Aircraft plant in Siberia to upgrade Okhotnik UAV production facilities.

The Novosibirsk-based Aircraft Plant named after V. Chkalov (an affiliate of the Sukhoi Company) will upgrade Okhotnik UAV production sites and build a new facility within five years, a source close to the authorities told TASS.

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Okhotnik (Picture source: Rostec)

As Russian Deputy Defense Minister Alexei Krivoruchko said in December 2021, a serial contract for the delivery of advanced S-70 Okhotnik strike unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) will be signed within six months.

According to him, the Okhotnik drone is a high-intelligent system able to accomplish a wide range of tasks individually, as part of a group and in conjunction with manned aircraft.

“The plant has very good plans. Okhotnik UAV production will be scaled up and a new facility will be built,” the source said, without specifying how many Okhotnik drones would be manufactured.

According to the source, the upgrade will begin in 2022 and will last five years. As a result, the number of jobs will grow 1.5 times. The work will cost about 2.5 billion rubles ($33 million).

TASS has no official comment from the plant yet.

The Okhotnik UAV developed by the Sukhoi Design Bureau has a flying wing scheme and is based on stealth technologies, which reduces its radar signature. According to open sources, the drone has a takeoff weight of 20 tons and a maximum flight speed of about 1,000 km/h (621 mph). Batch supplies are planned to start in 2024. The Okhotnik made its maiden flight on August 3, 2019. The flight lasted more than 20 minutes under the control of the operator. On September 27, 2019, it made a flight together with a Sukhoi Su-57 fighter jet. The press office of the Rostec state hi-tech corporation said that a new ground-based command post for the Okhotnik drone was being developed.

The Novosibirsk-based Aircraft Plant named after V. Chkalov was founded in 1931. During the Great Patriotic War, the plant manufactured more than 15,000 Yakovlev Yak-7 and Yak-9 fighters. The plant specializes in the production of Sukhoi Su-34 (NATO reporting name: Fullback) frontline bombers, as well as components for SSJ-100 airliners.

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