Russia's 'old man' Be-12 is about to threaten the West again
Although produced since the 1950s, the Russian Navy's Be-12 seaplane is still powerful enough to terrify the enemy.
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| According to the press agency of the Russian Ministry of Defense announced on January 3, the ministry is planning to modernize 12 Be-12 anti-submarine aircraft. |
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| "Modernization of the Be-12 amphibious aircraft with new anti-submarine systems is planned. This will allow us to increase our combat capabilities and will give (these aircraft) the opportunity to successfully perform their tasks," the statement said. |
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| The Be-12 Chayka (Seagull) anti-submarine amphibious aircraft was developed by the Beriev Design Bureau in the late 1950s. The original design purpose of the Be-12 was to hunt down US Navy submarines that were approaching deep into Soviet territorial waters. |
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| The above structure helps the aircraft to fly easily, especially in operating conditions at sea, similar to the albatross - a seabird. |
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| The Be-12's fuselage is divided into 10 compartments with watertight partitions, inside which electronic equipment is installed. If some compartments are punctured, the plane will still float well on the water. Under the 2 wings there are 2 more floats to create stability. |
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| Be-12 is equipped with 2 Ivchenko Progress AI-20D turboprop engines (5,180 horsepower/unit) allowing it to reach a speed of about 530km/h, a range of 3,300km, and a ceiling of 8,000m. Takeoff/landing on water is 2,300m, takeoff/landing on land is 2,200-1,800m. |
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| Be-12 can carry 3,000-4,000 kg of homing torpedoes and bombs to attack enemy submarines. Specifically, including: AT-1 450mm homing torpedo weighs 560 kg, equipped with a 70-160 kg high explosive warhead, range of 5,000m, speed of 27 nautical miles/h. The homing head activates at a range of 500-1000m. |
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| The AT-2 533mm acoustic homing torpedo weighs 1,050 kg, has an 80–150 kg warhead, a range of 7,000 m, and a speed of 40 knots. The homing head activates at a range of 1,000 m. Anti-submarine bomb. With the attack capability of the Be-12, it is not difficult to understand why Russia decided to upgrade this aircraft line even though Moscow has many new generation vehicles. (Tuan Vu) |
