In the Kaliningrad region, the pilots of the Baltic Fleet worked out one of the most difficult types of flight training - refueling in the air.
As reported in the information support department of the press service of the Baltic Fleet, the crews of the Su-30SM multi-purpose fighters and Su-24 front-line bombers participated in the planned training flights. More than ten aircraft were involved.
Refueling was carried out from the IL-78 tanker aircraft. The combat aircraft should approach the air tanker at a distance of 10-15 meters, the flight altitude is from two to five kilometers, and the speed is 500-600 kilometers per hour.
In these conditions, the pilot must contact the tanker's cone sensor with the released rod, and then keep the place in the formation until full refueling. The flights took place day and night, at night, when refueling, additional lighting is used, which is available both on the IL-78 and on the refueling aircraft.
Only experienced pilots of the 1st and 2nd classes who have flown more than 400 hours are allowed to refuel in the air. Beginners perform the first 8-10 connections with instructors, then three or four independent departures. This type of flight training for the crews of the naval aviation of the Baltic Fleet takes place regularly, at least twice a year. The tanker for this purpose arrives from one of the central regions of Russia.
Help " RG"
The ability to refuel in the air significantly expands the range of aviation, which becomes capable of operating both in operational and tactical depth, and at a great distance from the base with the use of the entire range of air-to-air and air-to-surface weapons.
The preparation of crews for refueling in the air also allows, if necessary, to relocate aviation units to distant airfields in a non-stop way. To ensure a long-distance flight along the route, it is enough to lift a tanker aircraft into the air.
Svetlana Pesotskaya (Kaliningrad Region)
