One of several PAK-FA concepts
Posted on 04/21/2009 8:59:43 PM PDT by sukhoi-30mki
Fifth-generation fighter to be developed in joint project
20:26 | 21/ 04/ 2009
MOSCOW. (Ilya Kramnik, RIA Novosti military commentator) - The development of the fifth-generation jet fighter is one of the most widely discussed issues in Russia's military.
What's more, with its potential involvement in developing the jet fighter, India, one of Russia's long-standing partners in military technical cooperation, confirms its interest in Russia's future project.
The new jet fighter is being developed under the PAK FA (Prospective (promising) Aircraft System of the Frontline Aviation) program to replace fourth-generation models now in service in Russian and Indian air forces.
The Soviet Union launched fifth-generation fighter programs in the 1980s. By the mid-1990s, the Mikoyan Design Bureau developed the Project 1.44 warplane, also known as the Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG MFI. The Sukhoi Design Bureau came up with the S-37 Berkut experimental supersonic forward swept-wing jet fighter. The S-37 aircraft was an advanced technology demonstration prototype not intended to be mass-produced as a fighter. However, due to the lack of funding, the Project 1.44 aircraft was not streamlined and never entered production either.
By the late 1990s, it became apparent that existing fifth-generation fighter projects were becoming obsolete, that their production versions would be inferior to the brand new American F-22 Raptor air superiority fighter, and that even if finalized the air force would receive such warplanes a decade too late.
As a result, in the early 2000s, the Russian Government made decision to develop an entirely new fifth-generation fighter. The Sukhoi, Mikoyan and Yakovlev Design Bureaus, all renowned for their fighters, offered several warplane versions.
The project was eventually entrusted to Sukhoi, which refers to it internally as the T-50.
Various maiden flight and supply deadlines were discussed from the very beginning. The T-50 was eventually scheduled to perform its first flight somewhere between 2008 and 2010. In late 2008, the commander of the Russian air force announced that the plane would first take off in August 2009.
Mikhail Pogosyan, head of the Sukhoi Design Bureau, confirmed the information. "The progress that has been made by now suggests that we can begin the flight tests within one year," Mr Pogosyan said. Several versions of the aircraft are being discussed, including a two-seater model, and a carrier-based aircraft.
In the summer of 2008, officials said the T-50 design had been approved and prototype aircraft blueprints sent to the Komsomolsk-on-Amur aircraft-building plant (KNAAPO) in Russia's Far East, where jet fighters will be produced. The plant is currently building three prototype T-50 fighters for future tests, due to last five to six years, while mass production will not get underway before 2015.
Although T-50 specifications have not been disclosed, it is known that prototypes and the first production aircraft will be fitted with 117S (upgraded AL-31) turbofan engines from Russian aircraft engine manufacturer Saturn. As a result, the T-50 will be a heavy fighter with a takeoff weight of over 30 metric tons and will have the same dimensions as the well-known Sukhoi Su-27 Flanker. The Tikhomirov Institute of Instrument Design, which had developed the Irbis radar for the Su-35BM Flanker, is now working on the T-50 radar. The new fighter's radar and fire-control system will be designs on the basis of the Su-35BM's systems.
India is reportedly more interested in the two-seater version, while Russia, with its developed ground and air fight control system, plans to concentrate on the one-seater fighter. There is a possibility that the Indian version of the Russian fighter will be lighter and smaller, and thus cheaper.
There have been reports in the past few months about the new fighter's exterior design. Judging by photographs of the prototype available online, the T-50 will resemble the American F-22, a fact easily explained by similar parameters on their technical specifications. However, it is yet undecided whether the model will eventually be used as a prototype.
As of now, one can only make general conclusions on what kind of a machine it will be, based on the known parameters of their technical specifications. The new fighter should be:
- multifunctional - capable of successfully hitting air, ground and water targets alike, including small and moving ones, in any weather or time of the day, against an enemy equipped with high-precision weapons;
- super-maneuverable - capable of performing controlled flight at low velocity and large angle of attack;
- largely undetectable by optical, infrared or radio radars; and
- capable of taking off and landing on short runways.
However, the term "fifth-generation" covers more than just the fighters. It also embodies a whole range of equipment to ensure advanced combat capabilities, including weapons, radio-electronic equipment, ground- and air-based supply and control systems.
These elements are also under development, although not all projects are proceeding with equal speed and success. Nevertheless, they are all crucial to the program as a whole. Without them, the new fighter will remain a very expensive toy incapable of boosting the combat capabilities of the air force.
The opinions expressed in this article are the author's and do not necessarily represent those of RIA Novosti.
One of several PAK-FA concepts
Is India saying they cannot depend on us with our Kenyan Moslem president?
Gee, I wonder where they go the tech from? /s
Pass the joint, man. Far out plane. I bet it flys!
go = got
Meanwhile, the US nixes the F22.
So, is anyone going to tell me, with a strait face, that our F15’s and F16’s are gonna tangle with that? If you say “yes” pass the crack.
Since the Obamasiah has cancelled the F-22 Raptor, I’d say the answer is, “Yes, the Indian’s cannot depend upon the U.S.”
Apparently, we don’t need F-22s. That’s what Obama says. We don’t even need an Air Force according to some FReepers. We’ll just have our infantry shoot tracer rounds through M-4s at the Russian stealth fighters.
Since the Obamasiah has cancelled the F-22 Raptor.............
That money is now going to Acorn and other Democrat “constituencies” like gay mens choruses and Section 8 housing
We still have the A-10!
/sarc
Can someone fill me in on the previous generations?
1 = Mig 15?
2 = Mig 21?
3 = Foxbat?
Yeah, Putin told Obama Russia would protect us. It’s alright.
Yeah, that’ll keep the U.S. safe from her enemies.
thanks - that was a very good source - i love reading about planes
Russia has no stealth fighters, AFAIK. It has no plans to invade Western countries. There is opinion, that stealth technology is very expensive and useless, for it is only conditionally stealth.
4 = Su 27/30 and MiG 29
The Indian version is going to be a stripped down junk version of the T-50. Good, but not as good as the Russian version, or the J-xx.
Is good. It’s what I like about FR
FOlks passing along knowledge and good thoughts to other folks.
Just what makes America great.
HAve fun
Were you personally involved in the design and development of all three variants??
F-22 is canceled so what else do we have?
The history of Russian Weapons development points this out clearly. Look at the MiG 29’s sold to Iraq compared to Soviet ones.
The F-35 is years away from deployment (if ever).
The rest of the US forces centers around F15, F16 and the Navy F18(2nd Gen) & F14 as the main fighter fleets.
During both Iraq wars, US pilots were told NOT to dogfight against the MIG29’s. The MIG’s agility and tight turn radius was too dangerous to engage in close combat. Long range attacks (backed up my AWACS) was the typical tactic for the US.
Fast foward a few years and the Soviets upgraded their MIG & Sukhoi fleets with advanced agility, avionics and weapons.
So what do we have?
F-14’s????
Recently retired (2006). I don’t see how they would be in the center of anything right now.
The only other country flying F-14s is Iran, Starved for spare parts, the Iranians struggle to keep the jets in flight.
When you say “years away from deployment” regarding the F-35, are you saying a couple two or three or are you trying to say potentially decades (similar to the F-22 because of congressional interference)? It’s a very ambiguous statement.
SZ
No sooner than 2012. Any kinks or design problems will push that date back.
However, its development, under way by Lockheed Martin Corp. for more than a decade, has proven problematic. Expense, design flaws and proprietary issues related to its technology have all hampered progress. As such, none of the fighters have yet entered service, and none are expected to do so before 2012.
Is that too ambiguous for you still?
I’m not some ignorant fool for you to take the liberty of posting to me in the tone you did, especially considering you made a statement regarding F-14s that displayed an obvious lack of knowledge.
The decade referenced in your pasted article includes the RFI, RFP, the design and construction of the first aircraft, initial competitions, the waiting period while the DOD made their decision and subsequent proposals and final design work and then the subsequent construction of the the STOVL version and now the AF versions.
That 10 years is an erroneous statement in the source you got it from and was designed solely to make the program look bad. Aircraft have been under construction and have been flying for over a year now. PAX River already has some aircraft and will be getting more.
EAFB is due to get their first aircraft later this year with an extremely ambitious and accelerated Flight Test Program to begin almost as soon as they land. In fact, Lockheed is instrumenting the aircraft in the factory to expedite the process by weeks, if not months. The goal is to not let congress or this administration delay the IOC as done previously with the F-22 that drive up costs.
The design of this aircraft is unlike any previously fielded yet people behave like it’s a Sopwith Camel and should have been fielded within weeks or months of contract award without ANY “design flaws”. I’m curious about the authors claim, what specifically is he calling “design flaws”? The electrical issue? Big whoop. It’s an electric airplane, what do you expect? The schedule was set back a few months by the electrical problem last year, but they’ve recovered pretty well considering. It’s not cables and pulleys for crying out loud.
Btw, for your information, Lockheed is not sole source on this aircraft either. There is going to be proprietary information related issues with any new technology and especially considering an aircraft where they were basically forced to share the work. Any company that is worth a damn is going to want to protect its technological edge without giving it away to its competitors in other areas of aviation.
Is that too ambiguous for you?
SZ
And I thought Star Trek nerds were bad. Sheeesh? (eyes rolling).
Usual Thunder90 drive-by post. Goodness! First of all, if the Indian version is a 'stripped down junk version of the T-50' then that would be because India would be incorporating systems from other nations (like they did with their SU-30MKI, having Israeli and French systems therein). Thus, it would be a favor for India if that was the case.
Then you go ahead and include the JX-X ...what proof do you have that the JX-X will be better? Absolutely none, since that concept is even less fleshed out than the PakFa is (you'd have to be pyschic to glean that level of information from a proposed Chinese stealth plane that hasn't even firmed up a real design concept yet). However, in your world it is already better! How?
As for the other post, where you compare Russian arms exports to India with Russian/Soviet arms exports to Iraq ....well, if you think those two are comparable you may be too far gone for a lucid response to hit home.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F35#cite_note-15
Deployment dates
F35a 2013
F35b 2012
F35c 2015
Concerns over performance
Concerns about the F-35’s performance have resulted in part from reports of RAND simulations where numerous Russian Sukhoi fighters defeat a handful of F-35s.[41] As a result of these issues the Australian defence minister, Joel Fitzgibbon, requested a formal briefing from the Department of Defence (Australia) on the computer simulation. This briefing stated that the reports of the simulation were inaccurate, and that it did not compare the F-35’s performance against that of other aircraft.[42]
The criticism of the F-35 has been dismissed by the Pentagon and manufacturer.[41][43] The USAF has conducted an analysis of the F-35’s air-to-air performance against all 4th generation fighter aircraft currently available, and has found the F-35 to be at least four times more effective. Maj Gen Charles R. Davis, USAF, the F-35 program executive officer, has stated that the “F-35 enjoys a significant Combat Loss Exchange Ratio advantage over the current and future air-to-air threats, to include Sukhois”.[43] The Russian, Indian, Chinese, Indonesian, Royal Malaysian and other air forces operate Sukhoi Su-27/30 fighters.
It’s not so much the SU-27/30...it’s what the Russians have beyond such as the SU35, SU37, SU47 (technology concept now, but potential threat in the future) and the Mig 35.
If stealth were ever to become compromised, it will be another classical “close in engagement” scenario and the Russians excel in this. Add a 3D radar system and things get interesting.
Seems the Chinese have been busy :)
http://au.biz.yahoo.com/090422/31/25v9w.html
You still haven’t addressed the misinformation you posted, only resorted to name calling.
I’m still waiting for facts, not childish behavior.
SZ
I’m sorry, but to quote you, I don’t like your tone :)
LOL.
Why should I have to answer you???? Is that you Mr. Biden?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ckLInopucx4
April 8, 2027
Pacific Ocean
That’s when the Raptor’s stealth is already compromised and has to battle it out with Sukhoi Su-47 Berkuts at WVR.
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