Yak-130

The Yakovlev Design Bureau started the development of a new operational training airplane for the Russian Air Force in the early 1990s.

The innovative concept was completed and approved by the Ministry of Defense of Russia in 1993. The design was recommended for full-scale development based on its selection from bids.

Due to lack of funding from the government, the management of Yakovlev Design Bureau decided to implement the project in cooperation with Aermacchi (Italy). Cooperation under this program continued from 1993 to 1999.

A test pilot from the Yakovlev Design Bureau, Andrey Sinitsyn, operated the first flight of the Yak-130D demonstration airplane from Gromov airfield on April 25, 1996.

The Yak-130 was declared the winner of the Russian Defense Ministry’s tender on April 16, 2002.

Senior test pilot of the Yakovlev Design Bureau, Hero of Russia Roman Taskaev, lifted off on the first Yak-130, in full production configuration manufactured at the Sokol aircraft-manufacturing plant in Nizhny Novgorod, on April 30, 2004.

The Irkutsk Aviation Plant, where the digitalized production of the Yak-130 had been arranged, and which later would become the exclusive supplier of the new airplane, joined the production effort in 2006.
Official tests were successfully completed in 2009.

These airplanes have been operated by the Russian Air Force since February 2010, and exported by the Irkut Corporation since 2011. 

Presently, the Irkut Corporation performs the entire scope of work listed under the Yak-130 program:

- Improvements are designed by the A. Yakovlev Engineering Center – the main design unit of PJSC Irkut Corporation;

- Production is concentrated at Irkutsk Aviation Plant, a branch of PJSC Irkut Corporation;

- PJSC Irkut Corporation provides for the marketing, sale, supply, and after-sales service of Yak-130s, collaborating with the RF Federal Service for Military and Technical Cooperation and OJSC Rosoboronexport in compliance with applicable Russian legislation.

The Yak-130 is the first operational trainer in the world boasting aerodynamic design and performance similar to fourth- and fifth-generation combat airplanes in subsonic flight.

The airplane features classic monoplane design with mid-positioned swept wings and an all-movable horizontal tail.

Developed extensions at the wing enable stable controlled flight at angles of attack of up to 35 degrees, which corresponds to the capabilities of advanced, ultra-maneuverable fighters.

The high thrust/weight ratio (0.81) provides for steady load-factor, rate-of-climb, and take-off performance, which are outstanding for an operational trainer.

The Yak-130 provides state-of-the-art avionics equipment: digital integrated fly-by-wire control systems, glass cockpits, and digital aiming, piloting, and navigation suites.

The cockpit’s integrated airplane control and navigational equipment is made up of three 6” x 8” multi-functional LCD displays in each cockpit, and a head-up display system in the front cabin, ensuring that pilots are supplied with all of the necessary information.

The Yak-130 is the best choice in terms of cost value, both for fighter-pilot training and for combat operations in local theaters.

Its control system, with reprogramming capability, enables the adjustment of stability and handling performance for training purposes, depending on the type of combat airplane for which future pilots are being trained.

All stages of training can be completed on one airplane ¬– the Yak-130 supports the completion of initial, basic, and advanced training by combat airplane pilots.

The Yak-130 is designed and delivered to customers as part of a complete training and exercise program that also includes an integrated monitoring-and-recording system and computer-based training classes, as well procedure, flight and specialized simulators and trainers.

Performance, efficient cockpit control and navigation equipment, coupled with a user-friendly interface, ensure ease of operation and gradual transitions from simple to more difficult tasks in the training process.

The airplane also supports spin training for future pilots.

The Yak-130 can be successfully used for realistic training with the simulation of operational environment and real use of weapons.

To optimize the training process, an operational training procedure has been implemented for simulation of the real use of weapons at aerial and ground targets.

The cost of a flight hour of the Yak-130 in comparable missions is several times lower than that of other modern operational training fighters.