XIV Международная студенческая научная конференция Студенческий научный форум - 2022

None of the latest local conflicts did not do without aviation. Attack aircraft were the most frequently used aircraft for many years. Recently, they have given way to attack UAVs and kamikaze drones, but they are still used quite actively. Nowadays the two most famous attack aircraft are the Russian Su-25, nicknamed Grach, and the American A-10 Thunderbolt II, known as the Warthog. The relevance of our research is caused by the increased requirements for the level of professional training of military aviation specialists. The organization and content of the training of military personnel should be aimed, first of all, at forming competencies, allowing them to master new and advanced aircraft systems entering service. Undoubtedly, it includes the unique Su-25CM3 combat aircraft for direct support of troops on the battlefield, which entered service in 2016. Both Su-25 and A-10 are designed to provide direct fire support to troops on the battlefield. They were being worked on simultaneously. The American Fairchild-Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II attack aircraft, named after the successful World War II fighter-bomber P-47 Thunderbolt, was developed in the 1970s and was officially adopted in 1976. Serial production of the aircraft continued until 1984, during that time 716 aircraft were assembled in the USA [1].

The Soviet Su-25 attack aircraft began to be developed at the Sukhoi design bureau in 1968. In 1970-71, it was the preliminary design of the Sukhoi attack aircraft that won the competition aimed at the creation of a new attack aircraft, leaving the representatives of the Yakovlev, Mikoyan and Ilyushin design bureaus behind. The draft design and model of the aircraft were ready in September 1972. The first flight took place on February 22, 1975 [2]. The foreign competitor had already flown for three years by that time, for the first time the A-10 took off on May 10, 1972 [3]. Official tests of the Su-25 attack aircraft were completed in December 1980, serial production of the aircraft began a year earlier at a plant in Tbilisi. The first production attack aircraft entered service in April 1981, while the official adoption of the Su-25 took place only on March 31, 1987, that is, after six years of operation and active use in hostilities in Afghanistan.

The main mission of the Su-25 attack aircraft, like its American counterpart, was the direct support of ground forces on the battlefield, including the destruction of objects with given coordinates. At the same time, the aircraft was designed for operations in full-scale warfare. The Su-25 was assumed to be able to conduct an offensive together with the army, regardless of airfields. It was this fact that caused the ability of the attack aircraft to be used from unpaved runways.

In terms of speed and maneuverability, the Russian Su-25 greatly overcomes A-10. Grach's maximum flight speed is 950 km/h, its cruising speed is 750 km/h. The maximum flight speed of the Warthog is noticeably lower – up to 720 km/h, and the cruising flight speed is only 560 km/h. At the same time, the engines on the A-10 Thunderbolt II attack aircraft are significantly more economical than those on the Su-25; they provide the aircraft with a larger combat range and a ferry range of 4,150 km. The ferry range of the Su-25 with four outer tanks PTB-800 (with discharge) is limited to 1,850 km. Also, the Russian attack aircraft has lower service ceiling than its American counterpart, which is limited to 7 km. The American attack aircraft is able to climb to an altitude of 13,380 meters. Both aircraft have practically the same thrust-to-weight ratio at normal take-off weight, but the Su-25 slightly outcomes A-10. At the same time, the maximum take-off weight of the A-10 is noticeably greater – 22,700 kg, against 19,300 kg for the Su-25 (according to the Sukhoi company). It is not surprising that the Su-25 noticeably outperforms its competitor in terms of climb rate – 60 m/s versus 30 m/s for the A-10 [1].

Talking about the possibility of using outside concrete airfields, then the Su-25 has advantages of having the ability to take off from unpaved runways. At the same time, the take-off distance of both aircraft with maximum load does not differ much: 1,050 meters for the Su-25 versus 1,150 meters for the A-10. Both aircraft were created for action in a full-scale war. Therefore, a durable landing gear and large straight wings were designed, which allow taking off even from short, uneven runways. The Americans engineered the plane with the expectation that it could take off from unfinished or damaged airfields, taxiways, and straight sections of highways. By the way, this is another explanation for the location of the two engines on top of the fuselage. Such a solution was chosen by the designers to reduce the risk of engine damage by foreign objects during take-off from unprepared or damaged runways [3].

According to test pilot and Hero of Russia Magomed Tolboev, who flew both aircraft, the Su-25 is a more maneuverable attack aircraft, it is able to perform complex aerobatics, while the A-10 has limited roll and pitch angles. «The Su-25 can fit into the canyon, but the A-10 cannot,» Magomed Tolboyev noted in an interview with Russian media [1].

A-10 Thunderbolt II attack aircraft is primarily intended to combat enemy armored vehicles, including tanks. Its main armament is not missiles and bombs, but the unique seven-barreled 30-mm cannon GAU-8 Avenger, around which the aircraft fuselage is literally built. The ammunition capacity of the cannon is impressive and amounts to 1,350 30×173 mm shells [3]. In the ammunition list there are also sub-caliber ammunition, including those with a uranium core. This cannon can easily be used against any enemy infantry fighting vehicles and armored personnel carriers. Also it is effective against tanks, if we consider that sub-caliber ammunition penetrates 38 mm armor from a distance of 1,000 meters at an obliquity angle of 30 degrees. At the same time, the cannon is also characterized by high accuracy. From a distance of 1,220 meters, 80 percent of the shells fired in a volley hit a circle with a diameter of 12.4 meters. The armament of the Su-25 is much more not so impressive and includes by the double-barreled 30-mm automatic cannon GSh-30-2 with an ammunition capacity of 250 rounds [2].

Both aircraft have approximately the same number of suspension points. The A-10 has 11 points and the Su-25 has 10. At the same time, the American attack aircraft has the combat load twice greater than the Russian aircraft. For the A-10, the maximum combat load is 7,260 kg, but for the Su-25 it is 4,400 kg. This is the weight without the 7-barreled aircraft cannon ammunition, which weighs about a ton. The ammunition load of the Su-25 is noticeably lighter, it is 340 kg [1].

Special attention must be paid to the ammunition list. The Warthog is intended mainly for the use of high-precision weapons, including smart bombs JDAM, which are able to engage evasive targets. But the main weapon of the American assault aircraft, in addition to the cannon, is the famous air-to-surface missiles AGM-65 Maverick with an electro-optical targeting system. The missile can hit heavily armored and moving targets even in urban areas. In this case, the fire-and-forget mode is implemented. After the missile seeker is fixed on the target, its trajectory no longer depends on the position and movement of the attack aircraft itself. The Russian Grach is also capable of using a wide range of weapons, including smart ammunition. But the main strikes are delivered by dumb and guided bombs and unguided missiles. At the same time, as a result of the upgrades the ability the Su-25SM3 to hit targets with conventional dumb bombs was significantly increased due to the installation of the SVP-24-25 Gefest sight and navigation system. This makes it possible to achieve the same level of accuracy of strikes with unguided weapons as that of guided weapons. This is only relevant for stationary targets.

The use of all types of weapons is provided at any time of the year, day and night, in any weather conditions, in case of direct visible targets. For ground targets (mobile and stationary), all types of weapons are used, provided by the combat load of the aircraft. Against aerial targets, the R-60 missile launcher is used. Depending on the tactical situation, the type of targets, the variant of the aircraft combat load, the use of weapons is carried out by the pilot.

During the study, the tactical and technical characteristics and conditions of the combat use of the weapons of the Su-25SM3 aircraft, depending on the parameters of the combat flight, were considered. From all of the above-mentioned, we can conclude that assault aircraft will carry out combat missions for a long time and there can be no question of replacing them with attack drones. Application experience has proven that attack aircraft are ideal for direct support of troops and cover for advancing infantry. This study expands the level of knowledge and increases the desire of specialists to master new types of aircraft, which in the future will allow them to operate aircraft efficiently.

Список литературы / References

1. Юферев С. Битва штурмовиков. Су-25 против А-10 Thunderbolt II // Военное обозрение. – URL: http://topwar.ru/175851-bitva-shturmovikov-su-25-protiv-a-10-thunderbolt-ii.html

2. Нижегородский В. Су-25 Грач или «Летающий танк» // Военное обозрение. – URL: http://topwar.ru/64474-su-25-grach-ili-letauschiy-tank.html

3. Юферев С. А-10 Thunderbolt II: штурмовик, построенный вокруг авиационной пушки // Военное обозрение. – URL: http://topwar.ru/100011-a-10-thunderbolt-ii-shturmivik-postroennyy-vokrug-aviacionnoy-pushki.html

Список литературы на английском языке / Referencesin English

1. Yurefev S. Bitva shturmovikov Su-25 protiv A-10 Thunderbolt II [The combat of attack aircraft Su-25 against A-10 Thunderbolt II] // Voennoe obozrenie [Military Review]. – URL: http://topwar.ru/175851-bitva-shturmovikov-su-25-protiv-a-10-thunderbolt-ii.html

2. Nizhegorodskiy V. Su-25 Grach ili «Letauschiy tank» [Su-25 Grach or «the Flying Tank»] // Voennoe obozrenie [Military Review]. – URL: http://topwar.ru/64474-su-25-grach-ili-letauschiy-tank.html

3. Yurefev S. А-10 Thunderbolt II: shturmivik postroennyy vokrug aviacionnoy pushki [А-10 Thunderbolt II: attack aircraft built around the cannon] // Voennoe obozrenie [Military Review]. – URL: http://topwar.ru/100011-a-10-thunderbolt-ii-shturmivik-postroennyy-vokrug-aviacionnoy-pushki.html