RSK MiG is preparing its MiG-21bis upgrade demonstrator for flight tests in the second half of this year with the Tikhomirov NIIP Osa X-band multimode radar featuring a passive phased-array antenna. "The aircraft is a laboratory to flight-test the radar," says head of the Mikoyan engineering centre Vladimir Barkovsky. As well as the MiG-21, the radar is also aimed at the MiG-29UBT, the two-seat Fulcrum. The 120kg (260lb) Osa can track eight targets and target four. Detection range against a fighter is 85km (45nm), around 40% more than the NIIR-Phazotron Kopyo developed for the Indian air force's upgraded MiG-21bis fighters.
Source: Flight International