In the fifties of the XX century there was a technological breakthrough in world electronics. Semiconductor devices began to displace conventional lamps, the size of equipment was rapidly decreasing, and the capabilities of the equipment were expanding. In military affairs, these processes are also reflected. Signalers got light and compact technical means, new encryption capabilities appeared. Intelligence also did not doze off. Soon, the American Orion flew up into the sky, which, without violating state borders, could provide the NATO command with large amounts of information. Our response was the Il-20M aircraft.
Basic prototype
In the second half of the fifties, the Il-18 was a symbol of Soviet passenger aviation. Of course, by that time there were already other airliners, Tupolev Tu-104 and Tu-114, but, built on the basis of bombers, they did not always have high economy, reliability and comfort. The First Secretary Khrushchev often flew IL-18, he liked this plane. When the question arose of an adequate answer not to the American electronic intelligence program, the choice was a foregone conclusion. The main criteria for military experts were two "trump ace" of the Ilyushin purely peaceful airliner: a large internal volume, which allows you to place a lot of equipment in the cabin, and efficiency. No, the Soviet Army did not lack aviation kerosene. The ability of the complex of technical means to be in the air for up to half a day non-stop was of great importance. So appeared in service with the Il-20M, a scout. A photo of this aircraft reveals even an outward resemblance to an American "colleague."
The main rule is not to arouse suspicion
An illegal scout should look like an ordinary citizen, and a reconnaissance plane should look like a passenger airliner. So they decided in the General Staff of the USSR.
In general, this aircraft had little difference with the basic IL-18D, the latest and most advanced passenger modification, the feature of which was an increased flight range (6, 400 vs. 4, 850 km from the previously produced IL-18V). Since 1965, this liner was mass-produced by the Moscow Banner of Labor, and here they began to build the IL-20M in 1968. For reasons of state secret preservation, the color (aircraft manufacturers call it livery), he received the usual aeroflot. The inscription “Il-18” remained on his nose, in general, he did not look different from the civilian side, and only specialists who received secret access could know what was inside him. And there were devices in the cabin that made it possible to judge the degree of military activity of the armies of foreign states by the intensity and nature of the radio signals.
Tasks
During the exercises or in the preparation of aggression, the armed forces of any state especially need the coherence provided by the signal troops. In the ideal case, the adjacent side wants to know the entire amount of information transmitted, but a lot can be understood from the intensity of the radio exchange. In the cabin of IL-20M is a high-class military linguist-translator, constantly listening to open communication channels. He is fluent in the language of the neighboring state, knows the dialects and jargon used by the military personnel of the likely enemy’s army. Oddly enough, a very large part of the useful information is obtained in this uncomplicated way. Chatterbox is not only our find for the spy.
But not only eavesdropping, but also peeping can IL-20M (reconnaissance). Photos taken by the high-quality device A-87P over many kilometers will help draw conclusions about military activity, and for this you do not need to cross the state border. Well, of course, locating foreign radars also does not hurt.
Plane
As already mentioned above, the IL-20M reconnaissance vehicle is identical in its flight characteristics and general scheme to the IL-18D passenger airliner. This is an all-metal monoplane with a fuselage of the "monocoque" type of circular cross section. Four AI-20M turbine screw engines have a capacity of 4, 250 liters. with. every. 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. m. Take-off weight is 64 metric tons. Speed - 640-680 km / h. Ceiling - 10 thousand.
Of course, the passenger seats in the IL-20M cabin are completely redundant, only the seats for personnel serving complex electronic equipment are left. Seats (eight of them) are also special, designed for parachutes, still a military aircraft. Since the flights are coming long, there are conditions for relaxation (buffet, toilet and wardrobe). In case of emergency circumstances, the crew can leave the board using the shaft leading to the expanded cargo (in the passenger version) hatch. In addition to electronic intelligence officers, the aircraft also contains, of course, an aviation crew of five people (2 pilots, a radio operator, a flight engineer and a navigator).
Equipment with him
The reconnaissance aircraft Il-20M is equipped with a complex of electronic and optical means of obtaining information. It includes the stations “Rhombus-4”, “Square-2”, an intercepting device of the ultra-short-wave band “Cherry”, radar “Igla-1” of the side view and optical equipment. In total, two dozen copies of the Il-20M were produced. Photos of these aircraft are almost identical, in most cases there is not even a regular number on board. Each of them has a specific configuration and is designed to perform a specific range of tasks, therefore, stealth measures have been taken.
Aerial photography camera lenses are covered with special blinds in flight, the radar phased array is enclosed in a long (almost 8 m) radiolucent ventricular gondola container. The optics are located in the side fairings, in the back of which there are also Rhombus antennas, which are responsible for the detection of radar.
