Despite Russia being cash-strapped, the Russian military continues its modernization and expansion drive. Its latest effort includes the upgraded S-70 Okhotnik (Hunter) heavy combat drone, which is on its way to the military for testing.
Hunter is developed by Chkalov’s Novosibirsk aviation plant in western Siberia — a subsidiary of the famous Sukhoi Company.
As always, it’s up to western analysts to separate true capabilities from Kremlin hype.
But, the drone reportedly uses a Russian made-engine — the Al-41F1, which is also used on the Su-57 and the Checkmate aircraft — giving it a range of up to 3,728 miles (6,000 kilometers). It also is equipped with a flat nozzle to increase its stealth capability.
The Hunter has a takeoff weight of 20 tons, measures 46 feet (14 meters) long and has a wingspan of 62 feet (19 meters). This new version can reportedly reach speeds up to 620 mph (1,000 kph). (RELATED: The Russian Mach 9 Tsirkon Hypersonic Missile is a Very Real Threat)
According to Defense News:
The new S-70 is equipped with technologies “surpassing a few foreign analogues by a number of parameters,” Russian Deputy Defence Minister Alexey Krivoruchko told reporters Wednesday during a visit to the Novosibirsk plant.
A spokesman for the United Aircraft Corporation, which owns Sukhoi, told Defense News that the S-70 is a “promising aviation platform with great potential for the development of a family of unmanned systems of the future.”
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The drone is expected to complement Su-57 fighter missions, with one jet able to work in tandem with up to four S-70s, an aviation industry source told state-run news agency Tass. If testing is successful, the drone will enter service in 2024, Krivoruchko said.
Despite the hype, questions remain.
Retired Col. Mikhail Khodoryonok, a senior military analyst for local news site Gazeta.Ru, told Defense News that the drone “has to prove itself in a combat mission,” possibly in Syria. Khodaryonok also has his doubts about Skat’s future.
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The head of the Center for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies, Ruslan Pukhov, said:
One has to wait and see. Will it turn into a flying robot that will be able to fly long distances and to perform combat operations?
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.
Paul Crespo is the Managing Editor of American Liberty Defense News. As a Marine Corps officer, he led Marines, served aboard ships in the Pacific and jumped from helicopters and airplanes. He was also a military attaché with the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) at U.S. embassies worldwide. He later ran for state and federal office, taught political science, wrote for the editorial board of a major newspaper and had his own radio show. A graduate of Georgetown, London and Cambridge universities, he brings decades of experience and insight to the issues that most threaten our American liberty – at home and from abroad. To read more go to: paulcrespo.com.
They leaned a lot from the F-117 that was shot down easily in Serbia.
‘Sorry, We Didn’t Know It Was Invisible’: How Serbia Downed an F-117 Stealth Jet
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RgkhOiCd6Ng