The New Russian Stealth Bomber
Russian military planes flew undetected through the U.S. zone of the Arctic Ocean to Canada during recent military exercises, a senior Air Force commander said Saturday. The commander of the country's long-range strategic bombers, Lieutenant General Igor Khvorov, said the U.S. Air Force is now investigating why its military was unable to detect the Russian bombers.
"They were unable to detect the planes either with radars or visually," he said.
Khorov said that during the military exercises in April, Tu-160 Blackjack bombers and Tu-95 Bears had successfully carried out four missile launches. Bombing exercises were held using Tu-22 Blinders.
By the end of the year, two more Tu-160s will be commissioned for the long-range strategic bomber fleet, Khorov said.
Both new planes will incorporate numerous upgrades from the initial Soviet models, the commander said. The bombers will be able to launch both cruise missiles and aviation bombs, and communicate via satellite. RIA NOVOSTI
Russian Academy of Sciences recently revealed information about a novel "stealth" technology, that incorporates plasma fields. Russian ITAR/TASS news agency recently interviewed the director of the Keldysh Research Center (FKA Scientific Research Institute for Thermal Processes), Academician Anatoliy Koroteyev, who briefly summarized capabilities of plasma stealth system developed by his research center and the current status of the project.
Interactions between various types of electromagnetic radiation and plasma fields were studied for many years in Russia, the United States and around the world.
The system developed by the Russians is based on electromagnetic wave-plasma interactions, but in a very different way. Russian stealth plasma device creates a plasma field around an aircraft. This field partially consumes electromagnetic energy of a hostile radar or causes it to bend around the aircraft, reducing the aircraft RCS by up to 100 times.
It is not known whether the plasma stealth system developed by the Russians employs a plasma laser or some other method for creating a plasma field. source
Specification Tu-160 'Blackjack'
Powerplant: four 245.18 kN (55,140 lb st) Trud/Samara NK-32 afterburning turbofans
Dimensions: length 54.1m (177 ft 6 in); height 13.1m (42 ft 11 in); wing span 65° sweep 35.6m (116 ft 9½ in); wing span 35° sweep 50.7m (166 ft 4 in); wing span 20° sweep 55.7m (182 ft 9 in)
Weights: empty 117000 kg (257,937 lb); Max Take-Off Weight 275000 kg (606,261 lb)
Performance: max level speed Mach 2.05 or 2200 km/h (1367 mph); max level speed at sea level 1030 km/h (640 mph); ceiling 15600m (51,181 ft)
Armament: up to 12 KH-55 nuclear or KH-555 conventional long-range cruise missiles or 24 Kh-15 short-range nuclear attack missiles carried in two internal weapon bays; in theory up to 40000 kg (88,183 lb) of freefall nuclear or conventional bombs
Jane made it clear a few years ago! (Plasma Stealth Technology Page"
So did FAS! (specifications)
This is SOMETHING! (Russians offer technology for EXPORT)
"A Russian scientific research organisation is to offer for export a 'bolt-on' stealth device that it claims renders non-stealthy aircraft practically invisible to radar. The system, which envelops the aircraft in a cloak of ionised gas known as a plasma, is said to be fully developed, with work on a "third-generation visibility-reduction system" under way.
