Russia’s ‘PAK-DA’ Strategic Bomber Undergoes Ejection Seat Testing

 

Prospective Aviation Complex for Long Range Aviation (PAK-DA),” General Director of the Research and Production Enterprise, begun testing an ejection seat for a PAK-DA, Zvezda, Sergey Pozdnyakov said.

According to Pozdnyakov, the tests would comprise climatic and resource tests and examine ‘mechanical impacts.’ This implies checking whether the structural integrity is maintained and if the system can withstand the extreme pressures on the seat while being ejected by rocket boosters mid-flight.

This period will also see the testing of the “rescue system,” The seats will also have a new ejection control unit since the cabin will have to release not two but four pilots and their seats sequentially. This requires finer synchronization.

The PAK-DA is Russia’s first ‘long-range strategic bomber’ being developed in decades, meant to replace Tupolev Design Bureau’s three strategic bombers – the TU-160 ‘Blackjack’, TU-22M, and TU-95.

After at least two years of rigorous flight testing, the final production model is frozen to reveal the necessary modifications and corrections. Both flight and ground crews also take time to be fully acquainted with the aircraft.

Moreover, Russia’s industry and trade minister Denis Manturov said in February this year that the upgraded TU-160M will also be built with the PAK-DA while visiting the TU-160 plant in Kazan.

“It set to complete preparations for its (PAK-DA) debut flight and subsequently pass all the stages of trials and its launch into serial production. Two planes, the TU-160M and the PAK-DA will be simultaneously produced,” Manturov said in comments quoted in several Russian media.

The Prospective Aviation Complex for Long Range Aviation (PAK-DA) began construction in May 2020 and is expected to begin flight testing by March 2025 and serial production by 2028-2029.

The flying-wing design PAK-DA can stay airborne for 30 hours, fly at subsonic speeds, and has an engine with a thrust of about 23 tons. In August, a publication by Popular Mechanics suggested that the Russian PAK-DA would have a longer range than the American B-2 Spirit.

Based on the Russian defense industry and ministry officials’ statements that the next-generation plane will feature new technologies and “materials” to “reduce its radar signature,” it appears that the PAK-DA will be a full-aspect stealth bomber.

The PAK-DA’s direct competitors will be the US B-21 ‘Raider’ and China’s H-20, both aircraft whose first models are also being manufactured. 

The ability to fire Russia’s Kh-47M2 ‘Kinzhal’ hypersonic missile, precision bombs, highly encrypted communication equipment, Electronic Warfare, jam-resistant systems, and even air-to-air missiles for self-defense are some of the fundamental capabilities Russian planners have envisaged for the PAK-DA.

But the defining feature of the aircraft is likely to be a sixth-generation combined cycle engine, whose research and development (R&D) was launched in July 2021. “future combat aircraft.” Until then, the PAK-DA and the Su-57 would fly with fifth generation power plants.”