Vietnam Air Force's Yak-130 combat-training aircraft on the assembly line at the Irkutsk factory (photo : BaoDatViet)
The first picture of the body frame of a training aircraft - advanced combat Yak-130 assembled by Russia for the Vietnam Air Force has been posted.
Russian newspaper Vedomosti dated January 29, 2020, citing sources in the defense industry, said that Vietnam had signed a contract to buy 12 Yak-130 training and combat aircraft by the Irkutsk aviation complex. manufacturing.
According to the disclosure, the contract was signed at the end of 2019, but it is unclear when it is handed over to the Vietnamese side. If the above information is authentic, we will become the 6th country to buy Yak-130 from Russia. This advanced training aircraft was previously sold to Algeria, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Laos and Belarus.
The Russian State Arms Export and Import Corporation Rosoboronexport and the Federal Defense Cooperation Agency have not yet commented on information about Vietnam ordering Yak-130.
However, recently in a report published on Russian TV channel 1 on the occasion of the visit of the Russian Defense Minister - General Sergei Shoigu to the Irkutsk complex, remarkable details appeared, which is a photo of the plane training - fighting Vietnam's first Yak-130.
Based on the picture, the body frame of the Yak-130 at the Irkutsk aviation factory was painted with the Vietnamese flag, the plane bearing the factory number 130.12.05-103. In which, according to the explanation, 05 is the customer code, 103 is the 3rd in the production lot, the number 12 can be understood as the total number of aircraft to be produced for the partner.
Thus, this is the third Yak-130 aircraft in Vietnam, the two previous aircraft most likely have completed the chassis and are being fitted with wings as well as electronic equipment to conduct test flights at the previous factory. when officially handed over.
The purchase of advanced Yak-130 training aircraft is seen as the first step for the Vietnam Air Force to step up to order high-performance fighters such as the Su-30SM also from Irkutsk, or Su-35S and Su-57 by KnAAPO.