Sukhoi Su-35 Super Flanker

NATO reporting name: Flanker(?)

Country of origin: Russia

TYPE:

Single-seat all-weather counter-air fighter and ground attack aircraft.

PROGRAMME:

Experimental version of Su-27 with foreplanes (T-10-24) flew May 1985; first of six prototypes (successively T-10S-70, Su-27M, Su-35) flew 28 June 1988; another was exhibited at 1992 Farnborough Air Show; in final stages of flight testing early 1993; 11 prototype and preseries aircraft ('701' to '711') built by September 1994, of which '711' modified for thrust-vectoring experiments; first flight at Zhukovsky (with nozzles fixed) 2 April 1996; two more aircraft ordered in late 1995 may indicate start of production of service development batch by KNAAPO at Komsomolsk-on-Amur.

DESIGN FEATURES:

Advanced development of Su-27; airframe, power plant, avionics and armament all upgraded; quadruplex digital fly-by-wire controls under development by Avionika; longitudinal static instability; tandem 'triplane' layout, with foreplanes; double-slotted flaperons; taller, square-tip twin tailfins with integral fuel tanks; reprofiled front fuselage for larger-diameter radar antenna; enlarged tailcone for rearward-facing radar; twin-wheel nose landing gear; axisymmetric thrust vectoring nozzles under development for use on production aircraft (see Su-37 in Addenda). Tests with side-stick controller on starboard side of cockpit of Su-27 testbed LMK-2405 are unlikely to lead to change from conventional centre stick.

POWER PLANT:

Two Saturn/Lyulka AL-35F (AL-31FM) turbofans; each 137.3 kN (30,865 lb st) with afterburning. Retractable flight refuelling probe on port side of nose.

ACCOMMODATION:

Pilot only, on Zvezda K-36MD zero/zero ejection seat.

AVIONICS:

Radar: Phazotron N011 Zhuk 27 multimode low-altitude terrain-following/avoidance radar, search range 54 n miles (100 km; 62 miles) in forward sector, 30 n miles (55 km; 34 miles) rearward, able to track 10 targets and engage four simultaneously. Phazotron Zhuk-PH phased-array radar under development for later use, search range 89 to 132 n miles (165 to 245 km; 102 to 152 miles) in forward sector, 32 n miles (60 km; 37 miles) rearward, with simultaneous tracking of 24 air targets and ripple-fire engagement of six; N014 rearward-facing radar, range approximately 2 n miles (4 km; 2.5 miles), may enable firing of rearward-facing IR homing air-to-air missiles.

Flight: Fully automatic flight modes and armament control against ground, maritime and air targets, including automatic low-altitude flight and automatic target designation. RPKB nav system includes laser-gyro INS and Glonass GPS.

Instrumentation: EFIS, with three colour CRTs; HUD.

Mission: New-type IRST moved to starboard; small external TV pod; all combat flight phases computerised. Shown at Farnborough with GEC Ferranti TIALD (thermal imaging airborne laser designator) night/adverse visibility pod fitted for possible future use.

Self-defence: Enhanced ECM, including wingtip jammer pods; RWR.

ARMAMENT:

One 30 mm GSh-30 gun in starboard wingr00t extension, with 150 rounds. Mountings for up to 14 stores, including R-27 (AA-10 'Alamo-A/B/C/D'), R-40 (AA-6 'Acrid'), R-60 (AA-8 'Aphid'), R-73E (AA-11 'Archer') and RVV-AE (R-77; AA-12 'Adder') air-to-air missiles, Kh-25ML (AS-10 'Karen'), Kh-25MP (AS-12 'Kegler'), Kh-29T (AS-14 'Kedge'), Kh-31P (AS-17 'Krypton') and Kh-59 (AS-18 'Kaz00') air-to-surface missiles, S-25LD laser-guided rockets, S-25IRS IR-guided rockets, GBU-500L and GBU-1500L laser-guided bombs, GBU-500T and GBU-1500T TV-guided bombs, KMGU cluster weapons, KAB-500 bombs and rocket packs. Maximum weapon load 8,000 kg (17,635 lb).