Russian Air Force testing stealth heavy unmanned combat drone ‘Okhotnik’ at T4 base in Syria. “T-4 base, also called Tiyas, is part of the key Iranian network in Syria that links Iran’s Albu Kamal “Imam Ali” base on the Iraqi border with sites at T-2 & T-3 on the road to Homs and Damascus”. And Russia is not kidding around with ‘The Loyal Wingman’ concept. Test fighting from foreign soil means many things. One of them could be a clear message to the world about the maturity of the project. Syria as been so far, Russia’s testing ground and gain much-needed combat training and horn its strategy for future battles.
Interestingly these hunter Drones will operate as the ‘loyal wingman’ to the Su-57 stealth fighter and upcoming sixth-generation Mig fighters. Where the manned fighter will control several Okhotnik (“Hunter”) drones. The Sukhoi S-70 Okhotnik-B, also referred to as Hunter-B, is a Russian stealth heavy unmanned combat aerial vehicle being developed by Sukhoi and Russian Aircraft Corporation MiG as a sixth-generation aircraft project.
Okhotnik’s design is based on the flying-wing scheme and incorporates the use of composite materials and stealth coatings, making the drone low-observable in flight. It has a weight of about 20 tons and a wingspan around 65 feet (20 m). The drone is powered either by a single AL-31F turbofan, as used on the Sukhoi Su-27 fighter aircraft, or by the improved AL-41F derivative installed on Su-35S fighters and Su-57 prototypes.
Although the prototype’s exhaust nozzle was conventional and could increase the drone’s radar signature. The future upgrade could see improved exhaust as well as engine inlet as shown by a mock-up at the 2019 MAKS International Aviation and Space Salon.
The maximum speed of the drone is reportedly 1,000 km/h while carrying its payload internally. It is likely the Okhotnik was designed to act as a “loyal wingman” controlled by the Su-57. The aircraft bears some visual resemblance to RQ-170. It is speculated that the Russian engineers could have had access to the one that was captured by Iran.
The Okhotnik has been under development since at least 2011 when Sukhoi was selected by the Russian Defence Ministry to lead a programme for a new heavy unmanned reconnaissance and attack drone. The new UCAV is being jointly developed by MiG and Sukhoi, based on data of the earlier Mikoyan Skat UCAV programme. The work is carried out by the Novosibirsk Aircraft Production Association (NAPO), part of the Sukhoi company. In the documents, the drone is characterised as a “sixth-generation unmanned aerial vehicle”.
The first mock-up intended for ground tests was created in 2014. Prototype of the drone was first revealed in July 2017, showing the drone’s flying wing configuration.[citation needed]
In November 2018, the drone performed the first series of taxiing, speeding and stopping tests in fully autonomous mode at a runway of the NAPO plant. During the runs, it has reached a maximum speed of 200 km/h.
On 18 January 2019, the third flyable Su-57 prototype (bort no. 053) was spotted wearing a new digital camouflage paint scheme, with the digital silhouette of the Okhotnik on its top and underside and unique markings on the vertical tail showing the shape of a UCAV flying alongside the shape of Su-57 with a lightning bolt (universally used to show electronic connectivity and data sharing) between the two. On 24 January 2019, the first flyable prototype of the drone was seen towed at the NAPO plant. According to Russian officials, the Su-57 is being used as a flying laboratory for the testing of Okhotnik’s avionics systems.
In late May 2019, Okhotnik performed a series of flight tests during which the drone flew several meters above a runway of the NAPO plant.
On 3 August 2019, Okhotnik performed its maiden flight. The drone flew for about 20 minutes at an altitude of 600 meters above Chkalov State Flight Test Center in Akhtubinsk and made several circles around the airfield.[1] On August 7, the Russian Defence Ministry released a video of the first flight.
On 27 September 2019, Russian MoD released a video showcasing the first flight of Okhotnik alongside Su-57. Reportedly the UAV operated autonomously and flew for more than 30 minutes interacting with the Su-57 to test extending the fighter’s radar and target designation range for use of long-range air-launched weapons from the outside of enemy air defences.
On 12 February 2021, it was reported that three additional prototypes were under construction at the Novosibirsk Chkalov Aviation Plant, according to a source in the military-industrial complex. The second model is a modified copy of the 1st prototype while the 3rd and 4th prototypes will be identical to the serial production unit. The improvements will relate to the systems of onboard radio-electronic equipment and structural elements of the airframe. The three additional prototypes should be ready for flight tests in 2022 and 2023. The source in the military-industrial complex also said that the serial Hunter will receive a standard flat nozzle to further reduce their thermal and radar signature.
Source : Wikipedia, Russian Media
