Russia's Sukhoi Markets New Multi-Role Fighter At Chinese Air Show

Russia's Sukhoi Markets New Multi-Role Fighter At Chinese Air Show

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Sukhoi, Russia's state-owned aircraft manufacturing holding, said Tuesday a prototype of its advanced multi-role fighter has been undergoing flight tests.

Sukhoi is among more than 50 Russian companies showcasing their aircraft and aerospace technologies at the sixth China International Aviation & Aerospace Exhibition (Airshow China 2006), which opened today in Zhuhai, in southern China.

"A prototype of the Su-35 has already conducted test flights, but I cannot give you more details," said Sergei Sergeyev, deputy general director of the holding and head of Sukhoi's China office.

He also said the company has started to promote the Su-35 fighter on the Chinese market.

The Su-35 Flanker-E is an advanced version of the Su-27 interceptor and is powered by two AL-37F engines. It is a versatile fighter that combines high maneuverability and the capacity to intercept air targets with ground and sea attack capability using both unguided and guided, including high precision, weapons.

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Russia's Sukhoi Unveils 'Supercruising' Su-35-1 Multi-Role Fighter

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Sukhoi expects to conduct the first flight of its all-new Su-35-1 single-seat multirole fighter within the near future, having unveiled the KnAAPO-built design at August's Moscow air show.

Launched in 2003, the Su-35-1 lacks the integral triplane configuration employed by India's Su-30MKIs, and its cleaner layout and improved propulsion system are believed to offer supercruise performance.

The new fighter has a lighter airframe than the legacy Su-27, due to its extensive use of aluminium, titanium and composite structures.

It also has a fully digital flight-control system incorporating engine and thrust vectoring control.

The Su-35-1 can carry over 2t more fuel than the Su-27 and has a ferry range of 4.500km (2,430nm) with external fuel tanks. Airframe life is quoted as 6,000 flight hours or 30 years, and Sukhoi general director Mikhail Pogosyan says the aircraft will be available for export delivery from 2010.

The Russian air force is expected to order several of the aircraft, which will also be promoted to nations such as China.

The aircraft was displayed with new weapons including NPO Machinostoyenia Yakhont and BrahMos PJ-11 supersonic missiles. The type is also believed to be equipped with a new air-to-air missile with a range of up to 200km.

The Su-35-1 is powered by two NPO Saturn Item 117S engines, developed from the Su-27's AL-31F under a joint project with Ufa MPO.

The new design uses a fully digital control system, swivel nozzle, enlarged fan and engine inlet for higher airflow, a redesigned turbine with improved cooling and has a design life of 4,000 flight hours.

The aircraft is also equipped with a Tikhomirov NIIP Irbis radar with an electronically scanned passive array antenna. A further development of the Su-30MKI's N-011M Bars sensor, with a more powerful transmitter and higher-speed processing, the design has a claimed detection range of more than 300km against airborne threats.

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Russia's Su-35 Fighter: Winging Its Way Into A New Era

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The Sukhoi Su-35 fighter aircraft (NATO reporting name, Flanker), which was unveiled at the MAKS-2007 aerospace show in the town of Zhukovsky near Moscow this August, is to perform its maiden flight in the near future.

The test-flight program is to involve two more Su-35 prototypes, now being assembled at the Komsomolsk-on-Amur Aircraft Manufacturing Association in the Russian Far East, in late 2007.

Mikhail Pogosyan, Sukhoi CEO, said the new warplane was in great demand abroad, and that Moscow was currently negotiating possible sales with several countries.

Known as the Su-35, the Su-27M Flanker fighter has been displayed at different air shows for the last 15 years and has retained this name during an extensive modernization program.

Unlike the original Su-27, the Su-35 features two AL-31FP vectored-thrust engines, namely, advanced versions of the production AL-31F power plant.

Each AL-31FP engine has fifth-generation technologies, a revolving nozzle and a variable thrust control system ensuring 100% controllability in any conceivable position and at minimal speeds.

This is a very important innovation because conventional aerodynamic controls are absolutely useless in similar situations. If necessary, the thrust-vector control system can be switched off and the nozzles fixed in a neutral position.

A phased-array radar forming the mainstay of the Su-35's weapons-control system simultaneously tracks up to 30 aerial targets at a range of 350 to 400 km and enables the pilot to attack eight of them.

The unique radar detects tiny targets with an effective echo area of several hundredths of a meter up to 90 km away.

Moreover, the warplane has a new-generation optronic system comprising a thermal direction finding set, a laser range-finder/marker and a television channel.

The Su-35 is fitted with 34 missiles, including medium-range air-to-air missiles with active and semi-active radar-seeking and heat-seeking warheads, short-range missiles and five brand-new long-range missiles.

It has 25 medium-range and long-range anti-ship and anti-radar missiles, including the Club missile system and one long-range Yakhont cruise missile.

Just like the Su-30MK warplane ordered by China, the Su-35 carries remote-controlled, laser-guided and satellite-guided glider bombs, as well as a laser/TV sighting station inside an external optronic container.

The station detects, tracks and marks ground targets and calculates their range.

The Su-35 carries an 8,000kg ordnance load on 12 external pods. Due to its vectored-thrust engine and advanced avionics, the plane can outperform the Su-27M, weighs less than the popular Su-30MK and, therefore, has an advantage in maneuverable dogfights.

Pogosyan said there were plans to start exporting the first Su-35s in 2010. The new fighter fits into the generation four plus-plus category between different Su-30MK versions and fifth-generation warplanes. Corporate experts said it featured numerous fifth-generation technologies that would give it an undisputed advantage over other multi-role fourth-generation fighters on the global aviation market between 2009 and 2015.

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Testing New Fighter Jet Is Successful (Russian SU-35)
Kommersant, Russia ^ | July 02, 2008

Testing New Fighter Jet Is Successful

Sukhoi Design Bureau is testing a new multipurpose jet Su-35, and the tests are successful, test pilot Sergei Bogdan announced in the interview with the Military & Industrial Courier edition. Thirteen flights have been made, Bogdan specified.

Even the first flights of Su-35 confirmed the excellent flying and technical characteristics of the jet, and were completely in line with the stand tests.

Stability and controllability of Su-35 was evaluated at the altitude of up to 11,000 meters. The fighter was accelerated up to the speed corresponding to the Mach number of 1.3.

In terms of tactical and technical characteristics, Bogdan went on, a new jet leaves behind most of the foreign analogues, including F/A-18 Hornet, Mirage, Rafale, Gripen and Typhoon and is capable of opposing the G5 fighter F-22A Raptor.

The bulk production and supplies of new jets to the RF Air Force and overseas customers are slated for 2010-2011.

Russia's Su-35 Fighter Prototype Makes 100th Test Flight

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A prototype of the advanced Su-35 Flanker multi-role fighter plane has conducted its 100th test flight, to complete testing of flight control systems, the Sukhoi aircraft maker said on Friday.

According to the company, successful flight tests involving two prototypes have confirmed the earlier-announced timeframe for deliveries of the aircraft to Russian and foreign customers in 2011.

Sukhoi is planning to add a third prototype to the testing program in the second half of 2009, and to boost the current number of test flights to 150-160.

The Su-35 fighter, powered by two 117S engines with thrust vectoring, combines high maneuverability and the capability to effectively engage several air targets simultaneously using both guided and unguided missiles and weapon systems.

The aircraft also features the new Irbis-E radar with a phased antenna array, which allows the pilot to detect and track up to 30 air targets, while simultaneously engaging up to eight targets.

It is equipped with a 30-mm cannon with 150 rounds and can carry up to eight tons of combat payload on 12 external mounts.

The company earlier said it planned to produce the new aircraft, billed as "4++ generation using fifth-generation technology," over a period of 10 years up to 2020.

Sukhoi is expecting to export at least 160 Su-35 fighters to a number of countries, including India, Malaysia and Algeria.

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Su-35 Crash During Taxi Tests Blamed on Engine Malfunction

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A next-generation Su-35 fighter crashed during recent runway tests because of an engine malfunction, the aircraft's maker said Wednesday.

The Su-35 jet burst into flames during a test taxi run at the Komsomolsk-on-Amur airport on April 26. The pilot ejected safely.

Alexander Pekarsh, CEO of the Komsomolsk-on-Amur Aicraft Production Association, or KNAAPO, said an engineering defect in the Su-35's engine control system had been pinpointed as the cause for the crash.

He did not elaborate.

The Su-35 pilot unsuccessfully tried to stop the plane, using various methods including the brake parachute, Kommersant reported after the accident. The plane hit a guard post, and the guard suffered a heart attack and was hospitalized.

The plane was to make its maiden flight in the near future but could not be repaired, Vedomosti reported.

Sukhoi, a major shareholder of KNAAPO, began testing Su-35s in February 2008 and plans to start deliveries of the aircraft in 2011. Sukhoi plans to export the fighters to countries in Southeast Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Middle East.

The Su-35 is "4++ generation aircraft using fifth-generation technology," Sukhoi said on its web site.

The aircraft features a new Irbis-E radar that allows the pilot to detect and track up to 30 air targets while simultaneously engaging up to eight targets, according to RIA-Novosti. It is equipped with a 30 mm cannon with 150 rounds and can carry up to 8 metric tons of combat payload on 12 external mounts.

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Russia To Get Su-35S By Year-end

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July 22, 2010

The Russian air force will take delivery of its first Su-35S fighter by the end of 2010, with a Libyan deal for the aircraft also anticipated to be concluded in the same time frame.

Sukhoi CEO Mikhail Pogosyan, speaking at the Farnborough International Airshow, confirms that the air force would begin to receive the latest upgrade of the Su-27 Flanker before the year is out. The Su-35S, sometime also known as the Su-27M2, matches the Flanker airframe with more powerful 117S engines, thrust vector control and new avionics and systems.

Sukhoi executives say the aircraft’s radar signature has been reduced through the use of radar absorbent coatings as well as reducing the number of protruding sensors.

Preliminary testing of Su-35 has now been concluded according to the company. The initial flight test program was completed using two rather than the planned three aircraft after the third was lost as a result of a fire following a problem during taxi trials. So far 270 flights have been made totaling 350 flight-hours.

A further focus during the initial trials was at the fighter’s onboard equipment. The Su-35 is equipped with the NIIP Tikhomirov Irbis passive phased-array radar. The radar is intended to be able to track 30 airborne targets and engage 8 of them while at the same time tracking 4 and engaging 2 ground targets. According to Pogosyan, during the trials the radar showed a maximum detection range against the airborne targets of 400 km.

The Su-35’s infra-red search and track was able to detect and simultaneously track several targets at ranges in excess of more than 80 km.

The reported service life of the new aircraft is 6,000 flight hours, with a planned operational life of 30 years. The intended service life of NPO Saturn 117S engines is 4,000 hours, say the designers.

Suhkoi is now moving into joint evaluation trials with the Russian Air Force, pilots from the latter are already participating in the test program.

The Russian air force presently has an order for 48 Su-35S aircraft to be delivered by 2015. The aircraft was initially promoted to the Russian military as an interim platform until the fifth generation fighter being developed by the Sukhoi enters in service in 2016. Now Pogosyan is sure the air force will continue the procurement of Su-35 beyond this date – a second batch for the same number is anticipated in the latter half of the decade. The T-50 fifth-generation prototype is now in the early stages of flight testing.

Tripoli will likely be the launch export customer. Alexander Mikheev, deputy head of Rosoboronexport, Russia’s state-owned arms export agency, confirmed at Farnborough that the contract for delivery of undisclosed number of aircraft to Libya, one of the traditional recipients of Soviet armaments, is expected to be signed this year. The first export production slots are available from 2012.

Pogosyan says he has “no knowledge” of a purported 40-60 aircraft government-to-government Indian deal for the Su-35 that could be proposed if the aircraft does not make the short list for India’s medium fighter competition, expected to be decided at year’s end. In addition to the Su-35, the Su-30 also has “good export prospects,” he says, mainly from existing customers.

Pogosyan says the T-50 will make its public debut at the upcoming Moscow Air Show in August. He expects that ultimately the PAK FA will be available to export customers at a price that is higher than fourth-generation models but still “affordable” compared to competing Western fighters. “Russian fighters have always been competitive on the global market,” he notes, “and the PAK FA will not be an exception.”

The absence of Russian combat aircraft here, he says, was dictated by a pure business decision to display the aircraft only at shows that have a reasonable chance of generating sales, rather than for reasons of prestige. Legal issues involving a Swiss creditor, which have kept fighters away from Farnborough in past years, played “absolutely no role this year,” he says.

However, a broad palette of combat aircraft will be shown at the upcoming Moscow Air Show, including the T-50. Pogosyan admits that Russia will be faced with an increasing challenge from China, which practices even lower pricing.

He agrees that China’s Shenyang J-15 is a “copy” of the Su-33 and that this raises intellectual property issues. However, he insists that lower pricing will be offset by poorer performance. “We’re not afraid of competition, even when it’s unfair. Learning how to integrate complex advanced fighter technology takes time.”

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