A Preview of SU-30MK Awesome Acrobatics

A Preview of SU-30MK Awesome Acrobatics

BREATH-TAKING acrobatics! That best describes the display of the Su-30MK fighter during the dress rehearsal for the Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace exhibition 2001 in Langkawi yesterday.

The agile fighter plane gave an awesome display never seen before over South-East Asian skies.

Equipped with thrust-vector control, the much modified Flanker performed a routine that was almost beyond imagination.

How else can you explain an aircraft making a 360-degree turn in just seconds without losing airspeed and altitude? With the withdrawal of the Royal Air Force Red Arrows aerobatic display team from Lima O1, it looks like the Su-30MK will be the main contender for the Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MRCA) contract for the Royal Malaysian Air Force.

Another Russian contender, the MiG-29 MRCA aircraft also took to the skies after the big Sukhoi, but its display paled in comparison.

Yesterday also saw the arrival of the Royal Netherlands Air Force KDC-10 Extender aircraft, the only European aircraft taking part in Lima '01.

Defence Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, during a visit to the Mahsuri International Exhibition Centre, venue of the aerospace segment of Lima, confirmed the withdrawal of the Red Arrows.

He said the impending US-led attack on Afghanistan prevented the participation of the RAF display team which is undergoing winter training in Abu Dhabi.

The last-minute pullout meant that two of the best aerobatic teams in the world, the Red Arrows and Thunderbirds of the US, will not be thrilling the crowds at Lima '01.

Besides the two display teams, at least three companies had announced their withdrawal from the event which starts on Tuesday and ends on Sunday.

However, news of the withdrawal was somewhat soothed following the arrival of two F-15 fighter jets and a KC-135 tanker of the USAF late yesterday.

Although the aircraft will not feature in the flying display, their participation and the impending arrival of two F/A-18 Super Hornets on Tuesday would make Lima O1 a livelier affair.

With most of the Western air forces showing their might over Central Asia, it is the mighty Bear which is conquering the Langkawi skies.

And the Su-30MK, helped by another Su-30KM and the MiG-29MRCA, together with display teams of the RMAF, will certainly ensure that the 10th Lima is not a boring affair.

By MARHALIM ABAS in LANGKAWI

/NTSP/

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