Even after more than 100 days of the war,
Russia has not been able to gain complete air superiority.
Ukraine is still able to take out Russian aircraft.
For example, on June 12, 2022, the anti-aircraft missile units of the Air Force of the Armed Forces
of Ukraine hit Russia’s Su-34 fighter-bomber aircraft near Izium, Kharkiv Region
Russian operation would have been much easier if the country had total control of the skies.
This situation calls for the deployment of Russia's most lethal fighter jet,
but it has not happened.
In this video, Defense Updates analyses why Russia has not deployed the Su-57 fighter jet in Ukraine?
Let's get started.
The Sukhoi Su-57 is the 5th generation, stealthy, single-seat, twin-engine jet
multirole fighter aircraft designed for air superiority and ground attack operations.
It is the successor of Su 35 and Russia’s answer to American F 35 Lightning II and F 22 Raptor.
Its prototype first flew on 29 January 2010 and it has seen limited operational deployment in Syria.
But all is not well with the program and there is no serial production as of now.
The program is actually delayed by a decade from the initial timeline.
Russia is upgrading its strategic assets like ICBMs and Su 57 is not the priority.
In February 2017, Deputy Defense Minister Borisov himself acknowledged that the required funding for
serial production of Su- 57 might only start coming in the 2018-2025 State Armament Plan.
Russia only has about a dozen of these operational now
which is not enough to make a meaningful impact.
Su-57 still has a long way to go when it comes to achieving combat readiness.
For example, powerful and reliable engine is needed.
Initially, the Saturn AL-41F turbofan engine was chosen but later it was clear that it is
simply not powerful enough for the purpose.
In December 2017, for the first time, a Su-57 flew
with a new engine , the Saturn Izdeliye 30 meaning Product 30 which is more powerful.
Saturn the manufacturer of the engine claimed that the Izdeliye 30 would be ready for serial
production by 2019 but it has not worked out and its introduction may take a few years more.
5th generation fighters do need a lot of testing since almost all major components
need to be custom designed. Mission systems, sensor fusion,
software, low observable structures, and systems integration are all complex engineering works.
Interestingly, the fighter jet was rejected by India for technical shortcomings
like unconvincing stealth characteristics.
India was looking for a customized variant of Su 57 for its air force and had put in significant
funding. The country wanted to acquire around 150 jets but backed out eventually.
Weapons export is a key avenue for getting foreign inflow for Russia.
Russia accounts for nearly 19% of worldwide weapons shipments. However,
according to the latest Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) report
titled, ‘Trends in International Arms Transfers’, Russian arms export fell by 26% between 2012 and
2016 followed by a steep fall in its global share from 24% to 19% between 2017 and 2021.
The Ukrainians have been using the different types of soviet origin medium range Air
Defense systems like S-300 and several kinds of western MANPADS like Stinger and StarStreak
If the Ukrainians destroy even one or two Su-57s,
it will disaster for Russia and this is not impossible.
For instance, the Su-35S which is relatively new,
having been introduced into service only in 2014 has been shot down in Ukraine.
It wasn't in service 14 years ago during the Georgia War in which Russia suffered
some unexpected aerial losses and it was expected that such a new frontline fighter
would incorporate the learnings and be able to counter Soviet-era air defense systems in Ukraine.
But it is clear that it is not the case.
Viewers may note that 3 countries - Egypt, Indonesia, and Algeria have already rejected
Su-35S due to technological problems.
To know more about that, check the video on the above card.
The potential downing of the Su-57 could be a hammer blow for the Russian aircraft
export ambitions and hence Russia is protecting it by not sending it to war.
The Su-57 has two tandem main internal weapon bays each approximately 4.4 m
(14.4 ft) long and 0.9 m (3.0 ft) wide and two side weapon
bays with triangular section fairings under the fuselage near the wing root.
Su-57 is supposed to be equipped with next-generation weapons.
For example, the K-MD (izdeliye 300) will is expected to replace the R-74M2
for short to medium-range air-to-air combat whereas the izdeliye 810 missile which is an
upgrade of R-37M is deemed to take on longer-range strikes.
But all these weapons are still under development.
What's more, Russia seems to be running out of PGM or Precision Guided Munition
like 250 kg (550 lb) KAB-250 and 500 kg (1,100 lb) KAB-500 precision-guided bombs.
Hitting a target with dumb bombs which have no guidance requires coming in low
and this exposes the aircraft to threats and reduces its mission efficiency.
This is not the way a 5th generation fighter is supposed to wage war, especially against
an adversary which has shown the ability to take down aircraft on many occasions.
So, even if the fighter was ready the supporting assets are not currently in place.