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Ukraine is concerned of possible Russia's refusal to use NITKA system located in Crimea and designed for training of deck-based aircraft pilots, reports Economicheskie Izvestiya.
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Russia bargains on lease of Ukraine's NITKA training system
08/09/2010 |
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According to the source, Adm. Vladimir Vysotsky, Russian Navy Commander-in-Chief recently announced about construction of another system similar to NITKA in Russia. Allegedly, the new training system will be operable in 2012.
"That was a dissonance to words of the defense minister. Anatoly Serdiukov met with his Ukrainian counterpart Mikhail Yezhel in June and said Russian deck-based aircraft could return to Crimean range, for the first time since 2008", said the publication.
"Ukrainian party realizes it has a unique system in inventory and wishes to increase lease payment. Up to now, Russians were obliged to deliver parts on $500,000 per year for Ukrainian Su aircrafts as a lease payment for the use of NITKA system. New intention to build own training range shows that the parties have not agreed as of Russia's return to NITKA system", comments the newspaper.
Russian Navy's plans to resume construction of own range is just the attempt to knock the price down, said Dmitry Vydrin, assistant secretary of Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council. "These are market relations. Trying to knock the price down, Russians show Ukraine that they could do without us", said Vydrin.
We recall that ground-based aircraft training system NITKA is a special training simulator which imitates a deck of an aircraft carrier and used for practicing deck takeoff and landing techniques.