According to him, the new machine will retain the standard four-engine scheme for aircraft of this class, which is planned to be equipped with TV7-117 turboprop engines. The interlocutor of the agency added that the flight characteristics of the new aircraft “will be those of turboprop anti-submarine aircraft.”
The machine will receive the latest equipment on board, including a multifunctional search and observation system, new sonar buoys. The range of weapons will be expanded compared to the IL-38 – the new aircraft will receive a greater variety of ammunition.
The new machine will be built almost entirely with domestic electronics and components.
It was previously reported that the Tu-142MZ long-range anti-submarine aircraft of the Pacific Fleet’s naval aviation carried out nighttime air refueling for the first time. According to experts, these flights are one of the most difficult types of crew training. They are performed at an altitude of four to five thousand meters at a speed of 500-600 kilometers per hour. Before going on to practice, the crews carried out exhaustive theoretical training and developed actions in simulators at the training center.