BARANOVICHI: Russian strategic and tactical bombers equipped with new high-precision weapons systems have successfully conducted live-firing drills at a practice range in Belarus, a Ground Forces spokesman said on Sunday.
The drills at the Obuz-Lesnovski range were part of the Zapad (West) 2009 large-scale Russian-Belarusian military exercises currently underway in Belarus.
“Today, Tu-22M3 Backfire strategic bombers and Su-24M Fencer tactical bombers, which are equipped a specialized computing subsystem SVP-24, conducted a series of live-firing drills aimed at destroying ground targets designated by a commander of a motorized infantry brigade,” Col. Alexander Drobyshevsky said.
SVP-24 allows target data to be automatically transmitted by on-ground spotters and received by ground attack aircraft during combat.
Drobyshevsky said the drill involved quick retargeting of the aircraft in response to a decision made by a unit commander on the ground, who shifted priority to a new set of targets during an intense battle.
“Air strikes on these new targets were delivered with high precision in poor weather conditions from outside the effective range of the enemy’s air defenses,” he said.
The Zapad 2009 exercises, which are held on September 8-29, involve around 13,000 service personnel, 63 airplanes, 40 helicopters, 470 infantry fighting vehicles, 228 tanks and 234 artillery pieces on both sides.
S-300 air defense missile systems also participate in the drills to test the effectiveness of the unified regional anti-aircraft defense systems of Russia and Belarus.
