A license production deal with India could give the Indian Defense Ministry full access to the Su-57’s inner workings.
India may be next in line to procure one of the few fifth-generation fighter platforms in service today. While New Delhi is reportedly not seeking to purchase the American-made F-35 Lightning II series, the possibility of a Su-57 deal could be on the table. According to the Russian state-owned United Aircraft Corporation, a license production deal with India could give the Indian Defense Ministry full access to the platform’s inner workings. If true, this arrangement would give New Delhi unprecedented access to the Su-57’s source code. While nothing has been confirmed to date, the Indian Defense Ministry has reportedly indicated interest in the Russian platform for over a decade. More recently, the Su-57 made its debut appearance at the Air India 2024 aerospace exhibition in February.
An Overview of the Su-57
Like many of the military systems in use by Russia today, the Su-57 is derived in part from the Cold War. The Soviets first outlined the requirement for a next-generation fighter series in the late 1970s in order to find suitable replacements for its then-aging MiG-29 and Su-27 platforms. The resulting I-90 program showed promise in satisfying this need, but the collapse of the USSR ultimately led to the cancellation of this effort. Nearly a decade later, Russia revived its next-gen fighter effort through its PAK FA program. India briefly joined this effort but withdrew completely in 2018 after stating that the proposed jet was not stealthy enough to compete with its foreign counterparts.
Designed by NATO as the Felon, the Su-57 is certainly a step up from its Soviet-originated predecessors. In terms of power, the Su-57 was originally equipped with two Saturn/Rybinsk AL-31F1 after-burning turbofan engines which were able to produce a thrust rating of nearly 19,850 pounds each. Down the line, the Izdeliye 30 was incorporated, generating an even greater amount of thrust. While this engine is superior, it may not actually be equipped on every Felon. According to a RAND Corporation report, a majority of the Felon’s operational models will never fly with the intended engine. The same report also notes that, “Aside from the advanced engine, the Su-57 is touted as having an all azimuth, a.k.a. 360-degree sensing capacity similar to the F-35. After all, what makes a fifth-generation fighter bomber is not just its low observable (LO) features but also the advanced all azimuth sensor suite. At the present time, only the F-35 has both of these features and is in mass production.”
In terms of firepower, the Su-57 can also pack a greater punch than previous Russian fighters. Featuring two side bays that store short-range air-to-air missiles, and two internal weapons bays mounted between the engines, the Su-57 does have significant means to carry advanced weapons. As detailed by Military Watch Magazine, the Felon’s most basic armament is the 9A1-4071K 30mm autocannon. In terms of missiles, the Felon can lug the K-74M2 short-range missile, the K-77M long-range missile, the R-37M long-range missile and a complement of guided, cluster, and penetrator bombs.
About the Author: Maya Carlin
Maya Carlin, National Security Writer with The National Interest, is an analyst with the Center for Security Policy and a former Anna Sobol Levy Fellow at IDC Herzliya in Israel. She has by-lines in many publications, including The National Interest, Jerusalem Post, and Times of Israel. You can follow her on Twitter: @MayaCarlin. Carlin has over 1,000 articles published over the last several years on various defense issues.
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