Russia begins testing MiG-35 ahead of field trials in India

Nizhny Novgorod: The Russian manufacturer of the MiG-35 advanced air superiority fighter has said that it has begun testing the MiG-35 ahead of field trials that have now commenced in India. It also said that production of the MiG-35 multirole fighters, on offer to India for its multi-role medium range combat aircraft (MMRCA) global tender, can commence only around 2013 or 2014.

The MiG-35 Fulcrum-F, an export version of the MiG-29M OVT (Fulcrum F), is a highly manoeuvrable air superiority fighter, with an even more advanced engine than that available with the Sukhoi-30MKI.

"We have begun testing the MiG-35 fighter for the Indian tender," said Alexander Karezin, director general of the Sokol company based in Nizhny Novgorod. When, and if, the MiG-35 wins a contract for the Indian MMRCA or any other tender, Sokol would be the manufacturing base for the aircraft.

Six global aircraft makers - Lockheed and Boeing from the United States, Russia's MiG, which is part of the UAC, France's Dassault, Sweden's Saab and the EADS consortium of British, German, Spanish and Italian companies - are in contention for the $11 billion MMRCA contract for 126 fighters to be supplied to the Indian Air Force.

Sokol had announced earlier that the first two MiG-35 aircraft would be delivered to India in August for test flights and will conduct a series of flight tests with live firing for an Indian Air Force delegation at one of the testing grounds on the Russian territory sometime in late 2009.