Russia continues to negotiate delivery of Su-57 PAK FA fighter to India.

Russia continues to negotiate the delivery of fifth-generation Su-57 PAK FA fighter jets to India but supplying the aircraft to the Russian Air Force remains a priority.

Su57 PAK FA Future Air Complex for Tactical Air Forces fifth-generation fighter jet at MAKS Moscow Air Show, July 2019. (Picture source Vitaly Kuzmin)

Russia offers India to resume its participation in a joint program on developing the fifth-generation fighter jet, Deputy Director of Russia’s Federal Service for Military and Technical Cooperation Vladimir Drozhzhov told reporters on Tuesday, July 9, 2019.

The Su-57 called the PAK FA [Future Air Complex for Tactical Air Forces, factory code name T-50] is Russia’s fifth-generation multirole fighter. The aircraft is designed for destroying all types of air targets, land-based and waterborne assets, monitoring the airspace far from the basement, taking out headquarters, command posts, and control systems of the enemy.

The SU-57 PAK FA can use a variety of both guided and unguided weapons, including short-, medium- and long-range air-to-air missiles, different families of guided air-to-surface missiles, and 250, 500 and 1500 kg guided air bombs (the latter from external suspension). The maximum combat weight of the aircraft is 10 tons. The radar signature is reduced by the shape of the craft and the use of reflecting and radar absorbing materials in the frame and coating as well as by employment of EW systems.

In addition, in order to reduce the radar signature, part of weapons were placed in the aircraft internal sections. Thanks to such measures, the reflected signal is significantly weakened and directed away from the source. As a result, the enemy radar does not receive information about the aircraft position and speed. The optical signature is reduced by a digital ("pixel") camouflage coloring of the airframe.

The experimental T-50 aircraft powered by the first stage engines (product 117) made its first flight in January 2010. Taking part in the PAK FA flight tests were ten flying vehicles of this type. The first flight of the T-50 powered by the second stage engines (product 30) took place in December 2017. In February 2018, two T-50 fighters underwent operational tests in Syria, where advanced operational cruise missiles were launched from onboard the aircraft.