Design and Development
The Il-38 is an adaption of the four-engined turboprop Ilyushin Il-18 for use as a maritime patrol aircraft for the Soviet Navy. They meet a requirement to counter American ballistic missile submarines. The Communist Party Central Committee and the Council of Ministers issued a joint directive on 18 June 1960, it called for a prototype to be ready for trials by the second quarter of 1962. The fuselage, wing, tail unit and engine nacelles were the same as the Il-18 and it had the same powerplant and flightdeck. An aerodynamic prototype of the Il-38 first flew on 28 September 1961, with the first production aircraft following in September 1967. Production, which continued until 1972, was limited to 58 aircraft, as the longer range and more versatile Tupolev Tu-142 derivative of the Tupolev Tu-95 strategic bomber had entered service.
Details of the Il-38 are limited, but the airframe is stretched by 4 m (13 ft) over the Il-18 and the wings are moved forward. Unlike the Il-18, only the forward fuselage of the Il-38 is pressurized. The tail contains a MAD, while under the forward fuselage a Berkut ("Golden Eagle") search radar (named "Wet Eye" by NATO) is housed in a bulged radome. There are two internal weapons bays, one forward of the wing, housing sonobuoys and one behind the wing housing weapons.
About thirty remain in service with Russian naval aviation, while five were delivered to India in 1975.
The Il-38s of the Indian Navy have been sent back to Russia for upgrades. They will incorporate the new Sea Dragon avionic suite, incorporating a new radar, a Forward looking infrared (FLIR) turret under the nose and an electronic intelligence (ELINT) system housed in a box-like structure mounted on struts above the forward fuselage. Three aircraft have been delivered to the Indian Navy. The new version is designated Il-38 SD.
There are reports of efforts towards adding the capability to fire the Indo-Russian Brahmos cruise missile from this aircraft. Mockups have been displayed with air-launched Brahmos attached to underwing pylons on the Indian Navy aircraft.
Read more about this topic: Ilyushin Il-38
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