IRIAF | News and Discussions

[TheImmortal]

in fact kowsar can do things that Su-35 can't for example it has data-link .

“AESA “Data Link” you are a walking buzz word. Data link is irrelevant when your systems are jammed to hell against more capable fighters who have no trouble finding you.

We have zero knowledge of how Iranian avionics would do against the full force of EW/ECW of US airforce or Israeli airforce. I guess if your opponent is Azerbaijan things like that don’t matter.

One of you tried to claim Kowsar has 1-2 m2 cross section. Before I clearly showed that not possible via Brazilian research paper on the matter. A 1950’s designed aircraft frame! That means if it were true, in 60’s with that eras Radar tech the F-5 was basically invisible.

China operates the SU-35 and SU-30. In fact rumors are that China used it’s Su-35’s to penetrate Taiwan airspace yesterday.

Iran isn’t going to go all out for Kowsar, just like it didn’t go all out for Karrar nearly 7 years after unveiling.

While we wait for the unveiling of Iranian medium/heavy engine, SU-35 is the most realistic stop gap. Chinese fighters are not coming to the rescue. China is not going to create trouble for itself. If it wanted to create trouble, it would help Russia much more overtly vis a vi Ukraine.

 

[aryobarzan]

Iran is selling oil and gas in volume and in price...so although I am 100% supporter of in-house development..I think Iran now can have both options...Russian craft as a stop gap as theimmortal said and CONCURRENT development of Iran's next gen fighter..

Sometimes you can have your cake and eat it too..
By the way @Hack-Hook is a patriot and very informed individual and a good physician also so please do not interpert his criticizem as being unpatriotic..

 

[Daylamite Warrior]

when you brought me a fighter which is more agile than , a modern missile i believe you are right . its the electronic that count , not how maneuverable is your airplane

in fact kowsar can do things that Su-35 can't for example it has data-link .
by the way show me a country that didn't cancel its SU-35 order, even Russia itself don't order it anymore

and as I said وطن فروش بی ادب که فکر میکنی چون خارجی هست بهتر هست

Dadash, the only reason why they were cancelled was purely to do with US pressure. You could say Russia's production rate is poor and needs cash injection. But that still doesn't mean the SU-35 is a sub par aircraft, considering the limited options. Dont you think Russians couldn't just upgrade the su-34 with data link?

Avalinke man ye Irani hastam, ajdadam Iranihastan va kesi ke vatanesho doost dashtebashe nemizare intori niroo havayee ma zarbe bekhore.

 

[TheImmortal]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1554343582533828609

Look at those flankers in Chinese video

Someone should let China know that @Hack-Hook does not approve.

 

[drmeson]

One of you tried to claim Kowsar has 1-2 m2 cross section. Before I clearly showed that not possible via Brazilian research paper on the matter. A 1950’s designed aircraft frame! That means if it were true, in 60’s with that eras Radar tech the F-5 was basically invisible.

You have a habit of claiming baseless things (yes there is a list) and when someone proves your claim as wrong you run away from the thread without replying or even addressing the points made by others, which I am sure you will do after this post as well. I replied to your funny RCS post but I could not post it because me and few other people in Iranian sections were incapable of posting at that time due to bot attack (fixed now by mod WAZ).

Anyways, here goes:

Your posted paper presented a simulated RCS by software which by no means can be equated to real world RCS value. Nowhere in the article, the Brazilian authors mention that their values are equivalent to real experimental RCS values.

This is how real RCS is measured by actual pro-labs who spend tens and hundreds of millions on the establishment of such facilities, which according to your logic is a waste of time, all they can do is download the freeware software these Brazilian students had and Tadaaaa! they can have the RCS. You should contact the fools in Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Sukhoi, and BAE who have been wasting their decades and millions on these labs. All they needed was the .... free software.

........................

How science of simulation and experimental results work? I will explain here. I know you would not read it beyond this point so .... I am addressing other members. The simulated and experimental values are relative to each other by a factor (let's call it Z) which can be a coefficient or addition/subtraction factor to the simulated values, like this:

Z x RCS (Simulated) = RCS (Experimental)

OR

Z +/- RCS (Simulated) = RCS (Experimental)

The same simulation that is putting a needle-like tiny airframe of F-5 at 15-16 m2 may also put a Flanker airframe at 45+ m2 for all we can predict here, so we may know that the Z = ~3 for this software. Did the Brazilian paper measure the RCS of another airframe that we have actual RCS values of to know this relative factor Z ? no they did not because they are not even remotely claiming that the RCS they measured is a real one. They simulated the RCS in their software at 15-16 m2 and then they put the RAM on and measured the RCS again in the same simulation to prove that simulated RCS values dropped. They are claiming the "drop" in RCS vs RAM coat plot. If the software is super accurate, the ratio of simulated RCS without RAM / RCS+RAM could be close to the actual experiment ratio RCS without RAM / RCS+RAM but BY NO MEANS THE SIMULATED RCS alone CAN BE EQUAL TO ACTUAL RCS. Otherwise everyone in the entire combat aviation field is a fool, they should all just download softwares and design 6th generation stealth planes from their bedrooms.

Relative factors between simulations and experimental values work like this in the entire plethora of scientific fields where both simulated and experimental measurements are possible. We first measure values in a simulated environment over a range, then we find them experimentally to get this relative factor "Z" so next time we can get a good idea from the simulation of what the actual values would be. No one gets the simulation done only and starts claiming oh that is it, I won't take it to the lab. Which is why in modern world we have a theoretical physicist, biologist, chemist and an experimental physicist, biologist, chemist. They work in tandem on projects, and can't replace each other.

That means if it were true, in 60’s with that eras Radar tech the F-5 was basically invisible.

Era has nothing to do with it. F-16, F/A-18, Mig-21, and Mirage-2000 all are from the 1960s and 70s yet their RCS values are below 5 m2. F-15 and Flanker family is from the 1970s yet they have enormous RCS values. FA/18 itself has a USN claimed RCS of 3m2 (1999) and the airframe is a modified version of F-5E/F, but larger and edgy, Do you really want us to believe that F/A-18 is 3 M2 but the tiny needle like F-5 is 16 m2 somehow?

F-5 was and is quite hard to track in aerial combat which is why its base design (N-156) was chosen to be driven into F/A-18 which became the premier USN fighter for decades and still is. Even the modern US aviators call an upgraded F-5N a small low observable platform that you can not just defeat easily in the sky. https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/42507/first-navy-f-5-aggressor-begins-upgrade-that-will-make-the-entire-fleet-far-more-potent

We have a logical base as well. In the Iran-Iraq war, the thickest possible majority of F-5E was downed by SAM fire which tracks the aircraft from the aspect of lower body. Even an F-22 will have a hard time hiding its lower body RCS. Barely ~8 confirmed air-to-air kills of F-5E were recorded during combat with MIG-25PD, MIG-23ML and all by WVR engagement. None killed at distance during BVR attack which Iraqis used to launch like maniacs with R-40 BVR missile from MIG-25PD. They once even got an F-14A of Hashem Ale-Agha but none ever got an F-5E despite being fired upon multiple times by an R-40. It tells us how difficult it is to track such a small airframe and kill it with ARH/SARH missiles. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Iraqi_aerial_victories_during_the_Iran%E2%80%93Iraq_war

Sattari was no fool to start a dometic F-20 equivalent program. HESA today is not either, that they will let go of this project. The day we procure larger turbofans or produce a larger version of Jahesh-700, and HESA works on the frontal part of the plane to reduce the RCS to the levels of EF-2000 or rafale (<1.0m2) we will have a tiny monster in the sky. We already have a superb avionics and controls package for it along with a from-scratch production facility for Kowsar.

 

[Hack-Hook]

Dadash, the only reason why they were cancelled was purely to do with US pressure. You could say Russia's production rate is poor and needs cash injection. But that still doesn't mean the SU-35 is a sub par aircraft, considering the limited options. Dont you think Russians couldn't just upgrade the su-34 with data link?

Avalinke man ye Irani hastam, ajdadam Iranihastan va kesi ke vatanesho doost dashtebashe nemizare intori niroo havayee ma zarbe bekhore.

they didn't buy from usa , they replaced them with Rafale , and fun fact india no longer order any SU-30MKI while they are produced in India , instead guess what they are ordering rafale .
Russia , could do that , but they did not , because they don't think its necessary just like when they did not taught drones are necessary in modern war-fares. also don't forget the fact that in electronic russia is 1-2 decade behind , usa , europe and china

https://twitter.com/x/status/1554343582533828609

Look at those flankers in Chinese video

Someone should let China know that @Hack-Hook does not approve.

how many are this year order , and how many 10 year ago order
by the way you import J-16 from china and i won't be that much against it as unlike a certain airplane .
it has actual useful RADAR, It carry actual useful BVR weapon
It has modern and strong E-Warfare suit
the body material is modified to lower RCS
more importantly ,they have the capability to produce the airplane in number and deliver it , certain country lost that capability 20 years ago

oh, and they come with SEAD capability

Why China’s Latest Jets Are Surpassing Russia’s Top Fighters

Since the consolidation of Communist party rule over mainland China in 1949, China’s military aviation sector has owed a tremendous debt to the Russian Bear. However, according to a new study, the apprentice may have surpassed the master as Chinese jets lead in radar, weapons and stealth technology.

www.forbes.com

Military Watch Magazine

militarywatchmagazine.com

 

[drmeson]

Dadash, the only reason why they were cancelled was purely to do with US pressure. You could say Russia's production rate is poor and needs cash injection. But that still doesn't mean the SU-35 is a sub par aircraft, considering the limited options. Dont you think Russians couldn't just upgrade the su-34 with data link?

Avalinke man ye Irani hastam, ajdadam Iranihastan va kesi ke vatanesho doost dashtebashe nemizare intori niroo havayee ma zarbe bekhore.

SU-35 has the following weaknesses in IRIAF doctrine:

1) It's a SU-27 with an avionics upgrade. Sukhoi itself patented 10-15 m2 RCS for SU-27 airframe so it means SU-35S has the same large RCS values. It will be tracked by Saudi, Emirati EF-2000, Rafale, Mirage 2000-9 from ~150 km who will launch a BVR attack in its direction with Meteor BVR-AAM. It will have no option but to just leave the battle arena.

2) Its radar IRBIS-E is not AESA so it's easy to jam for the adversary.

3) Its radar IRBIS-E has been shown by its maker (scroll few pages back) in a video that shows it barely tracking a fighter at 100 KM. By that time an EF-2000, Rafale, F-18EF will already have tracked and launched a BVR attack at it.

4) It's longest-range BVR missile is R-77-1 which has a range of ~105 KM. The adversaries it's gonna face have packages like AIM-120D and Meteor BVRAAM with ranges in excess of 160+ KM. This means that it will have to fly along with Fakour-90 armed F-14AM all the time so that F-14AM can do the heavy lifting of tracking and attacking the enemy from 150 KM away, while Su-35S can supplement the BVR attack option. Same can be done with upgraded MIG-29 or Kowsar.

5) Its price tag is 85 million USD and Iran has no infrastructure in place for it. This means that for a price of 4-5 Billion USD we will have a token force of 30-40 aircraft with just maintenance infrastructure. With the same amount of money IRIAF can have the following:

- 45 x F-14AM. 200-300 Million USD. Highly modernized, MLUed
-150 Kowsar-I/II. Cost is 10 million/unit for from-scratch production and 7 million/unit for repository-built airframe + upgrade. The current capacity is 6-7 airframes per year from one assembly line. If they setup another assembly line for future improved Kowsar-II than production can be doubled. Kowsar-II gets AESA, HOTAS, HMD and reduced RCS frontal.
- 70 MIG-29M. Additional airframes from Russia + IRIAF's MIG-29 9.12 MLUed + heavy avionics upgrade with Russian help. R-74E and R-77SD get procured with HMD package.
- 200 x + Shahed-171 and KAMAN-22 in ELINT/SIGINT and PGM strike roles.

Or we can have 30-40 SU-35S with benign force of obsolete avionics carrying MIG-29, Few F-14AM and Kowsars who are isolated from the rest of the fleet. Read about Nagorno Karabakh IRIAF operation in which F-14AM and Kowsar were put forward by IRIAF with ambsuh SAM on ground (all datalinked) while they did not even trust the rest of the fleet including MIG-29s. The rest of the prop fleet of Mirage F-1Q/EQ, F-7N, F-5E/F does not deserve to be mentioned.

6) SU-35S has a role in IRIAF or IRGC-AF as a heavy attack aircraft along with F-4E/D and SU-24M/SU-22M4. It can provide multi-role assistance to attack aircraft and UCAVs like it can fly along with them with A2A and A2G packages to guard them against enemy aircraft while also supplementing them in the strike.

7) Russians do not like their aircraft to be touched so Iran can kiss the idea of using local systems on SU-35 goodbye. It won't have the datalink that IRIAF uses for Kowsar, F-14AM and UCAVs (confirmed by IAI head, Gen. Afshin Khajeh Fard). It would have an isolated battle environment cut off from the entire IRIAF fleet. There is not a single example where Russian 4th generation combat planes have ever received any local upgrade by their clients. Indians, Iran, Vietnam, Egypt all have local industrial baseline esp India and Iran but India is paying 62 Million USD/Su-30MK CDK kit to this day to Moscow and Iran's MIG-29 fleet is dying without MLU and avionics upgrade but we cant touch it either. If Russia refuses spare parts supply or upgrades in future SU-35S will become mothballed storage items for IRIAF in few years.

 

[Daylamite Warrior]

SU-35 has the following weaknesses in IRIAF doctrine:

1) It's a SU-27 with an avionics upgrade. Sukhoi itself patented 10-15 m2 RCS for SU-27 airframe so it means SU-35S has the same large RCS values. It will be tracked by Saudi, Emirati EF-2000, Rafale, Mirage 2000-9 from ~150 km who will launch a BVR attack in its direction with Meteor BVR-AAM. It will have no option but to just leave the battle arena.

2) Its radar IRBIS-E is not AESA so it's easy to jam for the adversary.

3) Its radar IRBIS-E has been shown by its maker (scroll few pages back) in a video that shows it barely tracking a fighter at 100 KM. By that time an EF-2000, Rafale, F-18EF will already have tracked and launched a BVR attack at it.

4) It's longest-range BVR missile is R-77-1 which has a range of ~105 KM. The adversaries it's gonna face have packages like AIM-120D and Meteor BVRAAM with ranges in excess of 160+ KM. This means that it will have to fly along with Fakour-90 armed F-14AM all the time so that F-14AM can do the heavy lifting of tracking and attacking the enemy from 150 KM away, while Su-35S can supplement the BVR attack option. Same can be done with upgraded MIG-29 or Kowsar.

5) Its price tag is 85 million USD and Iran has no infrastructure in place for it. This means that for a price of 4-5 Billion USD we will have a token force of 30-40 aircraft with just maintenance infrastructure. With the same amount of money IRIAF can have the following:

- 45 x F-14AM. 200-300 Million USD. Highly modernized, MLUed
-150 Kowsar-I/II. Cost is 10 million/unit for from-scratch production and 7 million/unit for repository-built airframe + upgrade. The current capacity is 6-7 airframes per year from one assembly line. If they setup another assembly line for future improved Kowsar-II than production can be doubled. Kowsar-II gets AESA, HOTAS, HMD and reduced RCS frontal.
- 70 MIG-29M. Additional airframes from Russia + IRIAF's MIG-29 9.12 MLUed + heavy avionics upgrade with Russian help. R-74E and R-77SD get procured with HMD package.
- 200 x + Shahed-171 and KAMAN-22 in ELINT/SIGINT and PGM strike roles.

Or we can have 30-40 SU-35S with benign force of obsolete avionics carrying MIG-29, Few F-14AM and Kowsars who are isolated from the rest of the fleet. Read about Nagorno Karabakh IRIAF operation in which F-14AM and Kowsar were put forward by IRIAF with ambsuh SAM on ground (all datalinked) while they did not even trust the rest of the fleet including MIG-29s. The rest of the prop fleet of Mirage F-1Q/EQ, F-7N, F-5E/F does not deserve to be mentioned.

6) SU-35S has a role in IRIAF or IRGC-AF as a heavy attack aircraft along with F-4E/D and SU-24M/SU-22M4. It can provide multi-role assistance to attack aircraft and UCAVs like it can fly along with them with A2A and A2G packages to guard them against enemy aircraft while also supplementing them in the strike.

7) Russians do not like their aircraft to be touched so Iran can kiss the idea of using local systems on SU-35 goodbye. It won't have the datalink that IRIAF uses for Kowsar, F-14AM and UCAVs (confirmed by IAI head, Gen. Afshin Khajeh Fard). It would have an isolated battle environment cut off from the entire IRIAF fleet. There is not a single example where Russian 4th generation combat planes have ever received any local upgrade by their clients. Indians, Iran, Vietnam, Egypt all have local industrial baseline esp India and Iran but India is paying 62 Million USD/Su-30MK CDK kit to this day to Moscow and Iran's MIG-29 fleet is dying without MLU and avionics upgrade but we cant touch it either. If Russia refuses spare parts supply or upgrades in future SU-35S will become mothballed storage items for IRIAF in few years.

Thank you for the technical reasoning and information. I dont disagree that there are better planes in the world than the su-35. I also dont see why Iran still can't make plenty of Kowsars alongside the fleet of 30-40 su-35s it has because I'd personally go for option 2. Iran should stick to putting their tech on the Kowsar instead of any foreign planes. Building a plane around your own parts and technology is better than making a frankenstein, which Iran only does out of desperation. Question, with regards to the radar issues of the su-35 in the face of its foreign competitors, are the Iranian radar systems used on Kowsar going to be better equipped to deal with these challenges?

I honestly don't see Russia realigning with the west and against Iranian interests for a very long time, maybe even ever...to fear otherwise is irrational, especially if youre keeping a watch of whats going on in the world right now especially to Russia and China.

Also, despite the comprehensive reply, you haven't really meanioned any other alternatives to the Su-35 except for purely indegenous and more inferior mig-29...we dont want false economy in the airforce. So when it comes to planes sourced abroad, the Su-35 is the better option.

they didn't buy from usa , they replaced them with Rafale , and fun fact india no longer order any SU-30MKI while they are produced in India , instead guess what they are ordering rafale .
Russia , could do that , but they did not , because they don't think its necessary just like when they did not taught drones are necessary in modern war-fares. also don't forget the fact that in electronic russia is 1-2 decade behind , usa , europe and china

Doesn't matter if they bought Rafale, it's still a western NATO state and had to be approved by US and their allies in the EU. Also it's ridiculous to think Russia should buy western tech for its airforce. I also doubt their electronic is that bad especially with allies like Iran and China. You must be going by some old propagandised data.

 

[Deino]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1554556522600009729

what about the internal rivalry with the IRGC? Will it accept the IRIAF to operate such a capable asset?

 

[Hack-Hook]

Doesn't matter if they bought Rafale, it's still a western NATO state and had to be approved by US and their allies in the EU. Also it's ridiculous to think Russia should buy western tech for its airforce. I also doubt their electronic is that bad especially with allies like Iran and China. You must be going by some old propagandised data.

their electronics are bad, if they want some advanced electronic in their systems they had to import it from china and Europe

and it matter they ordered rafale , because the SU-30MKI would have been assembled and many part would have built inside India and bought from Europe and Israel . but what after the clash with Pakistan , they stop order for more of them and then later cancelled the already placed orders .

Flanker-e without any serious upgrade have no future . its RADAR can't compete with any other modern 4-4++ generation or 5th generation fighters , its jamming capabilities and e-Warfare is limited.
what it have is a good engine and fairly agile design plus long range. those were decisive factors 30 years ago , but today with advance in missile technologies , radars and e-warfare those things lost their importance a-lot .
the only thing flanker-e have that still matter is its FLIR which is not extraordinary for today but get a pass compared to others in its class

what about the internal rivalry with the IRGC? Will it accept the IRIAF to operate such a capable asset?

which capable asset we are talking here

 

[Deino]

…
which capable asset we are talking here

The Su-35

 

[Hack-Hook]

The Su-35

come on , what is potent about it , in what role you want to use it , even chinese copy of SU-27 are more potent and dangerous than that airplane even their light /medium fighter j-10c is more frightening

 

[drmeson]

what about the internal rivalry with the IRGC? Will it accept the IRIAF to operate such a capable asset?

Not just the IRGC, within IRIAF itself there are factions that put forward their own projects/plans. There are very proper examples. Squadrons that operate Mirage F1 (Chabahar and Tehran, Doshan Teppeh) pushed for funding to arm Mirage F1 despite the fact their radars are not working and IRIAF never had any real plan to integrate them. The plane is never been seen actually firing a weapon, rarely even seen with pylons let alone with A2A missile. One flight some 20 years ago happened with AIM-9P/J or Fatter missile. But still politics won and Mirage F1 for some odd reason is still eating money for maintenance. The plane itself was never liked by IRIAF because it lost 34 times to F-14AM during the war.

Another reported Project Erfanian is going on, orchestrated by Squadrons of F-7N to start a local JL-9 equivalent construction based upon F-7N airframe and Kowsar-I's avionics package (Grifo 346, RWR/MAWS, some level FBW, Datalink, Ballistic computer). Pictures of double delta wings and modified vertical stabilizers have been seen. The plane is hated by IRIAF btw but politics won.

Then we have Azaraksh-Saegheh-Kowsar lobbyist group. This group lobby's for anything related to F-5. They are Brig. Gen Sattari's left overs who loved this plane. They kept on pushing local F-5 production for years and years.

We also have an F-14AM upgradation program that has some joint thing going on using IRGC assets because apparently, F-14AM standard needs black market imports and who better in Iran knows how to pull such smuggling stunts.

Meanwhile, IRGC have its own SU-22M4 program.

List goes on and on. So if an SU-35S lobby group gains momentum in IRIAF and they have links with higher ups like Supreme leader, Bagheri or Raisi, then they will get the money for the procurement. Things happen in Iran when you have links otherwise nobody will move a muscle let alone give you money.

 

[drmeson]

Thank you for the technical reasoning and information. I dont disagree that there are better planes in the world than the su-35. I also dont see why Iran still can't make plenty of Kowsars alongside the fleet of 30-40 su-35s it has because I'd personally go for option 2. Iran should stick to putting their tech on the Kowsar instead of any foreign planes. Building a plane around your own parts and technology is better than making a frankenstein, which Iran only does out of desperation. Question, with regards to the radar issues of the su-35 in the face of its foreign competitors, are the Iranian radar systems used on Kowsar going to be better equipped to deal with these challenges?

I honestly don't see Russia realigning with the west and against Iranian interests for a very long time, maybe even ever...to fear otherwise is irrational, especially if youre keeping a watch of whats going on in the world right now especially to Russia and China.

Also, despite the comprehensive reply, you haven't really meanioned any other alternatives to the Su-35 except for purely indegenous and more inferior mig-29...we dont want false economy in the airforce. So when it comes to planes sourced abroad, the Su-35 is the better option.


Doesn't matter if they bought Rafale, it's still a western NATO state and had to be approved by US and their allies in the EU. Also it's ridiculous to think Russia should buy western tech for its airforce. I also doubt their electronic is that bad especially with allies like Iran and China. You must be going by some old propagandised data.

- It all depends upon what kind of doctrine you follow. Airforces traditionally are supposed to attack the enemy surface, aerial assets and defend your airspace. Having an assymetric doctrine our need for attacking the enemy through aircrafts is getting reduced with time. We now have a force of CM, ~HGV/MARV-MRBMs and worlds third largest fleet of loitering and MALE UCAVs for carrying out the attack task. The moment conflict starts IRGC will fire barrages of Missiles at forward FAB's bases of enemy (KSA+UAE+Kuwait+Israel and possibly against Turkey) countries to destroy their aerial fleets at ground. Whatever will be left will be the IADS (integrated air defence) and IRIAF's task to defend the airspace from. So the focus is on developing that A2A capable platforms that can integrate through datalink with the GWACs network on ground, Ambush Short range and long range SAMS. This system is something that got demonstrated recently and centered at Khatamal Anbiya base, thanks to Farzad Esmaeli.

To create such a force with strong interception capabilities you need fighters with following characterstics:


-Low RCS to make it harder for the enemy to get a track and force them to come closer for SAMs.
-Long-range radars with look up and look down/SAR capability. They also need to have ECM controls to save themselves from Jamming
-Avionics package of RWR/MAWS slaved chaff/flares, ECM Jammers
-Datalinking with other fighters, UCAVs, Air-defence network
-Longest possible ranged BVR missiles and all aspect WVR missiles
-Good to High maneuverability for putting up a fight with intruders
-Economical to operate/maintain with a large repository of spare parts.
- Low cost to bulk up numbers in case conflict gets elongated (Iran-Iraq war experience)

SU-35S or any Flanker like SU-27SM, or SU-30SM have the following characteristics.

-10-15 m2 RCS
-IRBIS-E PESA radar that tracks fighters at 100 m2
-Avionics package of RWR/MAWS slaved chaff/flares, ECM Jammers
-No Data linking
-100 KM bearing BVR missiles
-Super maneuverability, Multiaxis FBW
-Heavy maintenance with no infrastructure inside Iran
-Extremely costly at 85 million USD. What if enemy missile strike+Crashes takes out 10-15 of them during initial phase of conflict then you are left with 20-25 fighters.

Let's compare two platforms or options for IRIAF in the same framework,

MIG-29M2/MIG-35

- ~5 m2 RCS
- Zhuk-ME tracks fighter sized target at ~100 KM, Option for Zhuk AESA exists.
-Avionics package of RWR/MAWS slaved chaff/flares, ECM Jammers
-No Data linking
-100 KM bearing BVR missiles, Allaspect WVR
-Good maneuverability, Multiaxis FBW
-Infrastructure inside Iran
-Costs around 25-40 million USD. IRIAF already operates 23 airframes so an additional force of 50-55 will give a very sound boost to interception options.

Kowsar-I

- 1-3 m2 RCS
-IEI Bayyenat-II locally produced Grifo-346 tracks fighter sized target at 93 KM, has SAR, and ECCM control.
-Avionics package of RWR/MAWS slaved chaff/flares, ECM Jammers
-Data linking with UCAVS, Fighters, IADS
-Can integrate BVR, Allaspect WVR
-Good maneuverability, Customized FBW
-Local production and maintainance infrastructure from scratch exists inside Iran
-Costs 10 million USD. There will be 60-70 fighters.

Kowsar-I (Hypothetical radar and engine upgrade)

- 1-3 m2 RCS
-IEI Bayyenat-III locally produced Grifo-E equivalent AESA radar. Cant be jammed easily and tracks a fighter-sized target at 140 KM, with ECCM control.
-Avionics package of RWR/MAWS slaved chaff/flares, ECM/ECCM Jammers
-Data linking with UCAVs, Fighters, IADS
-PL-15/R-77 BVR, Allaspect WVR
-modern Turbofan with high maneuverability, multiaxis FBW
-Local production and maintenance infrastructure from scratch exists in Iran
-Costs 16-18 million USD.

So alternative to spending 5 billion on a token force of 40 SU-35S, IRIAF can get the following from Russia for 5 Billion USD:

- 23 MIG-29 of IRIAF MLued, upgraded to MIG-29SMT standard
- 50 MIG-29M2 airframes
- 300 R-77-1 + 300 R-74 for MIG and Kowsar fleet
- 200 RD-33M Turbofans for Kowsar-II

+ Sign (just sign) the future TOT of any fifth-generation fighter.

 

[jauk]

Pilots safe. SU-22 crash land in Shiraz.