Good Choice! Belarus Plans to Buy Russian Su-30SM Fighter Jets

Sputnik News

15:50 15.06.2016(updated 15:51 15.06.2016)

Minsk plans to purchase Russian Su-30SM-type multirole fighters, Belarusian Defense Minister Andrei Ravkov said Wednesday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The Belarusian Air Force already has Russian-made Su-27 and MiG-29 aircraft in service. Asked about what plans Belarus might have to purchase new aircraft from Russia, Ravkov told RIA Novosti that Minsk intends to "purchase Su-30SM-type aircraft for the armed forces."

"Thanks to the well-established interaction with domestic enterprises within the defense sector, the armed forces are carrying out the modernization [capital repairs] of its existing models of aircraft. However, the defense ministry is interested in purchasing the latest models of aircraft," Ravkov noted.

The Su-30SM is a 4+ generation fighter jet, developed by Russia's Sukhoi Company. It is a two-seat derivative of the earlier Su-27UB (NATO reporting name: Flanker) capable of air-to-air and air-to-ground missions with a wide variety of precision-guided munitions. The aircraft features thrust-vectoring engines to enhance maneuverability.

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