Article Posted on : - Dec 09, 2011

Yak-130. Photo: Yakovlev Design Bureau.

MOSCOW (BNS): The Russian Defence Ministry has signed a contract with Irkut Corporation for the supply of 55 Yak-130 combat trainers to the Russian Air Force.

Defence Minister Anatoly Serdyukov and President of Irkut Corporation Alexey Fedorov have signed the contract on Yak-130 aircraft delivery.

Under the contract, Irkut will supply the combat trainers to the Russian Air Force by 2015.

"As part of efforts to form a new image of the Russian Armed Forces, the Defence Ministry pays primary attention to equipping the Armed Forces with state-of-the-art hardware and to enhancing its combat capability.

The new Yak-130 aircraft will help to improve pilots skills and to train them to fly new-generation combat aircraft to be mass purchased by the Defence Ministry," Serdyukov was quoted as saying.

The Yak-130 Combat Trainer is the main aircraft for basic and advanced training of Russian Air Force pilots, developed by the Yakovlev Design Bureau, an IRKUT Corporation company.

The trainer can provide top-class pilots training to handle Russian and foreign-made combat aircraft of the generations '4+' and '5.' State trials of Yak-130 with weaponry included have been successfully completed in December 2009, Irkut said in a statement.