IL-20M is an aircraft of radio engineering reconnaissance. The Il-20M reconnaissance aircraft: history and modernity

In the fifties of the twentieth century, a technological breakthrough occurred in world electronics. Semiconductor devices began to displace the lamps familiar to all, the size of the equipment rapidly decreased, and the capabilities of the equipment expanded. In military affairs, these processes are also reflected. The communicators received light and compact technical means, and new encryption capabilities appeared. Intelligence was also not dozing. Soon the American "Orion" rose to the sky, which, without violating state borders, could provide the NATO command with large volumes of information. Our response was the IL-20M.

Basic prototype

In the second half of the fifties, the symbol of Soviet passenger aviation was Il-18. Of course, by that time there were other airliners, Tupolev Tu-104 and Tu-114, but built on the basis of bombers, they did not always have high efficiency, reliability and comfort. The First Secretary Khrushchev often flew to Il-18, he liked this plane. When the question arose about an adequate response not to the American program of electronic intelligence, the choice was predetermined. The main criteria for the military specialists were two "trump cards" of the Illyushin purely peaceful airliner: a large internal volume, which allows placing a lot of equipment in the cabin, and economy. No, the Soviet Army was not short of aviation kerosene. The ability of a complex of technical means to stay in the air until midnight was immense. So appeared in service with IL-20M, scout. The photo of this aircraft reveals even an external similarity with the American "colleague".

The main rule is not to cause suspicion

An illegal immigal should be like an ordinary citizen, and a reconnaissance aircraft on a passenger airliner. So decided in the General Staff of the USSR.

In general, this aircraft had few differences with the base IL-18D, the latest and most advanced passenger modification, the feature of which was the increased flight range (6400 vs. 4850 km for the previously produced IL-18V). This liner since 1965 serially produced the Moscow aircraft factory "the Banner of Labor", here they began to build in 1968 and IL-20M. Because of the preservation of state secrecy coloring (the aircraft builders call it livery), he received the usual Aeroflot. On his nose was the inscription "IL-18", in general, he did not look different from the civil side, and only specialists who received secret access, could know what was inside him. And there were instruments in the cabin that allowed judging by the intensity and nature of radio signals the degree of military activity of the armies of foreign states.

Tasks

During the exercises or in the preparation of aggression, the armed forces of any state particularly need the coherence provided by the communications troops. Ideally, the contiguous side wants to know the whole volume of transmitted information, but a lot can be understood by the intensity of the radio communication. In the IL-20M salon is a high-quality military linguist-translator who constantly listens to open communication channels. He knows the language of the neighboring state in perfection, he knows the dialects and the jargon used by the army servicemen of the probable enemy. Strangely enough, a very large part of useful information is obtained in this simple way. The chatterbox is not only our find for a spy.

But not only to eavesdrop, but also to watch can IL-20M (scout). The photos taken by the high-quality A-87P apparatus, for many kilometers, will help to draw conclusions about military activity, and for this it is not necessary to cross the state border. And, of course, foreign radar will not hurt either.

Aircraft

As already mentioned above, the Il-20M reconnaissance aircraft is identical in its flight characteristics and general scheme to the passenger IL-18D. It is an all-metal monoplane with a fuselage of the "monocoque" type of circular cross section. Four turbine screw engines AI-20M have a capacity of 4 250 liters. from. each. The length of the fuselage is 35.9 meters, the keel height above the ground is 10170 mm, the span of the bearing surface is 17.4 m, its area is 140 square meters. The take-off mass is 64 metric tons. The speed is 640-680 km / h. The ceiling is 10 thousand.

Of course, the passenger seats in the Il-20M passenger cabin are superfluous, only the staff chairs serving the sophisticated electronic equipment are left. Seats (eight of them) are also special, designed for laying parachutes, after all a military aircraft. Since the flights are long, there are conditions for recreation (buffet, toilet and wardrobe). Leave the board in case of abnormal circumstances, the crew can, using the shaft leading to the extended cargo (in the passenger version) hatch. In addition to intelligence scanners, there is, of course, an air crew of five people in the plane (2 pilots, radio operator, flight engineer and navigator).

Equipment with it

The Il-20M reconnaissance aircraft is equipped with a complex of radioelectronic and optical means of obtaining information. It includes the station "Romb-4", "Square-2" intercepting the device of the ultrashort wave range "Cherry", the radar "Igla-1" of the lateral view and optical equipment. A total of two dozen copies of IL-20M were produced. The photos of these planes are almost identical, in most cases there is not even an ordinary number on board. Each of them has a specific configuration and is designed to perform a specific range of tasks, therefore, stealth measures are taken.

The lenses of the aerial photography cameras are covered with special curtains in flight, the phased array of the radar is enclosed in a long (almost 8 m) radio-transparent perforated container-gondola. The optics are placed in the side fairings, in the rear part of which there are antennas "Romba", responsible for detecting the radar.

The further destiny

The Il-20M aircraft can be called a heavenly veteran. For world aviation, such phenomena are not uncommon, but in each of the cases it can be stated that only a real masterpiece of technical thought flies for a long time. The electronic equipment becomes obsolete, but it does not matter, it can be replaced and installed a new one.

Ilyushinsky aircraft proved to be very successful, strong, reliable, easy to operate and economical. At present, there is simply nothing to replace it with. Of all the possible options, only the reactive Tu-214 can perform the role of an aeronautical reconnaissance scout, and then only after a thorough and serious re-arrangement, which is a matter of a distant perspective. Meanwhile, the maintenance of the Isles in a workable state became the concern of the military ministry. A program for their deep modernization has been developed.

IL-20M is now painted in the usual gray for naval aviation. Civilian livery is more misleading than anyone you enter. When this aircraft approaches the border, the air forces of neighboring countries usually announce an alarm ...