Egypt will receive its first Sukhoi Su-35 fighter aircraft from Russia.

According to information released by the Memo Middle East Monitor, on July 28, 2020, Egypt will receive its first Sukhoi Su-35 fighter aircraft from Russia. In March 2019, it was reported that Egypt would procure two dozen of Sukhoi Su-35 fighter aircraft from Russia in a deal valued about $US2 billion, finalized in late 2018. Deliveries were expected to begin as early as 2020 or 2021. Deputy head of the Rosoboronexport Sergei Kornev denied the signing of any contract to supply Su-35s to Egypt.

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Russian Air Force Sukhoi Su-35 at MAKS AirShow near Moscow, Russia. (Picture source Vitaly Kuzmin)

In May 2020, it was announced that Russia has started production of Su-35 fighter aircraft for Egypt. The Russian Press Agency TASS has published information on May 16, 2020, that Russia has launched the production of its advanced Su-35 fighter jets under a contract with Egypt. "The Gagarin Aircraft Plant in Komsomolsk-on-Amur has launched the production of Su-35, intended to be delivered to the Egyptian Air Force under the contract signed in 2018," a Russian military source said.

Russia’s Kommersant daily reported in March 2019 that Egypt had decided to purchase several Russian-made Su-35 fighter jets for about $2 billion. The signing of the deal has never been confirmed by official sources.

The Su-35, NATO reporting name Flanker-E is a single-seat, twin-engine fighter aircraft designed by the Sukhoi Design Bureau and built by the Komsomolsk-on-Amur Aircraft Plant. The first prototype made its maiden flight in June 1988 and the first Su-35 was delivered to the Russian Air Force in 2009. China's People's Liberation Army Air Force and the Indonesian Air Force have also placed orders.

The Sukhoi Su-35S carries a 30mm cannon, has 12 hardpoints and can detect targets at more than 400 kilometers, while its radar can track up to 30 targets simultaneously. The fighter has a maximum flying range of 3,500 kilometers without refueling. The world’s most powerful Fourth-Generation fighter’s standout features include new engines, avionics and radar.

Avionics and other equipment are integrated into a single cohesive system by an information processing and control system, which comprises two digital CPUs, interface and data conversion systems, and a head-up display (HUD) implementing the glass cockpit concept.

The Su-35 has two MFI-35 large color multi-functional LCDs, a multi-functional panel with an integrated display processor, a wide-angle collimated head-up display superimposed over the windscreen and a control panel in the cockpit.

The state-of-the-art system enables Sukhoi Su-35S to detect quickly and track simultaneously up to four ground targets or up to 30 airborne targets, as well as engaging up to eight airborne targets at the same time. Besides, the radar control system has the friend-or-foe identification capability for aerial and maritime objects, is capable of identifying the class and type of airborne targets and take aerial photos of the ground.

The Su-35 can fly at a maximum speed of 2,390 km/h at a maximum altitude of 18,000m. The Su-35 weighs around 18,400 kg and the maximum take-off weight is 34,500 kg.