MAKS Airshow Report 2005 - Page #2

Financial reasons have restricted Russian Air
Force equipment from attending airshows
in the west for many years. We visited the
best place in all of Russia to see military
aircraft, the MAKS airshow. This trade show
is held at the test field of Zhukovsky, which
is situated approximately one and a half hours
South East from the centre of Moscow.
Many aircraft types can be seen around the
field on numerous parking areas. The shows
flight line only uses up half of the runway
which is a good indication of the size of the
place!

Static aircraft included Russian Air Force
and Navy. Representing Naval aircraft was
a MiG-29K with folding wings and arrestor
hook, also a Sukhoi Su-33 Navy Flanker
with folding wings plus folding elevator
surfaces. ( Pictured on the lower Right. )
Air Force types included an Sukhoi Su-34
Platypus Bomber Flanker, MiG-31 Foxhound
long range, high speed interceptor. ( Pictured
on Page #3. ) Plus a MiG-21 Fishbed and
various MiG-29 Fulcrum and Su-27 Flanker
Squadron machines.

American aircraft in the static display included
a pair of 494th Fighter Squadron F-15E Strike
Eagles based at Lakenheath. ( Pictured on the
lower Right. ) One of the pair having a multi
striped tail fin indicating a Commanders
machine. The only pair of F-16C aircraft at the
show belonged to the 22nd FS based at
Spangdahlem in Germany.

The flying display begun with a formation of
three Sukhoi Su-25 Frogfoot aircraft trailing
the colours of the national flag, red, blue and
white. ( Pictured on the upper Right. )

Then to follow was the Russian Knights
display team. Flying four single seat Su-27
Flankers, and the solo aircraft being a two
seater aircraft. Performing tight turns and
loops in formation, mid way through the
routine the solo Su-27 Flanker straightens
up from a turn formation and thunders
away to hold while the remaining four
Flankers continue the display. After the
four break from formation toward the
crowd line, the solo two seater returns
to finish the remainder of the display.
Russian performances are notorious for
using flairs during their manoeuvres, the
solo Flanker ( Pictured on the Front page. )
fulfilled this anticipation by firing flairs
while executing a barrel roll in reheat
rolling away from the crowd!

Fast reheated passes seemed to be absent
from the display routines due to fuel wastage
but the noise was supplied by high G turns
with vapour boiling off upper wing surfaces!

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