A-50 early warning aircraft upgraded

Rostec and the Beriev Aircraft Company have completed the upgrade of Russia's A-50 airborne early warning and control aircraft to the A-50U version, Rostec announced on 26 December.

The upgrades included improvements to the aircraft's combat and performance characteristics and modernisation of Shmel radios. With new electronic components and high-performance computing tools, the aircraft will now be able to track more targets.

The A-50U features an increased detection range of various airborne vehicles, including new aircraft. The radar has been upgraded by implementing end-to-end channel digital radar data processing and upgrading the receiver and transmitter.

The aircraft’s satellite communication equipment, including information exchange speed, volume and quality, has also been enhanced, along with its navigation system. Flight range and mission duration have also been increased.

The A-50U aircraft is tasked with the detection, tracking and identification of air, large ground and sea targets. Information is relayed to command posts to guide fighters to targets.