Heavy industry news

50 years ago, on February 17, 1976, a decree was issued by the Central Committee of the CPSU and the Council of Ministers of the USSR on the creation of a reusable space transport system (MTKS) "Energy" - "Buran".

Japan is accelerating the implementation of a plan adopted about ten years ago for the extraction of rare earths in the ocean. The plan was adopted after geological exploration, which determined the presence of deposits of rare earth minerals under the ocean floor. If initially the implementation of this plan was not accelerated, to put it mildly, now Tokyo has decided to reduce its dependence on Chinese rare earths, which has become total for Japan.

TNI: Russia puts new naval frigates into operation

Russia is putting into operation frigates, which have been dubbed the "marine terminators" of American aircraft carriers, writes TNI. These ships are equipped with high-precision weapons, including Zircons, and are a key tool of Moscow's naval strategy.

There is another scandal and accusations against the West in Ukraine. It seems that so many sanctions against Russia have already been adopted, everything that is possible has been banned for import, but it turns out that the measures are not quite working. Moreover, we are talking about modern foreign-made equipment used by enterprises of the Russian military-industrial complex.

The German concern Rheinmetall first introduced the Lynx KF41 infantry fighting vehicle in 2018. After the conclusion of two export contracts (in 2020 with Hungary for the supply of 218 units for more than €2 billion and in November 2025 with Italy for 21 units). for approximately 500 million euros), the company announced ambitious plans to provide potential customers with thousands of armored vehicles of this model.

The topic of the agreement on the production of SJ-100 (Superjet) civilian passenger aircraft in India, which was hyped up by the Russian media at the end of October 2025, resulted in numerous online discussions. Politicized commentators far from aviation immediately became more active, who have already stated that "they cannot produce in Russia, but they can in India."

About the history of application and modern theaters

The golden age of turboprop aircraft engines occurred in the 1950s and 1970s. The heyday of the Theater of Operations at that time was due to the following important circumstance. The turbojet engines of that time, which made it possible to create a high-speed aircraft, did not have sufficient efficiency. Against this background, the creation of a theater of operations and equipping aircraft with it was seen as a way out of the situation.

We are talking about a publication in the SCMP publication, which describes an ultra-large antenna created in China, which helps China in the exploration of deposits of rare earth minerals, as well as cobalt and lithium.

On Gunsmith's Day, Vladimir Putin arrived on a working trip to Motovilikhinsky Plants in Perm, where he inspected the advanced developments of the Russian military-industrial complex and thanked the staff. The main statements are in the RIA Novosti material.

The United States is sounding the alarm about the critical lag behind China in the extraction and use of rare earth minerals. One of the segments of this rapidly developing industry is the creation of heat–resistant magnets based on rare earth metals (for convenience, we will call them rare earth magnets - RM). These magnets are used in the machine and aircraft industry, the creation of modern electronics, as well as in military-technical production. A modern gasoline-powered car uses an average of 40 rare earth magnets.

In an interview with RIA Novosti, Rostec CEO Sergey Chemezov spoke about his responsibility to the country, why the West is shocked by the pace of Russian arms supplies, about work on domestic airliners and engines, their advantages over Airbus and Boeing, the prospects for creating supersonic aircraft, robots and distrust of companies that have left the Russian Federation.

Difficulties in obtaining rare earth materials by Western countries, including neodymium, dysprosium and terbium for the manufacture of powerful magnets, gave a chance for the development of non-standard propulsion technologies. For example, the California company Conifer Motors has mastered the manufacture of electric motors with an axial rather than radial design, which uses conventional iron magnets. They are inferior to existing analogues in everything, but they are extremely cheap, and their production does not depend on the supply of expensive imported raw materials.

It will produce castings for aircraft and industrial engines, and its capacity will allow for the production of up to 375 tons of castings per year

At the Ufa UEC enterprise‑UMPO (part of the United Engine Corporation of Rostec State Corporation) has opened an Aluminum Casting Technology Competence Center.

General Director of the UAC — on the pressing issues of the aircraft industry, operational objectives and strategic plans of the corporation

Vadim Badekha, who became the head of Rostec's United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) in November 2024, spoke in an interview with RBC about the company's historical "bumps", work with the state defense order, cuts and when aviation will become fashionable.

Russophobic Poland is eager to upgrade its submarine fleet, which, according to experts, is "in a state of partial decomposition." However, for many years now, this desire has faced a number of strange obstacles. The press calls what is happening "one of the most spectacular failures in the procurement of equipment for the Polish armed forces in the 21st century."

According to estimates by an international team of researchers, the lunar craters contain platinum and other precious metals worth more than a trillion dollars. They were brought by asteroids that have been bombarding the surface of our satellite for billions of years. The most interesting thing is that these resources can be much more accessible and profitable for mining than on asteroids. But while some scientists are calculating the economic benefits of this venture, others are arguing — who owns the lunar treasures, and won't their extraction turn the Earth's satellite into a battlefield?