Chief of the Indian Air Force BS Dhanoa is scheduled to fly a sortie in a Yak-130 lead-in fighter trainer during his three-day visit to Russia from July 9 to 12.

Russia had unsuccessfully pitched the Yak-130 as an Advanced Jet Trainer to India, which eventually decided in favour of the Hawk in 2004.

Dubbed 'Mitten' by NATO, the Yak-130 has since been developed into a weaponised trainer. The twin-engined trainer has three hard points on each wing, with the capability to carry 3 tons of ordnance. Two stations on the wingtips makes an allowance for air-to-air or decoy flares.

The context of the Russians seeking Dhanoa to fly in the Yak-130 is not clear. India's requirement for a trainer exists in the ab initio Stage-1 category, where additional orders for the Swiss Pilatus PC-7 Mk-II have run into trouble with allegations of corruption in the 2,895.63 Crore deal for the first 75 aircraft in 2012. The follow-on order for another 36 PC-7 Mk-II trainers is consequently on hold. In the meanwhile, HAL is also developing the HTT-40 for this category. The IAF's requirement is for 183 Stage 1 trainers

Air Chief Marshal Dhanoa will interact with senior functionaries of the Russian military and also visit various operational and training units of the Russian Air Force. A 23 mm cannon can be carried under the belly.

The context of the Russians seeking Dhanoa to fly in the Yak-130 is not clear. India's requirement for a trainer exists in the ab initio Stage-1 category, where additional orders for the Swiss Pilatus PC-7 Mk-II have run into trouble with allegations of corruption in the 2,895.63 Crore deal for the first 75 aircraft in 2012. The follow-on order for another 36 PC-7 Mk-II trainers is consequently on hold. In the meanwhile, HAL is also developing the HTT-40 for this category. The IAF's requirement is for 183 Stage 1 trainers.

After bagging several high profile, multi-billion dollar defence deals since October 2018, Russia is now strongly pitching its MiG-35 jets for India's $20 Billion programme to acquire 114 Multi-Role Fighter Aircraft (MRFA). India has strongly emphasised to the US that it will not back down from defence deals with Russia, including the $5.5 Billion contract for S-400 missile defence systems, under threat of American sanctions

The Dhanoa visit "would provide further impetus towards defence cooperation as well as strengthen relationships and enable engagement in productive exchanges between the two Air Forces," an IAF spokesperson stated on the eve of the visit.

This will be one of Dhanoa's last important visits before his retirement in September. It comes at a time when the US has threatened sanctions for defence trade with Russia under the CAATSA legislation. After bagging several high profile, multi-billion dollar defence deals since October 2018, Russia is now strongly pitching its MiG-35 jets for India's $20 Billion programme to acquire 114 Multi-Role Fighter Aircraft (MRFA). India has strongly emphasised to the US that it will not back down from defence deals with Russia, including the $5.5 Billion contract for S-400 missile defence systems, under threat of American sanctions.