Modern military equipment can not be imagined without a huge number of electronic components. It is not surprising that their damage entails the inoperability of the means of destruction. So the latest electronic warfare tools , such as Lever AB, are an essential component of any modern army.
What is EW, what does this mean?
Electronic warfare, that is, electronic warfare, implies the impact through directed interference on the radio electronic controls of the enemy, on his communication, information flows with parallel protection of their own systems from possible similar countermeasures from the enemy.
How are artificial disturbances created?
For this, active and passive means can be used. The first category includes interference generators, as well as their transmitters. Under the "passive" refers to various categories of reflectors that impede the passage of radio waves and at the same time distort them. Parts of electronic warfare are one of the most important, even being part of missile units. The accuracy of missile guidance depends on their work in many respects, since the enemy will certainly resist this very much.
Active interference
The hardest thing is with active interference, since they are very diverse and require a significant amount of energy to generate. To create them, special generators and transmitters are used, the development of which in many countries of the world began immediately after the Second World War. These signals distort or clog “white noise” those pulses that come from the enemy’s radar.
Unable to normally pass through space, the waves either distort, giving the impression of multiple targets, or even disappear, leaving the radar screens blank. Thus, active interference is divided into two types: suppressive and distorting.
The importance of electronic warfare systems
The importance of electronic warfare is indicated by special attention to them in case of a full-scale war. So, in instructions for air defense fighters (both ours and American), black and white says that the first should be to destroy enemy aircraft equipped with electronic warfare. Simply put, in the event of a probable enemy’s strike, not even tactical bombers should have been the first to be destroyed, but the Prowlers EA-6B or Hercules EU-130H.
And this despite the fact that this equipment does not have any weapons at all ... So EW specialists are always at the forefront of defense. Moreover, in foreign sources there is no term “electronic warfare” at all. It uses the expression "electronic war ...". In the context of the importance played by modern high-tech equipment in the troops, this is fully justified.
The importance of electronic warfare equipment installed on aircraft
The most important task of specialists in electronic warfare (or war) is to "stun" the enemy, depriving him of the ability to see and hear through his electronic "eyes and ears." It is especially important from the very first minutes of the battle (and, ideally, even before it) to drown out enemy radars and / or bring their own attack aircraft or missile units onto them.
If the electronic warfare systems work perfectly, then their own strike and fighter aircraft will be able to break through directly to enemy targets, being completely invisible. In this case, the enemy can use only visual guidance on the target, which, under the conditions of the speeds of modern aircraft, reduces the air defense capabilities to almost zero.
What is most pleasant - the most sophisticated missiles worth millions of dollars each in such a situation turn out to be useless trash, blinded and “brainless”. Even the rise of interceptors will not be able to radically change the situation. Without adjustment from the ground, their ability to detect enemy aircraft is very small, and the risk of losing equipment and the pilot is very high.
New technology development
At present, the domestic defense industry has recovered somewhat from a deep systemic crisis, and therefore, intensive development of the latest high-tech models of these types of weapons is underway. The Kazan Optical and Mechanical Plant plays a huge role in this . It is part of the huge KRET (Concern Radioelectronic Technologies). The products of this holding are the most important component of security throughout our country.
It is at this plant that the Lever-AV complex is being developed. At the beginning of last year, several samples of this electronic warfare weapon were already handed over to our military for their field trials. It is reported that the entire State order for 2015 was completed in full compliance with the deadlines, and work has already begun on the running (as any deficiencies are identified) modernization of the Lever-AV.
Parallel equipment
Are there any other means of electronic warfare developed and produced in our country? Yes. For example, Vitebsk: this electronic warfare is produced by the same concern, and its characteristics are similar.
The purpose of Vitebsk is to protect a variety of military equipment. Unlike the Lever, the system forms a full-sized “dome” that protects not only a particular helicopter or plane, but also everything that falls within its scope. The complex can also work as an autonomous active jammer, being mounted on a helicopter or specially equipped AWACS aircraft.
What is more valuable "Vitebsk"? This EW can automatically scan the surrounding space, determines in real time who and from what distance scans the equipment. At the same time, a digital “impression” is immediately taken from enemy equipment, which subsequently allows you to determine the type and type of equipment of a potential enemy. In addition, Vitebsk is able to almost instantly calculate the location of enemy equipment, study the phase of its operation and “tailor” a certain equipment protection strategy to existing conditions.
Moreover, this electronic warfare station can also form entire "squadrons" of false targets, for the "destruction" of which the enemy will spend its resources, time and energy. Only one aircraft equipped with Vitebsk can waste the power of an entire squadron of interceptors, forcing enemy vehicles to intercept virtual targets. In short, electronic warfare systems are vital for a modern army. Moreover, it’s important not only to blind the enemy’s electronics, but also its “deception”, when you can integrate into the transmission system of the most important tactical data by sending deliberately false data.
Development plans
KRET also has plans for the evolutionary development of existing electronic warfare equipment, focusing on the data that will be obtained during the operation and testing of new items. So, already in 2017, the start of production of a modernized version of the complex is planned, the composition of which will include those changes, the need for which will be revealed during field trials. Currently, work is already underway on the serial production of the new "Lever".
Work with OKB Mikoyan
The main distinguishing feature of "Lever-AV" is that its designers created a separate modification of the complex, specially designed for installation on Mi-8 helicopters. The index of such machines is Mi-8MTPPR-1. What is the breakthrough here? The fact is that the G8 is a real hard worker of the sky. These helicopters are widely used in our country and abroad, they are equally useful both for civilian life and for war.
But in the latter case, the life of the pilot and the safety of the cargo are in great danger, since the Mi-8 does not have any armor, it has no protection against anti-aircraft systems. The presence of an electronic warfare complex on board a helicopter is a real opportunity to significantly increase the survivability of the machine in combat conditions, as well as the efficiency of using air-to-ground missiles, counteracting enemy air defense systems.
Some features of the new complex
Representatives of the defense industry are not too eager to talk about the features of the new product, but some information still gets to the journalists of the near-war editions. As you know, the concern "Radioelectronic Technologies" produces this equipment designed for electronic warfare in various conditions, at any time of the day and regardless of meteorological factors. The complex we are discussing can be mounted on any domestic helicopter, which significantly increases flexibility and increases the possibilities of its use.
It is the AB index that points to its aviation “pedigree”. In addition, there is a lot of information about the ongoing creation of other versions of the complex, intended for installation on other versions of military equipment. In particular, it is planned to create machines for the air defense and strategic missile forces, which will protect the launchers and air defense systems, blinding the advancing planes and missiles of the enemy. It should be noted that at present there is no official information about these variants of the complex at all. So far, there is only some data on how the Lever-AV system works on Mi-8 family helicopters.
General facts, some information
As we said, so far only some general information is known, according to which, nevertheless, some conclusions can still be drawn. So, according to domestic media that work directly with the Ministry of Defense, the new complex is capable of suppressing the enemy’s electronic activity at ranges up to 100 kilometers. Thus, the radius of action allows with a sufficient degree of reliability to cover the calculations of air defense systems without their visual detection by the enemy. This is especially good when military operations are conducted in meteorological conditions favorable to the enemy. It is also known that work can be carried out simultaneously for several purposes.
If the Lever-AV system is put on a Mi-8 helicopter, the latter goes through the process of retrofitting and some modernization. So, containers for equipment are mounted in the cargo compartment, on-board wiring is equipped so that electricity is supplied to the system with the necessary voltage indicators, etc. Phased antennas are mounted on the sides, which are necessary for directing the radiation of the Lever.
According to unofficial data, multipath phased arrays are used as antennas. A helicopter carrying this complex on board, among others, is quite simple to distinguish. The point here is two particularly noticeable antennas, which are installed in front of the tail section of the machine.
But what about the crew? It is known that the radiation produced by such systems cannot be called safe for human health ... To avoid negative consequences, special shielding is placed on the machine. It not only protects the crew from powerful electromagnetic radiation, but also prevents the onboard equipment of the helicopter itself from failing, which is also "indifferent" to the radiation of this device. Since working within a radius of one hundred kilometers requires a very high signal power, installing additional shielding is vital.
Advanced features of the complex
According to unconfirmed data, the Leverage-AV active jamming station is capable of not only damping the radiation of enemy devices, but also collecting their characteristics and compiling a special “card index” of signals. Why is this necessary? The point is self-learning: the “smarter” Lever-AV complex is capable of independently not only determining the target’s characteristics, but also automatically selecting the radiation power necessary to neutralize one or another equipment.
Thus, the system can not only flexibly adapt to various working conditions, but also independently accumulate information about new enemy devices that were not yet in the database at the time of the creation of the complex.
It would be interesting to find out if the jamming station can synchronize this data with other EW "Lever-AV", but so far this information has not been covered in the press. Most likely, such an opportunity exists, and it simply must be, for the loss of one complex will entail the loss of the data accumulated by it.
There is evidence that Mi-8 helicopters equipped with this system can counteract enemy air defense systems, act to suppress his communications and control, and also protect his troops from enemy electronic warfare equipment, which he will actively use in certain sectors of the front.
About supplies of refitted machines
As of 2015, the Kazan Helicopter Plant has already fully implemented the Ministry of Defense plan for the supply of helicopters equipped with electronic warfare systems, even in the basic configuration. It should be noted that the first cars were transferred to the customer at the very beginning of the year. Most likely, the work continues to this day, since there have been no complaints from the military regarding the delivery time.
It is known that the "Lever-AV" (electronic warfare station group protection) is already undergoing a full-scale modernization. It is known that it is planned to slightly increase the radius of its possible use, to develop special options for small vessels and ground equipment, as well as to improve the self-defense of the complex from enemy countermeasures. Most likely, all variants of this jamming station will be operated in the troops in parallel, constantly going through the planned modernization procedure.