The aircraft repair plant in Kubinka outside Moscow has got down to mass upgrade of Su-25 attack planes in service with the Russian Air Force, a defense industry spokesman said on Thursday.
"Upgrade of Su-25 attack planes to the Su-25SM level is included in the state defense order for 2006. The aircraft repair plant in Kubinka is to upgrade more than five Su-25 attack planes this year," the spokesman told Interfax-Military News Agency.
According to him, the act on completion of the Su-25SM's joint state tests will be signed soon.
"The Su-25 attack planes being upgraded this year will be the first planes of this type upgraded in line with serial technology," he said.
Meanwhile, the work is underway to modernize the Su-25UB training attack planes to the Su-25UBM level, the spokesman went on.
According to him, the upgraded attack planes have a good export potential. The spokesman recalled that several Su-25UB training and combat planes were supplied to Iran a few years ago.
Several Russian and foreign media outlets reported earlier that Iran will buy three more Su-25UBT two-seat attack planes from Russia in 2006.
The joint state tests showed that navigation and combat use of air bombs of the Su-25SM are twice as accurate as those of the baseline Su-25 variety. The Su-25SM can launch Kh-29L and Kh-25ML missiles, drop KAB-500Kr guided bombs and use other armaments. At the same time, labor inputs in the servicing of the upgraded aircraft are 25-30 percent lower, specialists say.
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