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| Europe |
| U.S. Air Force Joins Russian Air Show |
| 2003-08-21 |
| EFL ZHUKOVSKY, Russia (AP) - A Russian Sukhoi fighter wowed the audience Tuesday with its acrobatic rolls and dives. But when the American F-15 made its debut at the Moscow International Air Show, roaring high over this once-secret Soviet air base, even President Vladimir Putin leaned out of his seat for a better view. For the first time, the U.S. Air Force brought combat jets to the show at Zhukovsky airfield, where the Soviet Union once tested its military aircraft under the tightest security. An F-15 and F-16 - rarities to Russian eyes - were parked directly opposite their former Cold War foes, the MiG-29s - the jets’ sleek noses pointed at each other. A B-52 bomber was scheduled to arrive Wednesday. "It has always been my dream to visit Moscow, but to actually arrive here in an F-16 - I never thought I’d see that day," said F-16 pilot Capt. Jessica Rhyne, based in Germany. Putin, arriving by helicopter, was the opening day’s star guest. As police and soldiers kept onlookers away, Putin peered into the cockpits of fighter jets and strolled past menacing helicopter gunships. The Moscow event has always been as much about giving a publicity boost to the country’s suffering aviation industry as it has about closing multimillion dollar deals. Most Russian aircraft makers found themselves struggling for survival when generous government orders dried up after the 1991 Soviet collapse. In the decade that followed, the Russian air force received just a handful of new aircraft and its pilots logged only a minimal number of flying hours, while Russian airlines spurned domestic aircraft makers for Boeing and Airbus. Recently, Russian companies have been chasing joint projects with Western firms, and the Russian government has also pledged to make it more attractive for Russian airlines to lease Russian-made aircraft. Ilya Klebanov, minister for Industry, Science and Technologies, said Tuesday the Russian airline Transaero reached a $200 million agreement to lease 10 Tu-204 airplanes, in one of the air show’s first announced deals. But even while the number of commercial exhibitors has grown - bucking a trend at the more established Paris Air Show, which saw the number of participants drop this year - it is still the powerful and world-renowned Russian military jets that steal the limelight. The Sukhoi company has been the most successful - and it was its SU-30MKI that stole the show Tuesday, causing the VIP grandstand to erupt in applause. Earlier this month, Malaysia sealed a $900 million deal to buy 18 Su-30 fighters. Yemen, Indonesia and Brazil have also come shopping, and Russia has sold large batches to India and China. Gennady Zyuganov, a lawmaker and leader of the Communist Party, suggested, however, that the Kremlin should be ashamed. "All this technology around us is from the Soviet era. Democratic Russia hasn’t done anything," he said. "Ah, the good old days when men were men, vodka was vodka, and dissidents were shot!" U.S. Air Force Maj. Gen. Edward LaFountaine said he was proud to see U.S. military aircraft parked alongside their Russian counterparts. "For us, this is a very important opportunity to show the cooperation and ever-developing ties between our two nations," he said. Robert Myers, a weapons system operator on the F-15E, said it was an entirely new - though pleasant - experience to be standing in front of his plane on a Russian airfield, about 15 miles southeast of Moscow. "This airplane was designed to do things in Russia other than come to air shows," he said. |
| Posted by:Steve White |
| #19 Pete Stanley LOL |
| Posted by: Shipman 2003-8-22 7:34:58 AM |
| #18 Fuel consumption goes wayyy up? Then just select another target! You'd still have enough fuel to ditch near the weather ship at tango delta. |
| Posted by: Pete Stanley 2003-8-21 9:20:12 PM |
| #17 Buffs fly low - over oceans. Between 300 and 500 feet, depending on the mission profile, the attack profile, and the part of the globe. Most Buffs, however, wouldn't do "nape of the earth" flying because the reaction time for that lumbering junkyard flying in loose formation is too slow. Fuel consumption also goes wayyy up when flying low. You can play with the mission profile, and have some parts down low, but the average Buff flies at 2000 feet or higher. Anything else is suicide. |
| Posted by: Old Patriot 2003-8-21 8:33:31 PM |
| #16 What? But what if the pilot was good? Well, if he was good, I mean *really* good he'd come down low.... real low. Could he make it? Hell yes! |
| Posted by: Shipman 2003-8-21 7:39:12 PM |
| #15 What can I say? The goal wasn't reashed. Anybody that wants to jockey a B-52 through heavy fog at 500 feet is freakin' insane. It flies like a truck. A BIG truck. |
| Posted by: mojo 2003-8-21 2:22:03 PM |
| #14 mojo: Perhaps not any more, but (from globalsecurity.org) Although the new low level requirement would apply to the other SAC bombers, it would have its greatest impact upon the B-52. To fly the new attack profile, the B-52C through H models were modified with a new terrain avoidance radar, an improved radar altimeter, increased cooling capacity for sustained low altitude operations, modified equipment mounts, and a general strengthening of the aircraft's secondary structures. The goal was to permit reliable, all-weather operation at 500 feet, to avoid detection, and to minimize encounters with enemy defenses. Low level training for SAC bomber crews began in the late 1950's, with actual aircraft modification beginning in 1961. FWIW... |
| Posted by: snellenr 2003-8-21 1:50:59 PM |
| #13 Buff's don't do NOTE, snellenr. That's B-1 territory. George C. Scott not withstanding... |
| Posted by: mojo 2003-8-21 1:25:25 PM |
| #12 Can you imagine being just a comrade and looking up on Wed and seeing a B-52 fly over? |
| Posted by: Anonymous 2003-8-21 11:33:03 AM |
| #11 -- it is still the powerful and world-renowned Russian military jets that steal the limelight.-- Not this year, and NOT w/F-16 pilot Capt. Jessica Rhyne. |
| Posted by: Anonymous 2003-8-21 11:31:48 AM |
| #10 The F-16 pilot is a gurl! And, no, we never expected the Falcons to make it to Moscow. |
| Posted by: Chuck Simmins 2003-8-21 10:10:23 AM |
| #9 similar minds then...I just finished Brown's book, starting Clancy's new hardback |
| Posted by: Frank G 2003-8-21 10:08:53 AM |
| #8 raptor - Thx - I didn't see a new book for over 2.5 yrs in SaoodiLand. Just getting back into the habit here in Heaven - read new Crichton book last week. I'll look for Brown, then - got a lot of catching up to do! |
| Posted by: .com 2003-8-21 9:41:33 AM |
| #7 Dale Brown,.com.Just read "Wings of Fire". Wendy Mclahnahan died. Sorry about spelling on next post,guess I should have finished my first cup'a'joe. |
| Posted by: raptor 2003-8-21 9:29:21 AM |
| #6 Are we talking about the MegaFortress™ here? Lessee, isn't that Stephen Coonts' toy? |
| Posted by: .com 2003-8-21 9:01:20 AM |
| #5 A B-52 bomber was scheduled to arrive Wednesday It'd be cool if they cleared a nap-of-the-earth flight plan over the Arctic Circle for it. I don't expect they will, tho :-) |
| Posted by: snellenr 2003-8-21 8:40:30 AM |
| #4 But even while the number of commercial exhibitors has grown - bucking a trend at the more established Paris Air Show, which saw the number of participants drop this year.... Ah, the US stayed away from Paris to punish the French government for their siding with the terrorists foreign (and domestic) policy. If this keeps up, Moscow will replace Paris as the premier air show. Memo to Chiraq: Don't **** with the US. |
| Posted by: Jabba the Nutt 2003-8-21 8:28:32 AM |
| #3 "But even while the number of commercial exhibitors has grown - bucking a trend at the more established Paris Air Show, which saw the number of participants drop this year " Ahhhh must be the weak $ vs Euro thang |
| Posted by: Frank G 2003-8-21 8:15:22 AM |
| #2 A B-52 bomber was scheduled to arrive Wednesday I would pay serious money to watch the approach from the cabin. Has a Buff ever been deep inside Russia? |
| Posted by: Shipman 2003-8-21 7:47:17 AM |
| #1 It reminds me of the joke about the British Airways pilot who had trouble at a West German Airport. West German Air Traffic Control denied him landing rights and he remarked: "Funny, the last time I came to Dresden, I was carrying a different cargo and I had half the trouble." The Germans let them land... |
| Posted by: Brian 2003-8-21 2:26:38 AM |