Russian Warplanes To Be Fitted With Khibiny Electronic Countermeasures

Russian warplanes including Su-34 fighters and other fighters will be equipped with Khibiny electronic countermeasures systems in the near future.

The Khibiny system provides individual aircraft with protection against enemy fighters' missile attacks and ground-based air defense systems. Thanks to this ECM system, Russian warplanes can become invisible to their enemies, according to KRET, RIA Novosti quoted Igor Nasenkov, first deputy head of the Russian Company Radio-Electronic Technologies (KRET), as saying.

Nasenkov, for his part, said that KRET has produced "a great many" Khibiny systems for the Russian Armed Forces in the past year. He did not elaborate.

The Khibiny is a small torpedo shaped container which is mounted on the wingtips of aircraft and increases the survival rate of the planes by 25-30 percent.

After an aircraft receives an alert of a missile attack, the Khibiny system starts to cover it with a protective radio-electronic hood, which prevents enemy guided missiles from impacting the plane and diverts them elsewhere.

As far as the Su-34 is concerned, the system provides the jet with electronic warfare capabilities and enables it to carry out effective electronic countermeasures against radar systems, anti-aircraft missile systems and airborne early warning and control aircraft.