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🇷🇺 Ilyushin Il-78 Midas
Air · Ilyushin (İlyuşin) — Rusya/SSCB · 1987
The Il-78 Midas is a Russian aerial tanker built on the Il-76 airframe, trailing UPAZ hose-drogue pods to extend the range of fighter fleets — an older but essential force multiplier for Russian air power.
Specifications
- Type: Aerial refueling tanker (Il-76 derivative)
- Manufacturer / Origin: Ilyushin · USSR/Russia
- Crew: 6 persons (2 pilots, navigator, flight engineer, radio operator, refueling operator)
- Engine: 4× Aviadvigatel D-30KP turbofans, each ~118 kN (Il-78M-90A: 4× PS-90A-76)
- Dimensions: Length 46.6 m · wingspan 50.5 m · height 14.76 m
- Max takeoff weight: ~210 tons
- Max speed: 850 km/h
- Range: ~7,300 km
- Fuel transfer: Il-78M: 138 tons total · 105.7 tons transferable (Il-78: 85.7 tons)
- Refueling equipment: 3× UPAZ pods (2 underwing + 1 fuselage); 3 receivers simultaneously, up to 4 on ground
- Service year: Since 1987 (Il-78M-90A first flight 2018)
Beats: KC-135 Stratotanker (ABD) — daha modern UPAZ podları ve gövde altı hortum-koni sayesinde 3 noktadan eşzamanlı prob-drog ikmali; KC-135 temelde boom odaklı, Y-20U / YY-20 (Çin) — Çin'in kendi tankeri olgunlaşana dek Il-78 ihracatı pazarda kanıtlanmış ve hazır bir çözüm sundu, KC-130 Hercules (ABD) — çok daha büyük yakıt yükü ve menzil; Hercules taktik/kısa menzilli ikmalle sınırlı
Loses to: KC-46 Pegasus (ABD) — modern fly-by-wire boom, dijital uzaktan görüş sistemi ve hem boom hem drog çok-yönlülüğü; Il-78 yalnızca prob-drog, Airbus A330 MRTT (Çok-uluslu/AB) — daha büyük yakıt kapasitesi, kanıtlanmış güvenilirlik ve geniş NATO uyumluluğu, KC-135 Stratotanker (ABD) — çok daha geniş filo, küresel destek altyapısı ve boom uyumlu ABD/NATO uçaklarına ikmal
The Il-78 is the air leg's fuel truck: an Il-76 transport fitted with refueling pods (and a removable cabin tank set). It lacks the modern avionics, fly-by-wire boom and civil-base economy of Western tankers, but it gives Russian and export fighters the reach they need. As a large, slow, unarmed aircraft it is a defenseless, high-value target.
Related systems
Same manufacturer (Ilyushin (İlyuşin) — Rusya/SSCB): Ilyushin Il-76
Related systems (Air): KAAN, Bayraktar KIZILELMA, ANKA-3, Bayraktar TB2, Bayraktar Akıncı, Vyriy OPTO 10, Skydagger, AKBABA, GÖKTUĞ (Gökdoğan/Bozdoğan), SOM
