Novi Avion

History of Novi Avion

Novi Avion ("New Aircraft") was Yugoslavia's attempt to produce a domestically produced supersonic multi-role aircraft comparable to the then global 4th generation fighter jets. It shares many similarities with the France-based Dassault Rafale and may prove to be a capable performer.

Novi Avion is designed to replace the aging fleet of Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 "Fishbed" and SOKO J-21 "Yastreb" aircraft. Unfortunately, the program was completely cancelled in 1991, when Yugoslavia ceased to be a country, about a year before the Avion was scheduled to make its maiden flight.

Avion was created in the 1980s when Yugoslavia tried to become more independent in procuring military equipment. Progress is being made on other fronts of the Army and Navy, and the only major component the U.S. lacks is the availability of indigenous fighter designs.

Work on such projects is carried out at the Vazduhoplovno Tehnicki Institute (VTI) in Belgrade.

The avionics are centered around a digital flight control system, fire control radar and a navigation attack system linked to a multifunction display in the "all glass" cockpit. Externally, the Avion somewhat mimics the Dassault Rafale. The cockpit is located forward of the fuselage, behind the conical nose cone that houses the radar. The large area delta wing takes up high momentum and most of the storage space under the wing. The canards are placed right above the air intakes.

The air intakes for the individual engines were distributed on both sides of the lower part of the fuselage, and the air vents were located in the rear of the cockpit. The tail is decorated with a vertical caudal fin. The hull was covered by an exhaust nozzle.

The cockpit provides the pilot with good all-round visibility. The structure of the fuselage is mainly made of composite materials. All in all, the Novi Avion's sleek design is comparable to a fourth-generation fighter jet.

Its only France-based SNECMA M88 turbofan predicts the Avion can reach speeds of up to Mach 1.88 and 1,243 mph. The range is 2,339 miles, the service ceiling is 55,775 feet, and the climb rate is 16,500 meters per minute.

The choice of the M88 is particularly notable, as it is the same engine used in the Dassault Rafale.

Armament will be concentrated at Avion's 11 hardpoints (including two wingtip locations) and will control standard air-to-air missiles, air-to-surface missiles, laser-guided bombs, conventional bombs and rocket pods - the most Possibly of French ancestry. The standard weapon is a 30mm internal cannon.

In terms of deployment, Avion is expected to perform a variety of combat roles in its multi-role category, including anti-ship and ground attack. His primary duties are interception and air superiority.

However, everything changed in 1991 for Avion and Yugoslavia. Civil wars and political unrest both contributed to the decline of the country and the programs that accompany it. The war ensued and ended with the division of Yugoslavia into the states of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro, Macedonia, Serbia (Kosovo was now partially independent) and Slovenia.

Needless to say, the legacy of Novi Avion disappeared when Yugoslavia left the possibility of this indigenous combat system to the imagination.

Specification

Basic

Production

Roles

Dimensions

Weight

Performance

Performance

Armor

Changes