Dhaka is set to procure 10 fighter training planes from Moscow in keeping with its plan for collecting military weapons made by Russia in the next five years under a suppliers’ credit of $850 million, officials said on Thursday.
Russia’s state-owned aircraft manufacturer Irkut Corporation is likely to supply the fighter training planes named Yak-130 through Rosoboronexport, the sole Russian state intermediary agency for export and import of military and dual-purpose products, technologies and services.
A delegation led by the Rosoboronexport chief, Anatoly P Isaikin, arrived in Dhaka on Friday on a three-day visit. He was invited on Sunday by the prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, to a meeting where negotiations made a substantial progress.
A team, lead by Major General Abdul Matin of the Armed Forces Division, earlier visited Moscow in December 2011 to initiate the proposed biggest-ever arms purchase deal between the two countries.
Irkut president Alexei Fyoforov told Russia’s official news agency ITAR-TASS News Agency on Tuesday that talks with Bangladesh were in initial stages.
‘Bangladesh has a big budget, what is more, a state loan might be used,’ he said, adding that the market capacity for Yak-130 aircraft might reach 2,500 planes by 2020.
‘We hope to get from 25 to 30 per cent of this market,’ he added.
The Yakovlev Yak-130 is a subsonic two-seat advanced jet trainer/light attack aircraft or lead-in fighter trainer developed by the Yakovlev Design Bureau.
Development of the plane which began in 1991 was put into service in the Russian Air Force in 2009.
As an advanced training aircraft, the Yak-130 is able to replicate the characteristics of several 4+ generation fighters as well as the fifth-generation Sukhoi T-50.
It can also perform light attack and reconnaissance duties, carrying a combat load of 3,000kg.
Bangladesh bought eight MiG-29s for about $124 million from Russia during the past tenure of the Awami League in government.
Bangladesh planned military equipment procurement from Russia to modernise its Armed Forces.
Dhaka also hopes to procure 44 new tanks and three armoured recovery vehicles from China and two helicopters for the army from France, they said.
The deals would cost less than $200 million.
Speaking at the Armed Forces Day celebrations in August 2011, Hasina said that her government would procure modern tanks, artillery, air defence missile systems, fighter aircraft and helicopters
i see you won't believe it until it arrives in Bangladesh so i won't bother anymore. As for firm deals, the 056 corvettes are done deal. Our navy tv program, aired their orders. Can't find any youtube videos of it, sadly. And another thing is that Milgrem was competing 056 but Chinese won due to their friendly deal of payment in several phases. 
