Russia to offer MiG-35 planes at India’s tender for light fighter jets

Russia is ready to take part in India’s tender for the supply of light fighter jets with its Mikoyan MiG-35 plane, Director of Russia’s Federal Service for Military and Technical Cooperation Dmitry Shugayev told TASS on Wednesday.

"Principally, Russia is ready to participate in future aviation tenders in India. However, as of now, we do not have information on the opening of a tender and, correspondingly, on the plane’s technical requirements set by the Indian side," he said.

The MiG-35 is Russia’s most advanced 4++ generation multipurpose fighter jet developed on the basis of the serial-produced MiG-29K/KUB and MiG-29M/M2 combat aircraft.

The fighter jet features improved flight and technical characteristics, the most advanced onboard radio-electronic equipment and a wide arsenal of air-to-air and air-to-surface missiles. The plane can develop a speed of 2.23 Mach and its operational radius exceeds the range of its predecessor MiG-29 by 50%

The flight tests of MiG-35 fighter aircraft began on January 26 and the plane’s international presentation was held in the Moscow Region on the following day.

The United Aircraft Corporation announced in early February it had signed a contract with Russia’s Defense Ministry on the delivery of two such fighters in 2017-2018. According to a TASS source in the defense sector, a contract for more than 30 MiG-35 for the Defense Ministry may be signed in 2018.

Tass