MOSCOW, May 8.
/TASS/. Russia’s upgraded Su-25SM3 attack aircraft will get an onboard target
acquisition and sighting system with artificial intelligence elements to allow
pilots to strike designated targets actually without their participation, a
source in the defense industry told TASS on Wednesday.
"As part of
further upgrade of attack aircraft, the latest Su-25SM3 versions will be
furnished with a new sighting system. It will be fully automated and a pilot
will only have to select a target on the screen and all the rest will be done
by artificial intelligence," the source said.
The target
acquisition system with artificial intelligence will be able to independently
identify hostile targets, keep them in sight and guide missiles. The new
technology has been integrated into the unified troop command and control
system, which allows mapping an optimal route towards the target and the
trajectory of using weapons. Upgraded attack aircraft will also be able to
receive data on targets from external sources through the command and control
system.
A source in the
aircraft-building industry earlier told TASS that the upgraded Mi-28NM attack
helicopter would get a similar system with artificial intelligence.
Expert opinion
As Editor-in-Chief of the Arsenal of the Fatherland journal Viktor Murakhovsky told TASS, the new system is capable of accomplishing a whole range of tasks. "This includes re-targeting during a flight, the issuance of new flight assignments and integration into the battlefield reconnaissance and information space," he said.
The new target
acquisition system really features artificial intelligence elements, the chief
editor said. "When picking a target, the aircraft’s onboard information
and control system automatically maps the most optimal route towards this
target in compliance with the selected tactics… The system can also offer
options for employing the weapon payload against such a target, the variants of
tactical and air maneuvers with regard to this target," the expert
explained.
Besides, the attack
aircraft equipped with this system can guide weapons using target acquisition
from external sources, the expert said.
"It can get
target acquisition from ground-based hardware, for example, from the Strelets
reconnaissance, control and communications system [part of the Ratnik soldier
combat gear]," the expert concluded.
The Su-25SM3 is a
modernized version of the Su-25 attack aircraft. The plane is capable of
destroying small-size ground installations and air targets at any time of day
or night. The attack aircraft’s combat efficiency has increased threefold
compared to other modifications. As distinct from its predecessors, the
upgraded aircraft is equipped with the Glonass satellite navigation system that
offers a possibility of programming a final point on the map with an accuracy
of up to 10 meters while the cockpit has a digital display with an option of
projecting the ground and air situation.
Source: ITAR-TASS
08-05-2019
