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Russia's Su-57 'stealth' fighter may never see real combat as delays hit and only 1 jet works proper

A.P. Richelieu

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https://amp.businessinsider.com/rus...d-in-the-water-with-only-1-working-jet-2019-1

Russia's Su-57 'stealth' fighter may never see real combat as delays hit and only 1 jet works properly
upload_2019-1-30_23-53-10.jpeg

Russian President Vladimir Putin walks away from an Su-57 prototype without smiling.
Associated Press

  • Russia launched the Su-57 fighter jet to hunt and kill US F-35s and F-22s and to export to other countries at a fraction of the cost of US fighters.
  • But so far, Russia has only built one Su-57 with the correct engine, and it could be 2025 before we see just a handful more.
  • Russia said it will not put the Su-57 into mass production at a time where the US has cranked out more than 500 stealth fighters and put them into combat.
  • The Su-57 has failed as anything other than a learning experience for Russia, but Russia has other weapons that can likely down US stealth fighters.
Russia's troubled Su-57 "stealth" fighter jet was meant to work as a hunter-killer against US F-35s and F-22s that Moscow could sell around the world, but the program has died an embarrassing death with only one aircraft working as it should.

Russia has just 10 Su-57s today, compared to more than 360 F-35s delivered to the US and partner countries and more than 170 F-22s, and of those jets, only one has the advanced engines meant to power the fifth-generation fighters, The Diplomat's Franz-Stefan Gady reports.

The Su-57, of which Russia said it would have 12 of by the end of 2018, recently had its production delayed, with an order of 13 of the jets, not all of which will have the right engines, pushed back to 2020 and due to for completion within five years, according to The Diplomat.

Read more: Close-up photos of Russia's new 'stealth' jet reveal its true purpose - and it's a big threat to the US

In short, the Su-57 is not a production aircraft. In its small numbers, it's unlikely to have any meaningful impact on actual warfare.

At best, the Su-57 can serve as a test bed for an innovative array of radars and sensors Russia may likely try to incorporate on older airframes.

Additionally, the Su-57 can help Russia gain experience and understanding in manufacturing stealth aircraft, though the plane itself ultimately falls far short of meaningful stealth.

To date, only the US and China have built true low-observable aircraft.

The Su-57 will not see mass production, Russia announced in 2018, and it can't carry its most formidable weapons without mounting them under the wings, thereby destroying its only hope of radar evasion.

Russia still has a fleet of exceptionally capable fourth-generation fighters and world-class air defenses that pose a serious challenge to even the US's best fighter jets, but as for fielding a fifth-generation fighter of its own, Russia has outright failed.

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SU-57 is a tech demonstrator as Russia did not have the money to go for a full 5th generation fighter.
Rightly a Russia that was massively conventionally behind Nato spent the last 20 years spending it's meagre resources on SAM systems, SSNs, SSBNs and ICBMs.

I think from here, the Russians are likely to use the tech developed to jump straight to a 6th gen fighter ready for mass production in the 2030s.

@ptldM3 : Honestly do you at least not partly agree with this?
 
countries that depend on importing Russian combat aircraft ought to be concerned
 
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SU-57 is a tech demonstrator as Russia did not have the money to go for a full 5th generation fighter.
Rightly a Russia that was massively conventionally behind Nato spent the last 20 years spending it's meagre resources on SAM systems, SSNs, SSBNs and ICBMs.

I think from here, the Russians are likely to use the tech developed to jump straight to a 6th gen fighter ready for mass production in the 2030s.

@ptldM3 : Honestly do you at least not partly agree with this?




No all of what you said was wrong. It was never a tech demonstrator, the SU-47 was. No such thing as "full" fifth generation, the SU-57 has a lot of unique technology not found on other aircraft, so money and added capabilities are not an issue. If Russia was strapped for cash then I don't know where they keep finding the cash for new projects and purchases which total in the hundreds of billions.

Russia has the heavy Okhotnik drone that is believed to work in conjunction with the SU-57 as one unit-- as in both will communicate with each other as the Okhotnik will provide advanced recon and strike targets so as to pave the way in airspace too dangerous for manned fighters. Nothing of the sort exists anywhere else so again the notion that the SU-57 is not full "fifth generation" or that Russia lacks funds is utter nonsense.

The people that write these article are idiots. Plain and simple.
 
No all of what you said was wrong. It was never a tech demonstrator, the SU-47 was. No such thing as "full" fifth generation, the SU-57 has a lot of unique technology not found on other aircraft, so money and added capabilities are not an issue. If Russia was strapped for cash then I don't know where they keep finding the cash for new projects and purchases which total in the hundreds of billions.

Russia has the heavy Okhotnik drone that is believed to work in conjunction with the SU-57 as one unit-- as in both will communicate with each other as the Okhotnik will provide advanced recon and strike targets so as to pave the way in airspace too dangerous for manned fighters. Nothing of the sort exists anywhere else so again the notion that the SU-57 is not full "fifth generation" or that Russia lacks funds is utter nonsense.

The people that write these article are idiots. Plain and simple.

Every other day Americans write an article Su-57 will never see the light of day. Sour losers.
 
No all of what you said was wrong. It was never a tech demonstrator, the SU-47 was. No such thing as "full" fifth generation, the SU-57 has a lot of unique technology not found on other aircraft, so money and added capabilities are not an issue. If Russia was strapped for cash then I don't know where they keep finding the cash for new projects and purchases which total in the hundreds of billions.

Russia has the heavy Okhotnik drone that is believed to work in conjunction with the SU-57 as one unit-- as in both will communicate with each other as the Okhotnik will provide advanced recon and strike targets so as to pave the way in airspace too dangerous for manned fighters. Nothing of the sort exists anywhere else so again the notion that the SU-57 is not full "fifth generation" or that Russia lacks funds is utter nonsense.

The people that write these article are idiots. Plain and simple.

Like I say Russia spent it's relatively scarce resources on other areas. It is not rich enough to spend money on all areas.
Let us see just how many SU-57 are built - my guess is that it will be in the 10s while a full program is launched for 6th gen fighter to come online in 2030s.
 
Like I say Russia spent it's relatively scarce resources on other areas. It is not rich enough to spend money on all areas.
Let us see just how many SU-57 are built - my guess is that it will be in the 10s while a full program is launched for 6th gen fighter to come online in 2030s.

60 Su-57 is more than enough. Britain only built 6 Type 45 to replace 12 Type 42.
 
60 Su-57 is more than enough. Britain only built 6 Type 45 to replace 12 Type 42.


UK was going to build 12 Type-45 destroyers but decided to cut them down to 6 in order to pay for the two large aircraft carriers.

60 sounds like a good number as then Russia would have the best 4th generation fighter that can outclass anything bar the stealth jets from US and China.
 
UK was going to build 12 Type-45 destroyers but decided to cut then down to 6 in order to pay for the two large aircraft carriers.

60 sounds like a good number as then Russia would have the best 4th generation fighter that can outclass anything bar the stealth jets from US and China.

Su-57 is better than F-22. Let me ask you. How many radars does F-22 have? How many radars does Su-57 have? How many?
 
Su-57 is better than F-22. Let me ask you. How many radars does F-22 have? How many radars does Su-57 have?


SU-57 will be seen by F-22 radar way before the other way round. SU-57 would have to survive multiple BVR shots before it can fight back - result is dead SU-57.
 
SU-57 will be seen by F-22 radar way before the other way round. SU-57 would have to survive multiple BVR shots before it can fight back - result is dead SU-57.

BS. Russia and America will never have a war, not with each other. Whether F-22 can see Su-57 first is debatable and will never be proven.
 
BS. Russia and America will never have a war, not with each other. Whether F-22 can see Su-57 first is debatable and will never be proven.


SU-57 is LO and F-22 is VLO. This has been admitted by Russia.

I say that Su-57 is a little better than the Euro-fighter and Rafale but not by much.
 

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