay and deployed via a ventral pod. The antenna and radio allow communication with submerged submarines. The lower aircraft is pictured just deploying its wire antenna with a stabilizing cone attached to the end. When fully deployed, the antenna is 7,680 m (25,200 ft.) long.

Sixty-five Ilyushin Il-38 aircraft were produced from 1967 to 1972 based on the earlier Il-18 turboprop airliner. The Russian Navy now has more than 20 Il-38s. The aircraft’s mission is to protect Russian nuclear-powered submarines carrying ballistic missiles, or SSBNs, against attacks by enemy submarines. Russian SSBNs are deployed from two bases: Gadzhiyevo, near Murmansk for the Northern Fleet, and Vilyuchinsk, in Kamchatka for the Pacific Fleet. The third large base with diesel-powered submarines is located in the Vladivostok area.

The Russian Navy undertook the upgrade of the obviously obsolete Il-38 to the form of the Il-38N with the new Novella mission system. Despite plans to modernize all Il-38s in service to the N standard, however, the navy ceased further upgrades after eight aircraft were converted in 2012-16. In 2019, the Russian press announced that the Il-38 modernizations would continue with a completely new mission system; there was no further information. A unique feature of the Il-38N exterior is the box fairing located over the forward section of the fuselage that contains electronic-support-measures sensors.

The Beriev Be-12 may have an appealing retro look, but it is now utterly useless. The Be-12 used to be a very popular amphibious aircraft (140 were produced in 1963-73) intended for anti-submarine warfare; it was even armed with nuclear depth charges. Today, six airworthy aircraft are in the Russian naval aviation inventory, and all belong to the Black Sea Fleet at Kacha or Sevastopol on the Ukrainian Crimean Peninsula.

The Beriev Be-200 jet-powered amphibious aircraft is the successor to the Be-12. The Russian Navy received the first aircraft in the standard civilian fire-rescue version, Be-200ChS, on July 14, 2020; later, the service received two more aircraft. The first aircraft crashed on Aug. 14, 2021, while extinguishing forest fires in Turkey; the entire crew died.

The problem with Be-200s is that the Russians do not have engines for them. The Be-200 is powered by D436TP turbofans produced in cooperation with Ukraine, and the stock that had been accumulated has just run out. The similar Russian Saturn PD-8 engine is contracted to be ready by December 2024. This means Be-200 production for the Russian Navy is on hiatus.

A model of the planned future Be-200MP maritime patrol version is pictured with advanced mission system and weapons; it is uncertain whether it will be produced.

The Kamov Ka-27 ship- and shore-based anti-submarine-warfare (ASW) helicopter deploys its dipping sonar, which has an antenna that can be submerged to a depth of 150 m. About 85 Ka-27s are in service with the Russian Navy, comprising 70 ASW versions and 15 Ka-27PS search-and-rescue versions.

The midlife-upgraded Kamov Ka-27M ASW helicopter retained the previous rotor system, powerplant and airframe, but the mission system is completely new. The helicopter can be armed with new types of rocket-propelled and electric torpedoes, guided depth charges and Kh-35 anti-ship missiles. From the outside, the easiest way to distinguish the Ka-27M from a helicopter that has not been upgraded is the fixed magnetic anomaly detector under the tail beam. Series upgrades were launched in 2015, and more than 20 helicopters have since been modernized. A Ka-27M serving in the 830th Independent Shipborne ASW Helicopter Regiment at Severomorsk-1 is pictured.

The Kamov Ka-29 is a helicopter designed to deliver assault troops from ship to shore and to provide fire support for marine infantry. After the Soviet Union disintegrated, the Russian Navy neglected these helicopters, which stood abandoned on airfields. But the Ka-29s have been returning to service since 2017. Today, Russia has about 30 airworthy helicopters deployed to all fleets.

The shipborne Kamov Ka-31R radar picket helicopter was developed using the Ka-27 plat­form. Its main mission system is the E801 Oko (eye) radar with a 6 X 1-m flat rotating antenna under the fuselage. In cruise position, the antenna is folded away horizontally and lies flat along the bottom of the fuselage.

This Ka-31R “90” is one of two (the second is “91”) helicopters received by Russian naval aviation in 2012. The purchase program envisaged the delivery of 12 helicopters by 2020, but only these two have been delivered to date. More helicopters were exported: India bought 14, and China purchased nine Ka-31s.

The future Russian naval helicopter based on the Minoga platform likely will look like this. It is being developed as part of the Minoga program ordered by the defense ministry on Nov. 28, 2014. In August 2015, the then-chief of Russian naval aviation, Gen. Igor Kozhin, announced—without mentioning the name—that the new helicopter would be ready in 2018-20. When asked during the Dubai Airshow 2021, however, Russian Helicopters CEO Andrey Boginsky said the first flight date for the Minoga has not been specified yet, which may mean that no contract to build a flying specimen has been issued. In fact, only its full-size mockup has been built. The Minoga helicopter has a typical Kamov configuration with two counter-rotating coaxial rotors. A new mission system is being developed for it, as are new weapons.

Perhaps when speaking of accelerating the development of Russian naval aviation Russian President Vladimir Putin was also referring to the Minoga. The Minoga is planned to replace Helix helicopters in all their applications: in anti-submarine, search-and-rescue, assault and transport as well radar early-warning versions.

The shipborne Kamov Ka-52K is a version of the Ka-52 attack helicopter adapted for navy requirements. To save space on parking, the Ka-52K has a shorter, foldable wing as well as foldable rotor blades. New navigation equipment and an instrument landing system were installed especially for deck operations. The armament set was expanded with the Zvezda Kh-35UV anti-ship missiles. Four initial-batch Ka-52K helicopters have been produced.

The Ka-52K was made especially for French Mistral-class landing helicopter docks. In June 2011, Russia ordered two such ships from France, with two more to be built in Russia later. After Russia seized Crimea, however, France refused to sell the Mistrals. The Russian Navy now does not possess any ships that can use the Ka-52K.

That will change, however. On July 20, 2020, at the Zaliv shipyard in Kerch in Crimea, Putin attended the laying of the keel for two new universal landing ships of Project 23900. Each ship is planned to accommodate up to 18 Ka-52K and Ka-29 helicopters.

The Ka-52K “103” took part in the expedition to Syria onboard the Admiral Kuznetsov aircraft carrier between October 2016 and February 2017. In commemoration, the emblem “Za dalny pokhod,” or “For the far crusade,” was painted on the cockpit side.

In the last years of the Soviet Union, the Su-33 carrier-borne fighter was very important for the Soviets, who aimed to construct a large carrier fleet. These plans, however, ended with the lone Admiral Kuznetsov, for which a batch of 26 fighters was produced in 1993-96; five were lost in service. When compared with the standard Su-27, the Su-33 has canards to decrease the aircraft angle of attack when taking off and landing as well as expanded wing high-lift devices to decrease the approach speed and an arresting hook. The Su-33 is a pure fleet-defense and air-superiority fighter; it cannot carry guided air-to-surface weapons.

All Russian carrier-borne fighters are stationed at the same Severomorsk-3 airfield (30 km from the site in Murmansk, where the Admiral Kuznetsov is based) and constitute two operational units: the 100th Independent Shipborne Fighter Aviation Regiment (OKIAP) with MiG-29s and the 279th OKIAP with Su-33s.

The MiG-29KR shipborne fighter was developed at the request of India, which bought the INS Vikramaditya (formerly the Admiral Gorshkov) aircraft carrier from Russia and 45 MiG-29K fighters with her. Only then did the Russian Navy also order a batch of 20 MiG-29KR fighters and four MiG-29KUBR trainers, all delivered in 2014-15. The key advantage of the MiG-29K over the earlier Su-33 is its ability to fight surface targets with subsonic Kh-35 (AS-20 Kayak) or supersonic Kh-31A (AS-17 Krypton) anti-ship missiles or KAB-500Kr TV-guided bombs.

Do not get confused by the large cockpit canopy: The aircraft pictured is a single-seat MiG-29KR, but single- and two-seat versions have the same canopy; the single-seat version has 630-liter (166-gal.) fuel tank in lieu of the aft seat.

Between October 2016 and February 2017, the Admiral Kuznetsov aircraft carrier took part in the Syrian operation with four MiG-29KR/KUBRs and nine Su-33s onboard. It was their combat debut, but it was not a successful deployment. The naval aviation activity was low: More than 90% of the shipborne fighters’ missions over Syria were performed from the Khmeimim Air Base on shore rather than from the aircraft carrier. Moreover, the carrier’s aircraft-recovery system experienced problems, and one MiG-29KR and one Su-33 sank in the Mediterranean Sea.

After returning from Syria, the Admiral Kuznetsov underwent a long cycle of repair and upgrade, during which it appeared to be haunted by bad luck. Its floating dock sank in October 2018, and a fire broke out on the ship in December 2019. The Admiral Kuznetsov’s return to service is scheduled for 2023.

In the absence of the ship, deck fighters have long been operating only from land. For this period, the arresting hooks were removed from the MiG-29KR/KUBRs and specially developed brake chute containers were fitted beneath their aft fuselages.

Starting in 2014, the Russian Navy received multirole Su-30SM fighters to replace the old Su-24M tactical attack aircraft intended for use against missile-carrying attack craft operating within the coastal zone. Two Su-30SMs from the 43rd Independent Naval Attack Aviation Regiment of the Black Sea Fleet at Saki are pictured.

The Russian Navy has many aircraft that are not specific to this service. In the Northern Fleet, two squadrons of MiG-31s are interceptors based at Monchegorsk; another MiG-31 squadron is in the Pacific Fleet at Yelizovo. In the Baltic Fleet, there is a Su-27 fighter regiment in Chkalovsk. A fighter squadron in Russia has 12 aircraft, and a regiment usually consists of two squadrons. All these aircraft ended up in naval aviation but not because they were needed—the navy simply took over the air force units based at the locations in the navy’s area of responsibility.