Vietnam Air Force completes air-to-ground drills with excellence

On the fifth day of drills, pilots shot and bombed targets on the ground.

The air-to-ground live-ammunition target practice is the most important category in a week of air drills held by the Air Defense - Air Force Military Division July 16 to July 20 at the Nhu Xuan shooting range in the north-central province of Thanh Hoa.

A Su-30MK2 aircraft releases a bomb. Lieutenant colonel Bui Dinh Thao, a pilot with the 372 Division, successfully finished the drill category.

He said that at an average flying speed at around 800 kph, a slight mistiming when releasing projectiles could cause the weapons to miss their targets by hundreds of meters.

Despite limited vision due to cloudy weather on Thursday, all participants passed the drill’s testing categories with flying colors.

For a drill involving helicopters, pilots shot rockets at ground targets.

In the picture, an Mi-8 helicopter fires a rocket. The helicopter model, which was put into use by the Soviet Union air force in 1967, is now being used in over 50 countries.

A Mi-17 helicopter also participated in the drill. The helicopter, manufactured by Russia, has a maximum speed of 250 kph and can be equipped with a variety of weapons.

The bombs used in the drills weighed 250 kg each. Their size and power mean they are most often used for attacks on industrial and military facilities, railway nodes and armored vehicles.

Technicians load rockets onto a helicopter in preparation for the drill. The rockets are non-homing and are used for air-to-ground combat.

Deputy chief of staff Nguyen Van Dung of the 372nd Division’s 930th Regiment in the cockpit of a helicopter at a landing zone following the drill.

The drill is an annual event that evaluates the airborne combat capabilities of Air Force units. It is also an opportunity to evaluate pilots and other personnel when it comes to the use of real weapons, according to a representative of the Air Defense-Air Force military division.