In addition to writing for Aviation Week Network, Maxim holds a key position at Russia's Air Transport Observer magazine (www.ato.ru). In the past he was in charge of several ATO sister aerospace publications and earlier worked for the Moscow-based CAST defense think-tank.
Maxim has a degree on international relations from MGIMO University, Moscow, Russia, and for several years worked at the Russian Foreign Ministry.
MOSCOW — Russian Space Agency Roscosmos plans to complete the deployment of the national satellite navigation system GLONASS by midyear, with the launch of four additional Glonass spacecraft. Earlier plans that called for ensuring a full operational capability by the end of 2010 had to be scrapped after the loss of three satellites in a Dec. 5 Proton launch mishap (Aerospace DAILY, Dec. 7, 2010).
MOSCOW — The Russian air force is starting to field the Kamov Ka-52 attack helicopter and also is augmenting other elements of its rotorcraft fleet. On Dec. 28, the air force’s 334th Tactical Deployment Center in Torzhok received three Ka-52s, the first from the preproduction batch of 12 helos being produced by the Arseniev-based Progress facility. The twin-seat Ka-52 is based on the single-seat Kamov Ka-50 Black Shark coaxial-rotor assault helicopter and will serve in the air force as a special mission rotorcraft.
Maxim Pyadushkin (Moscow), Michael A. Taverna (Paris)
The Russian government is struggling to compensate for a Proton launch failure that dashed hopes of having a full 24-unit Glonass navigation satellite constellation in service by the end of 2010.
