The debate about the Su-57 belonging to the fifth-generation fighter class does not stop in the foreign information space. Such discussions are particularly frequent in the Chinese media. The Military Watch Magazine, which positions itself as an independent and objective source, has returned to this topic, but now in the light of the Su-57’s use on the Ukrainian front. We offer a retelling of the opinion of the American online media.
The first reports on the use of fifth-generation Su-57 fighters in the zone of special military operation in Ukraine appeared in March 2022. It was reported that the planes were used for radio-electronic suppression and strikes against the Ukrainian air defense system. High-precision X-59MK2 and X-31 cruise missiles could have been used for this purpose.
In October 2022 there were reports that the fighter was involved in aerial combat and was involved in the defeat of the Su-27 and, possibly, the frontline bomber Su-24 of the Ukrainian Air Force. It is noted that these planes were shot down by a Russian fighter at a range of 217 km in response to a strike against targets in the Belgorod region.
In addition to the experience of engaging in high-intensity combat, the Ukrainian front has become the optimum testing ground for the Su-57 radar system, which consists of six AFAR radars and an infrared search and tracking system that allows it to simultaneously track more targets than any other fighter in the world, and at extreme ranges. The publication expects the frequency of use of Su-57s in Ukraine to increase and attributes this to the increase in the number of Su-57s in the Russian Air Force: in 2022 their number more than doubled – from four at the beginning of the year, to ten at the end. The Su-57 fleet is expected to grow further to 22-24 fighters in 2023.
In January 2023, the U.K. Ministry of Defense reported that the Su-57s were “launching long-range air-to-surface or air-to-air missiles at Ukraine.” These statements were the first confirmation by a NATO country of the fact that the fighters have actually been involved in operations “since at least June 2022.” The range reported in October strongly suggests that the Su-57s used Russia’s longest-range air-to-air missile, the R-37M, with a maximum range of 400 kilometers. It is the only non-Chinese missile of this class capable of hitting maneuverable targets at a range of more than 200 km.
Later, in mid-February, the British publication The Conversation reported that the Russian MiG-31 and Su-57 equipped with the R-37M long-range hypersonic missile had hit Ukrainian planes at a range of over 200 km from Russian airspace.
The use of the Su-57 in air operations, especially at long ranges, is an important development both for the Su-57 program and for Russian combat aviation as a whole. Operations in Ukraine have already made the Su-57 the world’s first fighter to engage in combat operations comparable in intensity to those on the fronts of World War II. And moreover, it is used against the armed forces of a large state with an advanced air defense system. Although the U.S. Air Force has been operating fifth-generation fighters for more than 17 years, it has not yet used them under comparable conditions, nor has China, whose fifth-generation fleet is 20 times larger than Russia’s.
The use of the Su-57 against formidable targets such as the Su-27 shows that the Russian fifth-generation fighter is not limited to its initial operational capabilities, MWM notes. And despite the small number of planes in service with the Air Force, it can make a serious contribution to combat operations. Their fleet is growing, which means that the Russian General Staff will be able to fully rely on it for combat missions without a long pause after delivery from the Komsomolsk-on-Amur plant. This contrasts with the American F-22, which has had its combat capability limited for more than four years after the US Air Force received its first aircraft, and the F-35, which is still considered far from being ready for high-intensity combat and is unlikely to be deployed for air combat in a major war like the Ukrainian front. That is why the Pentagon is not authorizing full-scale production of the F-35, even nearly 17 years after its first flight.
Unlike the Su-57, the F-22 has never used its weapons in combat beyond visual range, and the only destroyed aerial targets were balloons over the United States and Canada, shot down in February 2023, Military Watch Magazine emphasizes. The F-35 has the only recorded aerial target hit – a cargo UAV was shot down at very close range in the Gaza Strip. And the Gaza Strip is not a high intensity battlefield.
The Chinese J-20 has never been involved in combat operations at all, despite repeated interceptions of U.S. warplanes over the East China Sea.
The above facts make the Su-57 an absolutely unique fighting machine among the fighters of its generation, emphasizes MWM. Combat experience could significantly increase interest in the Su-57 on the part of foreign countries, and an increase in assembly line capacity by the end of the 2020s could ensure the fulfillment of significant export orders.
At the Aero India 2023 international show in February Moscow and New Delhi discussed the possibility of producing the Su-57 for the Indian Air Force under the same licensing scheme, which was used to build more than 270 Su-30MKI fighters from 2000 to 2020 at the HAL Corporation facilities. The possibility of initially supplying a limited batch of completed aircraft also remains, as India has consistently shown interest in fighters of this class. And there was even an attempt to develop the FGFA aircraft with Sukhoi Design Bureau, but the bureaucracy in Indian military circles found a lot of reasons to abandon this project.
In addition, there are reports that Algeria has already placed orders for the Su-57 with the possibility of first deliveries at the end of the decade.
Thus, India and Algeria are the most likely customers for the Su-57s, as happened with the Su-30MKI/MKA fighters. And as Russia continues to invest in capacity expansion, the rate of production of the Su-57 is expected to be close to 30 planes per year, with orders from the Russian Defense Ministry for the older Su-30SM and Su-35S gradually decreasing.
