VLADIMIR PUTIN
ARCHIVE OF THE OFFICIAL SITE
OF THE 2008-2012 PRIME MINISTER
OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
VLADIMIR PUTIN
ARCHIVE OF THE OFFICIAL SITE
OF THE 2008-2012 PRIME MINISTER
OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
VLADIMIR PUTIN
Vladimir Putin began his tour with the Unified Aircraft-Building Corporation's pavilion, where he was shown a model of the MS-21 medium-range passenger jet, designed to replace the Tu-154. He also viewed the cockpit of a simulator used by aspiring pilots to master the controls of the Il-76MD-90 jetliner. Alongside the commercial aircraft, the pavilion also displays models of the combat jets Su-32, Su-30MKI, Su-35, and MiG-35.
Mr Putin then visited the foreign aircraft manufacturers' pavilion. There, the prime minister stopped by the stand of the French group Safran, with which the Russian Technologies State Corporation has signed an agreement to establish a joint venture. The group's CEO, Jean-Paul Herteman, showed samples of some of the products to be manufactured by the enterprise as well as a soldier wearing innovative gear produced by Safran.
At the stand of the Russian Helicopters company, Mr Putin was shown a life-size model of the Mi-38 helicopter cockpit. He walked inside the Mi-34 cockpit and sat in the pilot's seat.
A video linkup was set up at the aviation equipment stand of Russian Technologies' pavilion, so that Mr Putin could watch a plane engine being built in one of the plant's facilities. He asked the assembly line workers whether they were satisfied with their current working conditions.
"We realise perfectly well that the more engines we build, the higher wages we get and the better we live," one worker said. "Bigger state contracts are what we need."
"You'll get them," Mr Putin assured them.
At the KhimKompozit pavilion, Mr Putin was shown protective eyewear that blocks 96% of laser radiation. The glasses are currently being certified by healthcare authorities. According to Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov, such eyewear can effectively protect aircraft pilots against laser rays. Mr Putin was also shown Russian-made radio-electronic weapons, of which many are said to be technologically more advanced than their foreign equivalents.
While visiting the MAKS 2011 international air show, Mr Putin also stopped by the GLONASS stand. There, he was shown an online map indicating the geographical range of the satellite navigation system.
At the Russian Space Agency's Pavilion, Mr Putin was shown a model of an innovative transport spacecraft. He viewed the cockpit, which seats six astronauts. The new spacecraft is to be launched into orbit without a crew in 2015 and to go on its first manned mission in 2018.
Mr Putin was also shown the Russian Space Agency's geoportal, where he took a live virtual tour of the Sochi Olympics site, in the Imereti Valley.
At Rosoboronexport's pavilion, Mr Putin saw a promotional version of a unique system that models the behaviour of military hardware and armaments to assess their potential effectiveness in performing various tactical-level combat tasks. The specialists at the stand had the system model the actions of a K-52 (Alligator) helicopter group for the prime minister. The system is the only one of its kind in the world.
Vladimir Putin also visited a display created by the Moscow youth creativity festival Ot Vinta. The display features works by children from across the nation. The contributors designed and built radio-electronic models of unmanned aircraft, various devices facilitating space exploration, and equipment to explore other planets. Before leaving the pavilion, Mr Putin posed for a photograph with some of the young participants and gave some autographs.
