According to new updates, preparations have been made for the delivery
of Su-30SM version of Sukhoi fighter aircrafts to Iran in the near future.
Member of the parliamentary national security committee Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh has told
Mizan, the organ of Iran’s Judiciary, that the delivery would have significant impact
on the development of Iran’s defense industry. “The Sukhoi fighters enjoy many capabilities
that will doubtlessly push the country’s defense goals,” Mizan quoted him as saying.
Defense deals between Iran and Russia have been taken to a new level in recent years,
where Iran has undertaken a series of measures to import military equipment.
Purchase of military equipment is a necessity in today’s world and Iran is
buying several Sukhoi fighter aircrafts from Russia in accordance
with the contracts and negotiations between the sides, Falahatpisheh said.
The Su-30SM is a multirole fighter for all-weather, air-to-air and air-to-surface
deep interdiction missions. The aircraft features an autopilot ability at all flight
stages including low- or cruise altitude flight in terrain-following radar mode.
The fighter jet is capable of missions with a range of 1500 km, which increase to 3000 km with
an added fuel reserve. An aerial refueling system increases the range to 5,200 km. With a normal
fuel reserve, it can fly for almost 5.4 hours, which increases to 10 hours in cruise flights.
The fighter also features an electronic warfare system.
It can also carry up to 8 tons of advanced weapons, which includes machine gun,
various types of bombs, air-to-air missiles, as well as supersonic anti-ship missiles.
The supersonic missiles, called Onyx, are capable of a 120-300km range.
The first SM-30 Sukhoi fighters were delivered to the Russian defense ministry in 2012.
The fighter aircraft is comparable with the American F15, F16, and F18
falcons and provides for all the operational requirements in a country as vast as Iran.
With the possession of Sukhoi fighters, Iran hopes to enjoy measurable superiority in aerial combat.
In late November 2016, Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Hossein Dehghan told a large
gathering of Basij, the militia arm of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps, that
Tehran was open to negotiation with any country able to supply for the country’s defense needs,
except for the US and Israel. “The purchase of Sukhoi is on the agenda. However,
we also want to transfer the technology,” he added.
Deputy Chairman of the national security and foreign policy committee of the parliament
Abolfazl Hassan-Beigi also told Mizan that Iran pursues technical development through domestic
research and cooperation with foreign researchers to use their experiences and achievements.
Commenting on the amicable relations between Iran and Russia in recent years,
he said the Russian also see themselves in need for consultation with Iran. Saying cooperation
in nuclear, defense, and missiles programs has led to mutual trust between the two countries,
Hassan-Beigi reiterated that any aerial cooperation would benefit both sides.
Hassan-Beigi went on to say that Iran’s seeks products that could improve its military and
passenger air fleets, adding that the new purchase could have a great impact on the experiences of
Iran’s aviation experts. He noted that after Iran bought S300 defense system from Russia,
several indigenous missile systems have been improved and integrated with the Russian system.
After decades of sanctions, Iran relies primarily on outdated F14A Tomcats,
Soviet Mig-29s, F-4 Phantoms, and Chinese Chengdu J-7s.
The moderately sized air force maintains the planes
that are still operational by creating spare parts domestically and delaying
periodic upgrades that are typically common in professional military organizations. [iii]
Besides frequent issues of maintenance and serviceability,
Iran’s air force also suffers from questionable training programs.
It is hard to educate pilots about old planes that need
constant repairs or use equipment not specifically designed for that system.
There is very little, if any, consistency in the air force’s curriculum for new pilots.
The shortcomings in training and weapon maintenance listed above do
not necessarily mean that Iran is militarily weak,
but they certainly do prevent Iran from having a world-class air force.
Iranian officials like Dehghan acknowledge these issues
and are looking for ways to change the military balance of power in their favor.
If Iran decided to attack US military forces in the Middle East, for example, the US Fifth Fleet
in Bahrain would be particularly vulnerable to a stronger Iranian fixed-wing offensive capability.
Without reinforcements or stronger defense systems against jet fighters like the Su-30,
our Fifth Fleet might suffer massive casualties in a surprise attack orchestrated by Iran.