combat aircraft

OPERATIONAL Su-24 UNITS OF THE RUSSIAN

AEROSPACE FORCES (VKS) AND NAVAL AVIATION

Command Unit Location Aircraft inventory

4th Air Force and Air Defense Army 11th Composite Aviation Regiment Marinovka (Volgograd) Three squadrons of Su-24M SVP-24s/Su-24MRs

4th Air Force and Air Defense Army 37th Composite Aviation Regiment Gvardeyskoye, Crimea A squadron of Su-24Ms (and a squadron of Su-25s)

6th Air Force and Air Defense Army 4th Independent Reconnaissance Aviation Squadron Shatalovo A squadron of Su-24MRs

11th Air Force and Air Defense Army 277th Bomber Aviation Regiment Khurba (Komsomolsk) Two squadrons of Su-24M2s (and Su-34s)

11th Air Force and Air Defense Army 799th Independent Reconnaissance Aviation Regiment Varfolomeyevka Three squadrons of Su-24MRs

14th Air Force and Air Defense Army 2nd Composite Aviation Regiment Shagol (Chelyabinsk) Two squadrons of Su-24M SVP-24s

45th Air Force and Air Defense Army 98th Independent Composite Aviation Regiment Monchegorsk A squadron of Su-24MRs (and MiG-31s)

Baltic Fleet 72nd Aviation Base Chernyakhovsk A squadron of Su-24M/MR (and a squadron of Su-27s)

Black Sea Fleet 43rd Naval Attack Aviation Regiment Novofedorivka (Saki), Crimea A squadron of Su-24Ms (and a squadron of Su-30SMs; Be-12s)

Su-24s are also  own by the 4th National Air Personnel Preparation and Military Evaluation Center at Lipetsk (one squadron) and the 195th Training Aviation

Base at Kushchyovskaya (15-20 aircraft).

system) module that enhances navigation

accuracy thanks to a new computer and

radio navigation system coupled with a

satellite receiver. Gefest&T claims that the

accuracy of navigation is increased by a

factor of two to three. Another advantage

of the new system is the ability to use

unguided weapons during complex

maneuvering (previously the Su-24M

could employ unguided weapons in

straight-line  ight only). The new UVV-MP

pre- ight data input device needs  ve

minutes to input data into the on-board

computer, instead of 47 minutes prior

to the upgrade. Data downloading and

its processing after the  ight takes nine

minutes, not 215 as before!

There are many myths around the SPV-24

system, particularly relating to its use in

Syria. In Russian publications it is described

as a panacea — a system transforming

the Su-24 into a modern aircraft, and its

iron bombs into guided munitions. This

is an exaggeration. A dumb bomb, even

dropped from an aircraft very accurately,

falls through layers of air with various

temperatures and winds, which de ect

its path in an unpredictable way. It is also

noteworthy that the SPV-24 system is

installed only on very old aircraft: the Su-24,

Su-25, Su-33, and Tu-22M3. It’s a system

that would be redundant on modern types

that feature far more accurate and modern

navigation systems.

The alternative Su-24M2 mid-life upgrade

by the Sukhoi Design Bureau includes the

improved Orion-AM2 radar, new  re control

computer, and new inertial navigation. The

M2 upgrade turned out to be less popular

than the SVP-24, mainly due to its cost. Only

24 aircraft were upgraded during 2007-09,

in comparison with twice that number of

SVP-24 versions. Gefest&T claims that the

Sukhoi upgrade is three times as expensive

as its SVP-24 alternative.

The Su-24 is slowly becoming a thing of

the past and there are no further upgrade

plans. In Russian Aerospace Forces (VKS)

service the Su-24 is being replaced by

the Su-34 and by the Su-30SM with naval

aviation.

Although a range

of smart weapons

are available for

the Su-24M, the

reality is that

the majority of

missions involve

crude, unguided

weapons.

Dmitriy

Pichugin

http://www.combataircraft.net // August 2018 83

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