Russian tech corporation Rostec will be upgrading some of its latest military weapons and equipment, including the Su-30SM combat aircraft and S-350 medium-range air-defense missile system.
According to company CEO Sergey Chemezov, the upgraded Su-30SM will be mounted with new armaments and more powerful engines to bolster its combat capabilities.
A multirole fighter aircraft, the Su-30SM can carry a range of advanced weapons, including a machine gun, bombs, air-to-air missiles, and supersonic anti-ship and land-attack missiles. It can also be fitted with anti-surface weaponry such as rockets for land attack operations.
Chemezov also revealed that Russia’s latest S-550 missile system would be upgraded for extended target detection and missile range. It will be delivered to the country’s armed forces by 2025.
“This is work that never stops and will carry on being implemented to boost the detection range and the missile range with the capability of intercepting any target,” the Rostec official told state-owned TASS. “That’s the focus of the work on the S-550.”
Additional Weapon Upgrades
Earlier this week, Russia and the United Arab Emirates discussed the potential upgrade of an anti-aircraft missile and gun system dubbed the Pantsir-S1M to significantly improve its operational capabilities.
The Russian military also revealed that it will issue a new weapon to its intelligence and special forces units, replacing the Dragunov sniper rifle with its latest version.
The new and upgraded sniper rifle has an “effective muzzle brake/flash suppressor,” which increases the weapon’s accuracy and balance. It also allows the attachment of a variety of equipment, including sights and silencers.
Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin has encouraged local defense companies to manufacture more advanced hypersonic missiles and high-energy laser weapons to maintain the nation’s edge in military technologies.