United Elias
28-09-2003, 00:40
The Elias Aerospace Corporation has been awarded a large contract to upgrade some 460 of 680 Mig-29 type aircraft currently in service with the Elias Air Force. The decision comes as Ministers decide that around 70% of the current fleet will remain in service longer than expected and therefore the upgrades were justified. The aircraft is therefore set to remain the nation's most numerically important fighter for the foreseeable future.
Of the aircraft in question all are either of the MiG-29A of MiG-29S Standard. After modification they will all become known as Mig-33M-UE
Upgrades Include:
-Bulged dorsal spine increases fuel capacity.
-Replacing Klimov RD-33 Turbofans producing 18,300lb when afterburning with new EPE-37 Turbofans (similar to Klimov RD-33K) each producing 19,370lb of thrust when afterburning.
-Deletion of the over wing air intakes and replacing them with meshed intake doors as well as broadened leading edge extensions, tail and wing.
-Countermeasures suite moved from extended fins to the aircraft’s spine.
-Modernisation of the cockpit management system: The MiG-33M-UE can fit three colour LCD MFDs with push-button and HOTAS controls. The MVK-SUV three-channel quadruple-redundant digital computer is compliant with the international standards, which means the aircraft can be customised in order to meet specific needs.
-Modernisation of the weapons control system: The N019ME radar is replaced by the ERT-11-M radar. The target acquisition range on head-on courses grows to 240 km, while the number of simultaneously engaged targets rises to twelve. A new electro-optical sighting system (EOSS) provides a growth in the target acquisition range, all-aspect target acquisition and the capability of illuminating a ground target with the laser beam.It also can detect a "laser spot" being created by an external designator, identify targets and track automatically ground targets with the help of the TV-channel, The Mig-33M-UE is therefore capable of firing a much greater range of air to air and air to surface missiles including western munitions thank to the vastly improved processing capability.
-Extensive use of Radar Aborbent Material coatings, further infrared shielding of the powerplants and engine nozzeles in addition to the slight wing redesigns make for a 35% reduction in RCS.
End Result:
Range Increase: max range increases from 810nm to 1080nm
Speed Increase: Max speed rises from Mach 2.3 to Mach 2.35
Initial rate of climb increases from 64,600ft/mon to 65,100ft/min
Weapons Capacity: Underwing hardpoints rises from six to eight.
Other benefits: Greater agility and level flight stability, greater cost effectiveness, greater reliability
This makes the plane a truly Multirole fighter, whose combat effectiveness exceeds that of the F-16C in the striker role, while outplaying the F/A-18C and Mirage 2000-5 in terms of interception capability.
Cost per Airframe: 7.2 million
Two dimensional thrust vectoring can be added for an additional cost of 3.8 million and for this reason it was ruled out for the Elias Air Force aircraft.
If you order is large enough the Elias Aerospace Corporation is willing to do consider customised upgrade packages depending on your requirements and the current versions you operate.
http://www.mach3graphics.com/misc%20graphics/jpg/Mig29Mclimb.jpg
A computer generated image of the upgraded aircaft
http://www.sintrade.ch/bilder/f18cockpit.jpg
New cockpit layout.
http://www.alasrojas.com/Articulos/MIG29/cockpit%20mig29A-2.jpg
Old cockpit layout
Of the aircraft in question all are either of the MiG-29A of MiG-29S Standard. After modification they will all become known as Mig-33M-UE
Upgrades Include:
-Bulged dorsal spine increases fuel capacity.
-Replacing Klimov RD-33 Turbofans producing 18,300lb when afterburning with new EPE-37 Turbofans (similar to Klimov RD-33K) each producing 19,370lb of thrust when afterburning.
-Deletion of the over wing air intakes and replacing them with meshed intake doors as well as broadened leading edge extensions, tail and wing.
-Countermeasures suite moved from extended fins to the aircraft’s spine.
-Modernisation of the cockpit management system: The MiG-33M-UE can fit three colour LCD MFDs with push-button and HOTAS controls. The MVK-SUV three-channel quadruple-redundant digital computer is compliant with the international standards, which means the aircraft can be customised in order to meet specific needs.
-Modernisation of the weapons control system: The N019ME radar is replaced by the ERT-11-M radar. The target acquisition range on head-on courses grows to 240 km, while the number of simultaneously engaged targets rises to twelve. A new electro-optical sighting system (EOSS) provides a growth in the target acquisition range, all-aspect target acquisition and the capability of illuminating a ground target with the laser beam.It also can detect a "laser spot" being created by an external designator, identify targets and track automatically ground targets with the help of the TV-channel, The Mig-33M-UE is therefore capable of firing a much greater range of air to air and air to surface missiles including western munitions thank to the vastly improved processing capability.
-Extensive use of Radar Aborbent Material coatings, further infrared shielding of the powerplants and engine nozzeles in addition to the slight wing redesigns make for a 35% reduction in RCS.
End Result:
Range Increase: max range increases from 810nm to 1080nm
Speed Increase: Max speed rises from Mach 2.3 to Mach 2.35
Initial rate of climb increases from 64,600ft/mon to 65,100ft/min
Weapons Capacity: Underwing hardpoints rises from six to eight.
Other benefits: Greater agility and level flight stability, greater cost effectiveness, greater reliability
This makes the plane a truly Multirole fighter, whose combat effectiveness exceeds that of the F-16C in the striker role, while outplaying the F/A-18C and Mirage 2000-5 in terms of interception capability.
Cost per Airframe: 7.2 million
Two dimensional thrust vectoring can be added for an additional cost of 3.8 million and for this reason it was ruled out for the Elias Air Force aircraft.
If you order is large enough the Elias Aerospace Corporation is willing to do consider customised upgrade packages depending on your requirements and the current versions you operate.
http://www.mach3graphics.com/misc%20graphics/jpg/Mig29Mclimb.jpg
A computer generated image of the upgraded aircaft
http://www.sintrade.ch/bilder/f18cockpit.jpg
New cockpit layout.
http://www.alasrojas.com/Articulos/MIG29/cockpit%20mig29A-2.jpg
Old cockpit layout