The Russian Ministry of Defense has confirmed that 15 people have died in the Ivanovo region in Russia after a military Il-76 crashed.
According to the Russian news outlet TASS, the Ilyushin Il-76 military transport aircraft crashed shortly after takeoff on March 12, 2024.
“On March 12, at about 13:00 Moscow time, while taking off for a scheduled flight, an Il-76 military transport aircraft crashed in the Ivanovo region. There were eight crew members and seven passengers on board,” the Russian Ministry of Defense said.
The Russian government confirmed that the aircraft suffered a fire in one of its engines, which was supported by video of the incident.
In a video shared on social media, the military aircraft can be seen with one of its right engines on fire as the plane appears to lose altitude.
Footage captured later shows a huge plume of smoke rising from an area in the Ivanovo region and a large fire.
In a separate video the Il-76 military transport aircraft appears to lose one of its engines after separating from the plane.
A commission of the Main Command of the Russian Aerospace Forces has been deployed to the crash site to gather evidence following the incident.
Watch: How Sweden can bolster Nato’s arsenal explained
Sweden has been formally welcomed as Nato’s 32nd member, ending two centuries of neutrality for the Scandinavian nation.
Stockholm applied for membership of the alliance three months after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, finally gaining entry after months of political haggling, mainly involving Turkey.
Forces News now looks at what Sweden brings to the Nato table.
Sweden’s key geographical position would allow Nato forces to quickly reinforce Norway and Finland.
It also has a highly developed defence industry – a major asset as Nato tries to rearm.
Military size
Sweden’s armed forces are comparatively small, with 14,850 regular personnel, supplemented by 11,450 reservists.
It has conscription – reintroduced in 2018 – but it is small and selective, with only around 4,000 men and women called up.
Watch: Swedish flag raised in Brussels to mark accession to Nato
Army
Sweden’s army has 6,850 soldiers, but it is well equipped. It has 110 Leopard 2 main battle tanks, 319 CV90 infantry fighting vehicles and 26 Archer self-propelled howitzers.
Archer is the Swedish-designed rapid-fire artillery system that the British Army is also buying. It can engage a target, open fire and then drive away in less than 20 seconds.
Navy
Sweden’s navy is regarded as small but very capable – bigger than every other Baltic navy except Germany’s – and tends to operate exclusively in the Baltic Sea and along the country’s west coast.
It has 2,350 naval personnel – half are sailors, half are amphibious forces – and its maritime equipment includes four submarines, five corvettes and seven mine warfare ships.
Sweden’s Gotland-class submarines have a unique engine that uses the power generated by expanding and contracting gases to drive the sub’s systems.
It makes them particularly quiet and means they do not have to surface for weeks.
Watch: How Sweden’s Gotland-class submarine has redefined underwater warfare
Air Force
Sweden will also bring its impressive air force to the alliance, which includes 2,700 air force personnel and six squadrons of Gripen multi-role fighter jets, produced by Swedish manufacturer Saab.
Sweden’s air force operates 96 Gripens, including a few of the newer E model with upgraded avionics and sensor systems. It will eventually receive 60 of this newer aircraft.
The Gripen is considered one of the world’s most capable fourth-generation fighters and can carry six air-to-air missiles – the same as the F-35.
It is also able to fire the Meteor air-to-air missile, which is faster and has more range than the AIM-120 used on many American aircraft.
Watch: HMS Mersey on exercise with Swedish navy’s HMS Nyköping
Sweden also has a highly regarded Special Operations Group.
Despite its relatively small size, Sweden’s military is very capable, with huge experience of the Baltic region.
By joining Nato, Sweden has left behind 200 years of neutrality and non-alignment.
Its membership is hugely symbolic and militarily important – another brick in the Western wall against Vladimir Putin’s territorial ambitions.
HMS Prince of Wales and the UK Carrier Strike Group have redeployed after completing Exercise Joint Warrior (Picture: Royal Navy)
The Royal Navy’s Carrier Strike Group, led by HMS Prince of Wales, has completed Exercise Joint Warrior, which was one part of Steadfast Defender, Nato’s biggest exercise since the Cold War.
Joint Warrior, the UK-led part of the exercise, involved the simulation of surface, air and land scenarios to evaluate the collaborative capabilities of Nato nations and allied partners when responding to hostilities in home waters.
Aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales was joined by more than 30 ships, four submarines, multiple aircraft from maritime patrol aircraft to F-35 Lightning jets and more than 20,000 personnel from nations including Canada, Denmark, France and Spain.
“Through careful planning, effective orchestrating and detailed evaluation we are able to ensure that the alliance’s most powerful naval assets are consistently challenged against realistic and credible threat scenarios,” said Commodore Andrew Ingham, Commander Fleet Operational Standards and Training.
“Their work supporting the largest Nato exercise in 50 years is absolutely crucial to ensuring that we are prepared for the challenges and threats of the modern era.”
UK Carrier Strike Group units assembled for Exercise Joint Warrior (Picture: MOD)
HMS Queen Elizabeth had initially been scheduled to lead the exercise, but she had to withdraw due to an issue with her propeller shaft, leading HMS Prince of Wales to step in.
Despite being given a 30-day notice, HMS Prince of Wales got ready for deployment in just a week.
Before deployment, HMS Prince of Wales was in the early stages of a maintenance period when the decision was made to sail her.
“Scaffolding that took six weeks to erect was taken down in six days, engines that had been readied for planned overhaul were rapidly rebuilt, and many of the ship’s company altered personal plans including leave and holidays,” Admiral Sir Ben Key said in a post on X.
“The entire process was completed in seven days and will ensure we continue to meet our Nato commitments. A phenomenal effort by all,” he added.
The Carrier Strike Group is currently deployed in Norway, continuing its participation in the subsequent phase of Exercise Steadfast Defender.
Watch: The BV 206 tracked all-terrain amphibious vehicle in action.
Military drivers have been hitting some BASS notes as they learn to operate the BV 206, a tracked, articulated utility vehicle, in the Arctic region of Norway.
BASS – Brake, Acceleration, Speed and Steering – are the fundamentals they need to learn when taking on the snow and ice in an all-terrain amphibious vehicle like this.
“Watch you don’t do too much of any of those things and you should be good,” Corporal Andy Flanagan, an instructor and logistics driver from the RAF’s Tactical Wing, told Forces News.
His role is to provide driver training for all ranks from all three services – teaching them how to handle the snow and ice, as well as operate the BV 206 tracked all-terrain amphibious vehicle in winter conditions.
Cpl Flanagan explained how one particular challenge that comes with driving the BV 206 in an Artic setting is the fact that it has tracks rather than wheels.
“It makes a huge difference in how to handle it, the tracks make it much easier for the centrifuge force to throw the vehicle sideways,” he said.
“If you’re in a turn, if the vehicle wants to go sideways then it will do a lot easier, there’s a lot more to think about when operating a BV.”
The BV 206 is designed to carry troops and equipment through harsh terrain.
Making full use of the Armed Forces’ safe training space in Norway, Cpl Flanagan said it was crucial to push the principles of BASS.
“They can feel what it feels like to get themselves in a situation they don’t want to be in, and also what to do if they do get in that situation,” he said of the trainee drivers.
“It means they are less likely to flap if they do get themselves in a situation.”
The BV 206 has a low ground pressure due to its wide rubber tracks and lightweight body, but they do make it prone to skidding sideways in a turn for the unwary driver
The Course
Run by Commando Helicopter Force on behalf of Joint Helicopter Command, the driver trainees go through a five-day snow, ice and BV course.
Cpl Flanagan that they are fairly full days, but the trainees generally enjoy the opportunity.
He added: “We also go out on training area and do off-roading as well… and out and about on public roads and see a bit more of Norway.”
They also learn how to tackle ice crossing, and the driver course is available for support vehicles and Land Rovers as well.
The Gulf region is home to one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world – the Strait of Hormuz – and keeping it mine-free is essential to ensure the flow of oil and trade.
Since 2006, the UK has strategically positioned itself in the Gulf to address the menace of mines, which serve as a fast and inexpensive means for nations to control vast maritime areas, disrupt vital shipping lanes, or inflict damage on maritime vessels.
What is Operation Kipion?
The UK Mine Countermeasures Force comes under the umbrella of Operation Kipion, the UK’s commitment to promoting peace and stability around the Gulf.
It typically involves three minehunters based permanently in the region and, as well as looking for mines, the ensure the safe flow of oil, gas and trade.
The minehunters are led by the commander of the UK Mine Countermeasures Force, who is based on a Royal Fleet Auxiliary landing ship dock.
The force also has an escort ship with Royal Marines from 42 Commando on board, maritime security specialists with board and search expertise, all of which are supported by the UK Naval Support Facility in Bahrain.
The ‘mother ship’ RFA Stirling Castle with a minehunter (Picture: Royal Navy)
How are mines neutralised?
The minehunter ships hunt for mines, using sonar to detect objects on the seabed and then use a remotely operated system called Sea Fox to dispose of them.
When a mine is detected, there are two options to deal with it.
It can either be targeted by a remotely operated vehicle with an explosive charge that would cause a controlled explosion.
Or if the visibility is poor, the task falls on to a team of specialist EOD (Explosives Ordnance Disposal) divers.
“Minehunters are some of the smallest vessels within the Royal Navy,” Commanding Officer of HMS Bangor Lieutenant Commander Andrew Platt said.
“My ship’s company is just 40 people. In that, I’ve got engineers, mine warfare experts, chefs, divers. And that team really comes together in order to deliver our equipment and operations,” he added.
How do autonomous mine-hunting systems work?
Harrier is an Uncrewed Minesweeper System. At 11 metres long it is designed to detect underwater threats in the challenging weather conditions found in the Gulf.
The three coil boats attached to it are designed to trick a mine into thinking there’s a ship on the surface.
The mine then detonates – it’s a quicker way of neutralising a minefield.
The heat and dust make the Gulf region one of the more difficult environments to operate in.
However, Richard Hurman, Commander of the UK Mine Countermeasures Force believes that if the Royal Navy can operate in the Gulf, they can operate anywhere.
“As we know all too well at the moment, mines are being used in the Black Sea and nations are utilising them in order to close off sea areas and deny the enemy,” Cdr Hurman said.
“We have that ability to be able to sustain operations, to clear channels as quickly as possible in order to keep the movement of commercial and military shipping through any particular region as quickly as possible.
“With heat, dust and environmentals, it makes it a difficult environment to operate in, so if we can operate here, we can operate pretty much anywhere else in the world,” he added.
Stern section of the future District of Columbia headed to General Dynamic Electric Boat in 2024. GD Photo
THE PENTAGON – The lead ship in the Columbia-class ballistic missile submarine program is facing a potential one-year delay due to supplier issues, putting the Navy’s number one acquisition program at risk and creating a potential gap in the U.S. nuclear strategic deterrent, five people familiar with the delay told USNI News.
The future USS District of Columbia (SSBN-826) could deliver in Fiscal Year 2028 instead of its planned FY 2027 delivery, the sources confirmed to USNI News.
The largest hurdle for Districtof Columbia is the bow module of the submarine that is under construction at HII’s Newport News Shipbuilding in Virginia, two sources familiar with the delay told USNI News. The overall program is facing additional delays from the steam turbines that Northrop Grumman is under contract to build for the Navy.
Under the teaming arrangement for the Columbia program, lead contractor General Dynamics Electric Boat assembles the central barrel of the submarine’s hull at its yard in Groton, Conn., and its manufacturing facility in Quonset Point, R.I. Those modules built in New England are married to bow and stern sections that are constructed at Newport News and sent by barge up to the Columbia assembly hall in Connecticut. HII has been late in delivering the sections, delaying the timeline for construction.
Likewise, the turbines that translate the steam generated by the submarine’s nuclear reactor to mechanical and electrical energy have also hit manufacturing delays, causing blockages in production.
A spokesman for HII’s Newport News referred USNI News to General Dynamics Electric Boat when asked about the potential schedule slippage. A spokesman for General Dynamics referred USNI News to the Navy.
Asked about the initial report during the Navy’s Fiscal Year 2025 budget briefing on Monday, Under Secretary Erik Raven pointed to Secretary Carlos Del Toro’s 45-day shipbuilding review.
“We’re seeing stress across the industrial base and again I think putting this in the context of the Secretary’s 45-day review will add additional depth and context to the challenges that we’re seeing across the shipbuilding portfolio and we expect to have that done fairly soon,” Raven told USNI News.
Artist’s rendering of the Columbia-class SSBN submarine. US Navy Image
The Navy’s Fiscal Year 2025 budget books, released Monday with the annual budget request, list District of Columbia as delivering in October 2027, the same schedule listed in last year’s documents.
When asked about the potential delay, a Navy spokeswoman referred USNI News to Raven’s comments from the budget briefing and said more information on the program will be available when the service releases the results of the 45-day review that began in January. The Navy is expected to publish the review later this month, USNI News understands.
The service began to express concern over potential program delays last year. In a March 29 hearing before the House Appropriations Committee’s defense subcommittee, Del Toro warned the panel that the program was facing major headwinds.
During her confirmation hearing in September, now Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti said the $132 billion program was still meeting its timelines, but the margin was eroding.
“Columbia started out on an accelerated schedule. We are no longer on the accelerated schedule, but we are meeting the contracted delivery schedule for Columbia,” Franchetti told lawmakers at the time.
“We are continuing to work closely with industry against all those challenges that I described earlier and continuing to provide the right level of oversight so we understand where we are. It is [an] all hands on deck effort to ensure that we stay on time,” she added.
USS Alaska (SSBN-732) arrived at the Port of Gibraltar on June 28, 2021. US Navy Photo
The Columbia program, which recapitalizes the sea-based leg of the U.S. military’s nuclear triad, has a razor-thin schedule margin because each boat needs to replace the submarines in the Ohio class one-for-one. To provide some cushion, the Navy is planning to perform short extensions for up to five Ohio-class ballistic-missile submarines that would stretch each boat’s service life by three years. Starting with USS Alaska (SSBN-732), each boat would undergo an 18-month maintenance availability for the extension. But the service has several years and budget cycles before it needs to make a final decision on the extensions.
Under U.S. Strategic Command requirements, the Navy’s submarine force must be able to surge 10 ballistic missile submarines should a nuclear contingency arise. There are currently 14 SSBNs in the Navy’s inventory. Without a service life extension for the Ohio-class boats, the inventory would dip to 13 in FY 2027, then 12 in FY 2029, according to the FY 2024 long-range shipbuilding blueprint. Without the extension, the number would then decrease to 11 in FY 2030 through FY 2032.
It is seen here getting ready to load fully-equipped Marines during a loading test of the troop-carrying capacity of the aircraft. The only Navy flying boat ever equipped with turboprop engines, the R3Y could also beach itself, and offload troops and cargo on a beachhead. Needless to say, the idea did not take off.
Fly Navy,
Dave
www.logbookmag.com
Photo: U.S. Navy via the National Museum of Naval Aviation.
