Russian drones will receive a lightweight version of the integrated communications system, data exchange, navigation and identification (OSNOD), which today is installed on fifth-generation aircraft Su-57. The development of such a complex was announced by the head of the scientific and technical center NPP Polet (Nizhny Novgorod) Alexei Ratner.
“We are currently conducting a number of works on the implementation of the system on a variety of media, including unmanned aerial systems,” Ratner quotes TASS. The specialist specified that the modification created will have more compact dimensions.
OSNOD performs a wide range of tasks related to encoding and decoding information, transferring large amounts of data and positioning an aircraft in the absence or suppression of signals from the GLONASS satellite system.
“Flight” is the leading enterprise in the electronic industry in the development, production and maintenance of technical equipment for Russian aircraft. The main customers of the products of the Nizhny Novgorod enterprise are the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Ministry of Defense and various design bureaus working on aviation topics.
High level protection
OSNOD has been in service with domestic aviation since the 1970s and is constantly being improved. Now state tests as part of the Su-57 is the last generation system. Its main advantage is increased noise immunity - data transmission is carried out in conditions of active electronic countermeasures.
“In addition, a constant cryptographic protection of communications is provided, that is, interception of messages in this system will not lead to anything. Today it is one of the most noise-proof communication systems, ”Ratner emphasized.
According to the developer, OSNOD is an important element of avionics. The system is necessary for controlling aircraft and helicopters in real time. To coordinate the actions of aviation technology, special terminals are used that can be installed on ships, ground mobile and stationary objects.
As a military expert, retired colonel Mikhail Tymoshenko explained in an interview with RT, OSNOD transmits both digital information received by various radars and voice commands.
“Cryptographic protection, which is described by the representative of Flight, is, in essence, encryption. The degree of protection of communication channels in military aviation should be at a very high level. Of course, theoretically, the adversary can intercept and decode the data, but this requires a lot of time, ”said Tymoshenko.
According to the expert, while the decryption process will take place, the aviation link will already complete the combat mission.
The performance characteristics of the OSNOD modification, which will be installed on serial models of the Su-57, are not publicly available. In a RT commentary, Honored Pilot of the Russian Federation Major General Vladimir Popov said that the fifth-generation Russian fighter is equipped with the most modern avionics.
“Details for obvious reasons were not disclosed. But it is no secret that the arms control processes in the Su-57 can be carried out automatically and almost synchronously. I mean the work of optoelectronic, radar and thermal imaging equipment. On fourth-generation airplanes, all these complexes are present, but their work is segmented into separate areas, ”the expert noted.
- The fifth-generation Russian multifunctional fighter Su-57 at the International Aviation and Space Salon MAKS-2019
- RIA News
- © Evgeny Biyatov
Vladimir Popov called the Su-57 a “technological platform” for introducing many innovations in military and civil aviation. According to him, the process of testing and combat use in Syria of a fifth-generation fighter made it possible to verify the characteristics of the latest complexes of avionics and missile weapons. Russian scientists continue to accumulate this experience.
“The Su-57 is in pilot combat operation, but its mass production is already underway. The machine is very complex and for now, for example, a new generation engine (“product 30”. - RT ) is not ready for it, which will be able to fly at supersonic sound in the afterburner mode, ” says Popov.
According to the expert, now all the systems and units created for the Su-57 are too early to implement, with the exception of those whose effectiveness there is no doubt.
“In the future, as I believe, Product 30 will be developed as part of a project to create a supersonic business jet,” Popov added.
"Experimental concept"
Experts interviewed by RT supported the concept of NPP Polet to equip domestic drones with lightweight versions of OSNOD. Currently, in the interests of the Air-Comic Forces of the Russian Federation, tests of heavy reconnaissance and strike UAVs "Okhotnik", "Altius-U", "Sirius" are being carried out. Using OSNOD will make the latest Russian drones independent of satellite navigation systems and protect them from the effects of electronic warfare.
“So far we do not know what weight and size characteristics the lightweight version of the OSNOD will have, how much it consumes energy. But at the moment, we can say that the 20-ton “Hunter” will be the carrier of the system. In the more distant future, it can certainly be installed on smaller UAVs, ”Tymoshenko suggested.
The S-70 Okhotnik heavy attack drone first flew in early August from the airfield of the 929th Chkalov State Flight Testing Center (GLITS, Akhtubinsk). The UAV’s mass and size characteristics are not much different from a combat aircraft. The device will be able to conduct reconnaissance for 3.5 thousand km from the launch site at an altitude of 10.5 km.
In addition, according to experts, in the future, “Hunter” will receive ammunition that is in service or is being developed for the needs of the aerospace forces. Missiles and bombs will be placed in the body space of the drone. The release of the first production samples of this UAV is scheduled for 2025.
In an interview with RT, a member of the Association of Operators and Developers of Unmanned Aerial Systems, Eduard Baghdasaryan drew attention to the fact that fighters got into the frame of the first flight of “Hunter”. And on satellite images of the GLITs airfield, it is easy to distinguish between Su-57, Su-30SM, Su-34 and Su-35 aircraft.
The "hunter" can perform tasks autonomously, but it is obvious that he will interact with fighter aircraft. This is an experimental concept for the use of UAVs, and our country is on the right track, doing research in this area, ”Baghdasaryan said.
- The flight of the UAV "Hunter" paired with a fighter
According to Mikhail Tymoshenko, in the future, drones will operate in a single information field with the Su-57. The main task of the “Hunters” and other UAVs will be to monitor airspace and study foreign aircraft.
For these purposes, the expert noted, just need OSNOD. According to him, the interaction of drones and Su-57 is necessary, in particular, to ensure effective interception and recognition of targets.
“The airborne radars of our fighters and ground-based radar stations allow us to effectively detect airborne objects, but in order to identify them and get detailed information, you need to get closer to the target. This function will be performed by a drone, transmitting data to the Su-57 crew, ”explained Tymoshenko.
For his part, Vladimir Popov believes that the Su-57 in conjunction with drones will be able to break through even the most high-tech enemy air defense system. According to him, Russia is developing tactics for using a tactical link consisting of two fighters and three heavy UAVs, which, in turn, are carriers of several small-sized unmanned aerial vehicles. A swarm of drones, according to an interlocutor of RT, is capable of causing "overload" of the computing equipment of any air defense complex.
“The number of targets that an anti-aircraft missile system can hit is limited. Competent tactics of interaction between fighters and UAVs can deprive any air defense system of the ability to adequately repel an air attack in automatic mode. And in manual mode, it is simply unrealistic to intercept multiple targets, ”concluded Popov.