Turkey has stated that it is no longer planning to purchase
Russian-made Su-57 and Su-35 fighter aircraft.
The country is looking to replace its aging fleet of F16s, especially the older Block 30 models.
The Su-57 and Su-35 fighters were initially thought to be strong contenders
for the Turkish Air Force’s key role in the future
after it was ejected from the F-35 program for buying Russian S-400 air defense systems.
Ankara has now expressed interest in the Eurofighter Typhoon fighter jets instead,
according to Russian journalists who have knowledge of the topic.
This will undoubtedly be very bad news for Moscow.
While Ankara has been tightlipped, there are clear pointers.
In this video Defense Updates analyzes why Turkey has rejected Russian
Su-35 and Su-57 ? Let's get started.
The Sukhoi Su-35 is the top Russian air superiority fighter in service today
and represents the pinnacle of fourth-generation jet fighter design. It will remain so until Russia
succeeds in bringing its fifth-generation Su-57 stealth fighter into serial production.
Apart from being operational in the Russian Air Force, Su-35 has been exported to China and Egypt.
While it was expected that Su-35 would be lapped up by foreign buyers,
things have not gone as expected.
Egypt has backed out from the plan to acquire more after the initial order
whereas Indonesia and Algeria have rejected the jet outright after initial assessment.
In May 2019, as Turkish participation in the F-35 program was in doubt
due to Turkey's procurement of the S-400 missile system, CEO of Rostec Sergey Chemezov said that
Russia was ready to cooperate with Turkey on the export and local production of the Su-57.
On 14 September 2019, a Su-57 took part in the 2019 Technofest festival held in Istanbul.
But the fighter is still not in serial production
and may be combat-ready only by the end of this decade.
The Su-35 fighter aircraft is equipped with Irbis-E also known as Snow Leopard
which is a multi-mode, hybrid passive electronically scanned array radar system
developed by Tikhomirov NIIP specifically from the N011M Bars radar system.
A passive electronically scanned array or PESA such as Irbis-E has some limitations.
While beam of radio waves can be electronically steered to
point in different directions, all the antenna elements are connected to a single transmitter,
hence can only emit a single beam of radio waves at a single frequency at a time.
The AESA on the other hand can radiate multiple beams of radio waves at multiple
frequencies simultaneously and brings back more valuable information to its user.
They are also harder to jam.
Most frontline western fighters F-35, F-22,
Dassault Rafale, and Eurofighter Typhoon have AESA radar.
While Su-57 is expected to feature AESA radar its real-life capabilities are unclear
since the jet is still not combat tested and it will be the first such radar from Russia.
The Su-35 is relatively new, less than 10 years old having
been introduced into service only in 2014. It wasn't in service 14 years ago during the
Georgia War and it is expected that such a new frontline fighter would incorporate the learnings
and be able to counter at least the Soviet-era air defense systems.
But it is evident that it is not the case as Su-35 has been taken out in Ukraine.
It can be safely predicted that if the Russian fighter faces a modern western SAM system designed
from the ground up to counter Russian aircraft, the situation would be much more disastrous.
The Self Defense Suit in Su-35 which includes the Khibiny Electronic Countermeasures System
needs significant work. The West tends to invest heavily
in sophisticated protection systems for its fighters.
For example, the French Rafale features an integrated defensive-aids system named SPECTRA,
which protects the aircraft against airborne and ground threats. Various methods of detection,
jamming, and decoying have been incorporated. It is to be noted that 30% of the cost of the
entire aircraft has been devoted to radar and self-protection equipment.
Su-57 is expected to do better since it will have Directional Infrared Counter Measures (DIRCM)
for protection against IR missiles as well as many other features,
but to what extent it will be effective is a matter of debate given the poor track record.
All the countries including Turkey that have rejected the Su-35
on technical grounds must have also taken into consideration the impact of sanctions.
Firstly, these countries may face trouble from CAATSA or Countering America's Adversaries
Through Sanctions Act which is a United States federal law that imposed sanctions on Iran,
North Korea, and Russia. Nation buying major military
platforms from Russia could in turn face financial restrictions
Secondly, with new sanctions that were imposed after Russia invaded Ukraine,
the ability of Russia to execute the orders has come under scrutiny.
Many Russian platforms down in Ukraine have been found to be using western microprocessors
commonly known as Chips which will no longer be available to them.
As per reports, Ukrainian specialists found eight microchips from U.S. manufacturers like Intel,
Micrel, Micron Technology and Atmel Corp.
in its communications systems Barnaul-T air defense command post vehicle.
Coming to the Russia’s twin-seat, all-weather attack helicopter, the Ukrainian experts found
22 US-made chips and one Korean-made chip in its turreted electro-optical system.
So, it is evident that Russia is not fully self sufficient
and sanction could have a major impact on deliveries.