Russia, Malaysia Discussing Future Utilization of MiG-29N Combat Aircraft

Russia and Malaysia are currently discussing the future use of MiG-29N fighter jets by the Malaysian military, which were supplied by Moscow, but the sides have not reached a final decision, Mikhail Petukhov, the deputy director of the Russian Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation (FSMTC), told Sputnik on Thursday.

LANGKAWI (Sputnik) — On Wednesday, Russia’s United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) told Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak that Moscow was ready to provide full repair and modernization upgrades of Malaysia's MiG-29N jets to the latest generation of MiG-29SM jets.

"Currently our partners have not made a final decision on the future utilization of previously supplied MiG-29N jets," Petukhov said at the Langkawi International Maritime & Aerospace Exhibition (LIMA) 2017.

Petukhov is the head of the Russian delegation at LIMA-2017, that kicked off in Malaysia on Monday.

Kuala Lumpur currently has 18 MiG-29N fighter jets, supplied by Moscow in 1994.

The MiG-29SM is a multirole combat aircraft carrying high-precision weapons capable of destroying air and surface targets. The series is considered to be one of the best jet fighters of the fourth generation of aircraft.

The Langkawi International Maritime & Aerospace Exhibition takes place annually on the Malaysian resort island of Langkawi. LIMA is the largest of such exhibitions in the Asia Pacific region. This year the exhibition is set to run from March 21 to 25, with Russia presenting fighter jets, submarines and amphibious aircraft.