Basic Information

Name

Su-57 (Felon) Russian Stealth Fighter

Designation

—

Alternate Designation

—

Equipment Type

—

Manufacturer

Komsomolsk-on-Amur Aircraft Plant

Date of Introduction

2020

Description

The Sukhoi Su-57 (Russian: Сухой Су-57; unconfirmed NATO reporting name: Felon) is a stealth, single-seat, twin-engine multirole fifth-generation jet fighter been developed since 2002 for air superiority and attack operations. The aircraft is the product of the PAK FA (Russian: ПАК ФА, short for Перспективный авиационный комплекс фронтовой авиации, romanized: Perspektivny Aviatsionny Kompleks Frontovoy Aviatsii, lit. ''prospective aeronautical complex of front-line air forces''), a fifth-generation fighter program of the Russian Air Force. Sukhoi's internal name for the aircraft is T-50. The Su-57 is planned to be the first aircraft in Russian military service to use stealth technology. Its maiden flight took place on 29 January 2010 and the first production aircraft are planned to be delivered in 2020. The fighter is designed to have supercruise, supermaneuverability, stealth, and advanced avionics to overcome the prior generation fighter aircraft as well as ground and naval defenses. The Su-57 is intended to succeed the MiG-29 and Su-27 in the Russian Air Force. The prototypes and initial production batch are to be delivered with a highly upgraded Lyulka AL-31 variant, the AL-41F1, as an interim powerplant while an advanced clean-sheet design engine, currently designated the izdeliye 30, currently in the final stages of development and expected to be available after the mid-2020s. The aircraft is expected to have a service life of up to 35 years. The Su-57 is intended to be a fifth-generation multirole fighter aircraft and the first operational stealth aircraft for the Russian Air Force. Although most information is classified, sources within the Sukhoi company and Defence Ministry have openly stated that the aircraft is to be stealthy, supermaneuverable, have supercruise capability, incorporate substantial amounts of composite materials, and possess advanced avionics such as active phased-array radar and sensor fusion. The aircraft has a blended wing body fuselage and incorporates all-moving horizontal and vertical stabilizers; the vertical stabilizers toe inwards to serve as the aircraft's airbrake. The aircraft incorporates thrust vectoring and has adjustable leading–edge vortex controllers (LEVCONs) designed to control vortices generated by the leading-edge root extensions, and can provide trim and improve the high angle of attack behavior, including a quick stall recovery if the thrust vectoring system fails. The advanced flight control system and thrust vectoring nozzles make the aircraft departure-resistant and highly maneuverable in both pitch and yaw, enabling the aircraft to perform very high angles of attack maneuvers such as the Pugachev's Cobra and the bell maneuver, along with doing flat rotations with little altitude loss. The Su-57 has a climb rate ranging from 330 m/s (1,100 ft/s) to 361 m/s (1,180 ft/s). The aircraft makes extensive use of composites, with the material comprising 25% of the structural weight and almost 70% of the outer surface. Weapons are housed in two tandem main weapons bays between the engine nacelles and smaller bulged, triangular-section bays near the wing root. Internal weapons carriage eliminates drag from external stores and enables higher performance compared to the external carriage, as well as enhancing stealth. The Su-57's aerodynamics and engines enable it to achieve Mach 2 and fly supersonic without afterburners, or supercruise, a significant kinematic advantage over prior generations of aircraft. Combined with a high fuel load, the fighter has a supersonic range of over 1,500 km (930 mi), more than twice that of the Su-27. An extendable refueling probe is available to further increase its range. In the Su-57's design, Sukhoi addressed what it considered to be the F-22's limitations, such as its inability to use thrust vectoring to induce roll and yaw moments and a lack of space for weapons bays between the engines, and complications for stall recovery if thrust vectoring fails.

Air & Air Defense Specifications

Crew 1

Max Speed 2450.0 km/h

Range 3500.0 km

Endurance 3.30 hrs

Wingspan 14.10 m

System

Alternate Designation(s) Su-57; NATO: Felon

Primary Function / Type stealth, single-seat, twin-engine multirole fifth-generation jet fighter

Manufacturer Komsomolsk-on-Amur Aircraft Plant

Crew 1

Number of Engines 2

Day/Night Capable Yes

All Weather Capable Yes

Number of Hard Points 8

Dimensions

Length 20.1 m

Height 4.6 m

Wingspan 14.1 m

Weight, Empty 18,000 kg

Weight, Normal 25,000 kg

Weight, Maximum 35,000 kg

Weight, Combat Load 7,500 kg

Weight, Air-to-Air Payload 2,260 kg

Automotive

Engine Name 2 x Saturn/Lyulka 117S

Number of Engines 2

Engine Power 14,200 kg each

Fuel 10,300 kg

Maximum Speed 2,450 km/h, Mach 2.0

Supersonic Cruise 1,590 km/h, Mach 1.3

Maximum Range 3,500 km

Supersonic Range 1,500 km

Climb Rate 350 m/sec

Ceiling 20,000 m

Load Limit 10-11 g

Endurance 3.3 hours

Chin Mounted Weapon System

System

Name Gryazev-Shipunov GSh-30-1

Type Autocannon

Caliber 30 mm

Length 1,978 mm

Barrel Length 1,500 mm

Width 156 mm

Height 185 mm

Weight 46 kg

Barrels 1

Action Short recoil operated

Rate of Fire 1,800 rounds/min

Muzzle Velocity 900 m/s

Maximum Firing Range 1,800m

Effective Firing Range 200-1,800m

Ammunition

Type Rifle

Caliber 30 mm

Shell 30×165mm

Basic Load INA

Wing Mounted Weapon Systems

Hardpoints 8

Anti-ship Missiles 2 × Kh-35E

Anti-Radiation Missiles *4 × Kh-58UShKE *250, 500, 1500 kg guided bombs *Anti-tank "Drill"500 kg cluster-bomb + active homing[

Missile System (Option 1)

Name R-77 (AA-12 Adder)

Type Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile

Basic Load 4 x R-77 (AA-12 Adder)

Operational Range 80–100 km

Flight Altitude 5–25 km

Speed Mach 4

Guidance System Inertial with mid-course update and terminal active radar homing/infrared homing (R-77T)

Missile System (Option 2)

Name Kh-38/Kh-38M Missile

Type Air-to-Surface Missile

Basic Load 4 x Kh-38/Kh-38M Missile

Date of Introduction 2012

Manufacturer Tactical Missiles Corporation JSC

Length 4.2 m

Diameter 0.31 m

Wingspan 1.14 m

Weight 520 kg

Warhead HE fragmentation, cluster warhead, armor-piercing

Warhead Weight up to 250 kg

Detonation Mechanism Contact fuse

Engine Solid rocket motor

Operational Range up to 70 km

Flight Ceiling 12000 m

Flight Altitude 200-12000 m

Speed Mach 2.2

Guidance System Laser, active radar, IR, satellite, depending on variant

Missile System (Option 3)

Name R-37 (AA-X-13/AA-13 Axehead) Missile

Type Supersonic Air-to-Air Missile

Manufacturer Tactical Missiles Corporation

Date of Introduction 2019

Basic Load 2 x R-37 (AA-X-13/AA-13 Axehead) Missile

Length 4.20 m

Diameter 38 cm

Wingspan 0.7 m

Weight 600 kg

Warhead HE, fragmenting

Propellant Boost-Sustain Solid Rocket

Warhead Weight 60 kg

Operational Range 150-398 km

Speed Mach 5

Guidance System Inertial with mid-course update, semi-active and active radar homing

Fire Control / Avionics

Fire Control Radar Byelka radar (400 km, 60 tracks with 16 targeted)

Laser Desingator Yes, 101KS-O: Laser Directional Infrared Counter Measures

Radio Electronic System Sh-121 multifunctional integrated radio electronic system (MIRES)

Radar Systems N036-1-01: Frontal X-band active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar N036B-1-01: Cheek X-band AESA radars for increased angular coverage N036L-1-01: Slat L-band arrays for IFF

IFF Yes

Protection

Stealth Properties The Su-57 is planned to be the first operational aircraft in Russian Air Force service to use stealth technology. Similar to other stealth fighters such as the F-22, the airframe incorporates planform edge alignment to reduce its radar cross-section (RCS); the leading and trailing edges of the wings and control surfaces and the serrated edges of skin panels are carefully angled to reduce the number of directions the radar waves can be reflected. Weapons are carried internally in weapons bays within the airframe and antennas are recessed from the surface of the skin to preserve the aircraft's stealthy shape. The infrared search-and-track sensor housing is turned backwards when not in use and its rear is treated with radar-absorbent material (RAM) to reduce its radar return. To mask the significant RCS contribution of the engine face, the walls of the inlet ducts are coated with RAM and the partial serpentine ducts obscure most of the engines’ fan and inlet guide-vanes (IGV); the remaining exposed engine face is masked by a radar blocker similar in principle to that used on the F/A-18E/F. According to Sukhoi's radar blocker patent, the slanted blocker grid is placed in front of the IGV at a distance of 0.7—1.2 times the diameter of the duct. The fuselage of the aircraft is coated with RAM to absorb radar emissions and reduce the reflection back to the source. Due to the extensive use of polymeric carbon plastics composites, the aircraft has four times fewer parts compared to the Su-27, weighs less and is easier to mass-produce.The aircraft canopy is made of composite material and 70-90 nm thick metal oxide layers with enhanced radar wave absorbing to minimize the radar return of the cockpit by 30% and protect the pilot from the impact of ultraviolet and thermal radiation. The Su-57's design emphasizes frontal stealth, with RCS-reducing features most apparent in the forward hemisphere; the shaping of the aft fuselage, the seams between parts, and rivets are much less optimized for radar stealth compared to the F-22.However, during MAKS 2019 the craftsmanship of the fuselage was actually finer than expected and looked smooth despite the rivets. The combined effect of airframe shape and RAM of the production aircraft is estimated to have reduced the aircraft's RCS to a value thirty times smaller than that of the Su-27.Sukhoi's patent for the Su-57's stealth features cites an average RCS of approximately 0.1 to 1 m2,compared to the Su-27's of approximately 10 to 15 m2.Like other stealth fighters, the Su-57's low observability measures are chiefly effective against high-frequency (between 3 and 30 GHz) radars, usually found on other aircraft. The effects of Rayleigh scattering and resonance mean that low-frequency radars, employed by weather radars and early-warning radars are more likely to detect the Su-57 due to its size. Such radars are also large, susceptible to clutter and are less precise.

Heat Signature Reduction INA

Add on Armor INA

NBC Protection Yes

EW Counter Measures L402 Himalayas electronic countermeasure suite

Chaffs/Flares Yes

Warning System 101KS-U: Ultraviolet missile approach warning system

Image Sources

Notes https://www.airplane-pictures.net/photo/1233147/051-sukhoi-design-bureau-sukhoi-t-50/; https://theaviationist.com/2019/12/29/wild-rumors-of-first-su-57-export-sale-spread-as-details-from-earlier-felon-crash-emerge/; https://www.quora.com/What-are-the-most-overhyped-Generation-4-military-aircraft-in-your-opinion-that-don-t-live-up-to-the-glossy-brochure-claims;