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New fighter, designed by Russian Sukhoi is reportedly more maneuverable than Lockheed Martin's designs India, one of the world's brightest emerging technical superpowers -- currently, the seventh biggest nation in terms of land area, and the second biggest in terms of population -- is preparing to make a major military leap forward. It will be flying its first stealth fighter in under four months. The new fighter is a so-called "fifth generation" fighter jet. Currently only two such fighter jets exist, both produced by Lockheed Martin: the F-22 Raptor and the F-35 Lightning II. The Indian fighter is being developed...

Fighter Order Rekindles Russian Air Force By Douglas Barrie and Alexey Komarov Zhukovsky, Russia Russian air force ambitions stretch far beyond the $2.65-billion Sukhoi fighter order at the MAKS 2009 show. Aspirations include fielding an unmanned combat air vehicle (UCAV) alongside its fifth-generation fighter and developing a next-generation strategic bomber. The fighter deal is a fillip to the air force and Sukhoi. The military will acquire 48 Su-35S fighter aircraft from 2010-15, along with 12 Su-27SMs and four Su-30M2s. Delivery of the last two versions of the Flanker should be completed by 2011. Securing an air force order bolsters Sukhoi’s...

Stealthy Sukhois Posted by Bill Sweetman at 8/25/2009 5:00 AM CDT Talking about stealth in relation to the Sukhoi Su-27 and its extended family, including the new Su-35S, tends to cause people to fall over in fits of mirth. Like Chandler's Moose Malloy, the basic airplane looks about as inconspicuous as a tarantula on a slice of angel food. But just about six years ago, in late 2003, Defense IQ managed to persuade a team from the Institute of Theoretical and Applied Electromagnetics (ITAE), part of the Russian Academy of Sciences, to present at a conference on stealth in London....

As one of our readers noted, DID’s articles from 2005-2007 seem to describe 2 different SU-35s. One is a mid-life modernized SU-27 Flanker, but there’s also much more re-engineered “SU-35” variant with canards, thrust vectoring, etc. has been confused with (and possibly redesignated between) the SU-37. So… what do we mean by “SU-35”? This article explains the sources of the widespread confusion regarding the SU-35’s layout and key characteristics, reviews what is now known about the platform, and tracks its development. Those developments are likely to have broad consequences. The aircraft has a home customer in the Russian Air Force,...

Russian Defense Ministry orders 64 Su-family fighters MOSCOW, August 18 (RIA Novosti) - The Russian Defense Ministry and the Sukhoi aircraft maker signed on Tuesday a contract on the delivery of 64 Su fighters to the Russian Air Force. The contract, signed during the MAKS-2009 air show in Zhukovsky near Moscow, stipulates the delivery of 48 Su-35 by 2015, and 12 Su-27SM and four Su-30M2 multirole fighters by 2011. The value of the contract was not disclosed, but according to open sources, the cost of a Su-35 fighter, billed as "4++ generation using fifth-generation technology," is estimated at up to...

 Holy frak. Holy frak. HOLYROLLERBLADINGFRAK! Movie producers paid two Sukhoi Su-35 pilots to fly without a canopy at Mach 2.0, and have one of them eject in what probably is one of the most dangerous stunts ever filmed. While on this speed I even managed to pull out my fingers in glove for an inch or two outside - it became heated very fast because of immense friction force plane undergoes with the air. That's what the pilot who remained in the cabin said he did after his crazy comrade ejected, landing safely on the ground. I don't know...

The Pentagon purchased two Russian-made Su-27 fighter jets from Ukraine. The United States will reportedly use the Russian jets to train effective counter-operation efforts. The Russian jets are a serious competition for the US F-15 fighters. The jets of Russia’s renowned Sukhoi design bureau proved to be more successful than their US competitors during a number of tests. The Pentagon has been trying to obtain the Russian warplanes, and Ukraine helped the nation do it legally. The news about the deal between the USA and the Air Force of Ukraine appeared on the US-based website Strategypage.com. The website said that...

While Russia's military elite have already seen the prototype - or perhaps prototypes - of the air force's nextgeneration heavy fighter, the aircraft will likely only make its public debut after first flight, if tradition is followed. Senior Russian government and military leaders continue to insist first flight will be this year. Up to three prototypes are thought to be in various stages of final assembly at the Sukhoi manufacturing site in Komsomolsk-on-Amur. The Russian air force's fighter fleet replacement strategy in the near to medium term is built around two Sukhoi programs: the Su-27SM2 (Su-35) development of the Flanker...

India announced its plans to double the purchase of Russia’s Su-30MKI fighter jets. If the plans become real, Russia will set a new record selling the largest quality of fourth-generation aircraft to a foreign customer. The deal will considerably improve the reputation of Russia’s renowned jet, although it does have significant competitors from the fifth generation. India may considerably enlarge its fleet of Russian-made Su-30MKI by 2015 – to 230 planes, news agencies reported with reference to India’s Defense Minister Arackaparambil Kurian Antony. The official said that India had purchased 98 of such fighter jets from Russia since 1996. The...

OSCOW, June 15 (RIA Novosti) - Russia would like to expand sales of such warplanes as the Su-34 throughout the world, President Dmitry Medvedev said in an interview with Chinese TV released on Monday. Sukhoi Su-34 Fullback, an advanced two-seat fighter-bomber and attack aircraft, was flown by Medvedev in March. The president told China Central TV his flight was supposed to "deliver several messages." He said he wanted to "learn firsthand about the potential of Russian equipment," and was able to see for himself that "this equipment is really great." He added that as commander in chief, he wanted to...

Sukhois In The US (Officially) Posted by Bill Sweetman at 5/7/2009 8:31 AM CDT Two Sukhoi Su-27UB trainers have just turned up in the US. They're probably not the first aircraft of the type to be acquired by US operators - but are probably the first that anyone will talk about, since there have been multiple Su-27 sightings in the neighborhood of Air Force Flight Test Center Detachment 3, popularly known as Area 51. One of the two Su-27s before delivery (Tac Air) The two new arrivals have been acquired from the Ukraine by Reno-based Tac Air, which provides training...

I swear by our dear dog, Ma, I am safe: officer on crashed Sukhoi SiddharthKelkar Posted: May 01, 2009 at 0138 hrs Pune “I panicked a bit when I heard about the crash. But around 1 pm I managed to contact Siddharth and he said he was safe,” said Aparajita Munje, mother of Wing Commander S V Munje (35), who survived the Sukhoi crash on Thursday morning. “I was initially not entirely convinced by what he was trying to tell me, but then he swore by his beloved German Shepherd Simba,” she said at her home on Prabat Road. Munje’s...

Russian Su-35 fighter jet prototype destroyed during testing 10:20 | 27/ 04/ 2009 KHABAROVSK, April 27 (RIA Novosti) - A prototype of the advanced Su-35 Flanker multi-role fighter plane burst into flames during take-off procedures at a testing ground in Russia's Far East, a spokesman for the Komsomolsk-on-Amur aircraft plant said on Monday. "The accident occurred at 09.55 Moscow time [05.55 GMT] on Sunday at the Dzemgi airfield during the Su-35 prototype's take-off," Vitaly Tyulkin said, adding that the pilot ejected safely. "We will announce the details of the accident later in the day," he said. Sources earlier said the...

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....

MOSCOW, April 7 (RIA Novosti) - Russia's new Superjet 100 airliner will be one of the big draws at Le Bourget 2009 when it makes its debut appearance in Paris, a top official of the major international air show said on Tuesday. The 48th Paris Air Show at Le Bourget on June 15-21, which marks 100 years of technological innovation in aeronautics and space conquest, will be the first chance for most aviation enthusiasts to get a look at the new plane. "The Russian Sukhoi Superjet 100 airplane will be a genuine star at our anniversary air show, primarily because...

The Australian think-tank, Air Power Australia (APA), has released another in their series of techno-strategy papers, this time analysing the advancements in Russian-built Integrated Air Defense Systems (IADS) (http://www.ausairpower.net/APA-2009-02.html), and what it means in global strategic terms for the Americans. The APA report is direct and unequivocal – Russian radar and missiles have improved to the point where the US fleet of F-15s, F-16s and F/A-18s, as well as the planned Joint Strike Fighter (JSF), are not capable of surviving against these systems and unless the Americans build another four hundred-plus F-22s, they will lose the strategic advantage they have...

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...

Russia's first entirely new commercial plane for some time, the Superjet 100, has completed its maiden flight. The plane, which will be able to carry between 75 and 110 passengers, must make about 100 incident-free journeys before being deemed to be airworthy. Built by Russian manufacturer Sukhoi, the first planes are due to be delivered at the end of 2008 but the project has been hit by delays. China, Japan and India are all seeking to become mid-range planemakers.

MOSCOW: Russia has threatened to sue China for copying its Sukhoi Su-27SK fighters and its pirate production for export to Pakistan and other Third World countries at much cheaper prices, a leading Russian daily reported on Tuesday. "Russia has officially notified China that the production of J11 (fighters), a copy of Russian Su-27SK, violates inter-governmental agreements. Moscow has vowed to launch legal procedures for the protection of its intellectual property," Nezavisimaya Gazeta said. Under the 1996 agreement, China had the right to assemble 200 Su-27SK fighters under the local brand J11. However, after receiving 95 kits and 180 AL31F engines,...

SaM-146 Engine Runs Successfully at Sukhoi Superjet-100 New aircraft engines, SaM-146, have successfully run at the first Sukhoi Superjet-100, RIA Novosti reported Thursday with reference to a representative of Sukhoi Civil Aircraft. “New aircraft engines, SaM-146s, have been successfully started at Superjet-100 under the program of preparing a new regional jet of Russia for its first flight,” said the company’s representative attending the Singapore Air Show. Earlier, SaM-146 passed the first testing stage in the flying laboratory of Il-76LL. Those tests confirmed correspondence to design specification to the extent required for the first flight. The engine also passed the race...