The Russian Air and Space Force (RuASF) has taken delivery of its first upgraded Il-76MDM airlifter with an additional 15 years of airframe life. Ilyushin signed the contract back in August 2013 covering a comprehensive avionics upgrade, a service life extension programme and replacement of systems now out of production for a mix of 30 Il-76MD transport aircraft and Il- 78M tankers.
New Global Air Traffic Managementcompliant avionics including communication and navigation suites, digital cockpit instrumentation, a self-protection system, and a nosemounted electro-optical/infrared sensor system used for low-level night time navigation and delivery of paratroopers and military equipment, are all adopted from the new Il-76M- 90A. The MDM-model also features a reinforced centre wing section, a strengthened undercarriage, but the original D-30KP engines upgraded for greater service life.
Thirty Il-76MDMs are planned, which will supplement – at a third of the per-aircraft cost – new-production Il- 76MD-90As powered by the PS-90A engine. The first aircraft made its postupgrade maiden flight in February 2016, and now delivered will be used for test and evaluation by the RuASF. Alexander Mladenov and David C Isby
