The first flight of the A-100LL took place on October 26, 2016. The aircraft was used for testing as part of the Vega Concern and Beriev TANK.

The A-100LL is based on the A-50 aircraft, which in turn is based on the IL-76MD and was used to test the onboard radio equipment of the future A-100 aircraft, including a new radar with an active phased array.

What is worse than losing a large cargo/surveillance/electronicswarfare/launched effects platform? Losing the prototype platform for your next generation of such aircraft before the details have been ironed out for committing to fullscale production.

In my opinion these types of aircraft will be far more important in the future than fighter aircraft as the range of missiles and radar will continue to increase while crucially the capability to launch missiles and UAVs from large cargo aircraft will rapidly proliferate and change the nature of largescale warfare. “Launched effects” will be the dominant form of projecting air power and large cargo aircraft can deploy an order of magnitude more UAVs and precision guided munitions than a fighter-bomber can and they can do it from an airfield stationed much farther away.

The destruction of this aircraft is thus surprisingly strategic, not only does it significantly impede Russia’s future warfighting capacity, it decisively eliminates an interest foreign buyers would have in the development of this range of aircraft as Russia’s development of this next generation of large cargo/surveillance/launched effects aircraft was already significantly arrested and could not take another nail in the coffin. Without the ability to project confidence and adeptness around this central linchpin of future combined arms large scale warfare, Russia’s image of military strength is materially undermined in a realm it cannot afford to appear undermined to foreign arms buyers and supporters.