by Kris Osborn, Warrior
Despite years of hype and Russian media accounts of ambitious production plans and technological attributes, the 5th-generation Su-57 stealth aircraft seems to be withering and plans for its future are dissolving into a mist of uncertainty and potential irrelevance. For many years the Russian press cited a contract to build as many as 76 new Su-57s, yet production delays, supply chain challenges and poor manufacturing has yielded less than 25 of the jets. An interesting essay in National Security Journal suggests that perhaps Russia may now build Su-57s in India, yet such an effort would be unlikely to close Russia’s 5th-generation numbers deficit compared with NATO and the West.
The aircraft has been described as having breakthrough stealth, F-35-like sensing and a US-Air Force-like ability to operate “loyal wingman” drones through manned-unmanned teaming. These claims seem subject to debate, scrutiny and substantial uncertainty at very least. However, regardless of the jet’s performance parameters, the Russian Air Force suffers acutely from a numbers deficit. The US Air Force, Navy and Marines now collectively operate more than 650 F-35s, according to a Government Accountability Office in 2024. Consequently Russia would have little to no opportunity to rival US 5th-generation stealth air power. As Sun Tzu famously explained centuries ago …..“mass matters”....and any kind of large scale Russian-NATO air engagement would overwhelmingly favor the West in the air.
The Su-57 can reportedly reach speeds of Mach 2 and, also similar to the F-22, operate with supercruise technology, meaning the ability to sustain supersonic speeds without needing afterburners. Information from “Aviation News” years ago reports that the Su-57 is engineered with 12 weapons hardpoints, including six internal and six external. The data also lists a long arsenal of weapons to include anti-ship missiles, air-to-air and air-to-surface missiles and guided bombs.
Stealthy Russia’s Su-57?
Many attributes of stealth are not visible to the eye per se, especially when it comes to internally buried engines, thermal management, or radar-absorbent coating materials, yet the Su-57 simply does not look as stealthy as an F-35. It looks like the Su-57 has an internal weapons bay, and appears to have an F-22-like dual engine configuration. It looks a little less rounded, blended, and smoothed over when compared to the F-35. That being said, the shape of the Su-57 is indeed stealthy as it does appear to blend wing and body and operate with horizontal structures. The Su-57’s Mach 2 speed is not as fast as a U.S. fifth-generation F-22 which is reported to be able to reach Mach 2.25.
The twin-engine stealth fighter, intended to rival the U.S. F-22, does exhibit a blended wing-body stealth configuration absent radar-detectable hard-edges, contours or protrusions. The aircraft does appear stealthy to the naked eye, however both of its engine exhaust tubes appear to protrude somewhat, presenting shapes or configurations potentially seen by advanced radar technologies. Also, perhaps of greater significance, the apparent size of the heat exhaust might seem to raise questions about its heat signature.
Despite this seemingly apparent limitation or thermal management deficit, Russia’s Sputnik news praised the Su-57s thermal signature years ago, explaining that the Su-57 does fly with a reduced thermal signature. Sputnik news cited reduced heat signature as one of several Su-57 technical advantages in a 2010 report, earlier in the aircraft’s developmental process. The report cites a Sukhoi developer saying the use of composite materials, advanced aerodynamics and lower heat signature decreases its ability to be detected by optical, infrared or RF detection.
Russia has also in recent years been working to network its S-70 Okhotnik-B drone with the Su-57 in a potential effort to match or parallel U.S. manned-unmanned teaming initiatives. While details may not be known, it appears at least in a cursory fashion that Russia has been well behind what continues to be a well-evolved US effort. The US Air Force successfully demonstrated an ability to connect its Valkyrie drone with an F-22 and F-35 years ago and is now flying Collaborative Combat Aircraft drones to support the F-35, F-22 and 6th-Gen F-47. Russia’s Okhotnik-B stealthy drone appears to present a significant threat, yet the extent to which it can effectively network with Russian 5th-generation aircraft remains unclear.
Kris Osborn is the President of Warrior Maven – Center for Military Modernization. Osborn previously served at the Pentagon as a highly qualified expert in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army—Acquisition, Logistics & Technology. Osborn has also worked as an anchor and on-air military specialist at national TV networks. He has appeared as a guest military expert on Fox News, MSNBC, The Military Channel, and The History Channel. He also has a Masters Degree in Comparative Literature from Columbia University