The Sukhoi Su-27 is a Soviet-origin twin-engine supermaneuverable fighter aircraft designed by Sukhoi. It was intended as a direct competitor for the large US fourth-generation jet fighters such as the Grumman F-14 Tomcat and McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle, with 3,530-kilometre (1,910 nmi) range, heavy aircraft ordnance, sophisticated avionics and high maneuverability. The Su-27 was designed for air superiority missions, and subsequent variants are able to perform almost all aerial warfare operations. It was designed with the Mikoyan MiG-29 as its complement.
An interceptor aircraft, or simply interceptor, is a type of fighter aircraft designed specifically for the defensive interception role against an attacking enemy aircraft, particularly bombers and reconnaissance aircraft. Aircraft that are capable of being or are employed as both ‘standard’ air superiority fighters and as interceptors are sometimes known as fighter-interceptors. There are two general classes of interceptor: light fighters, designed for high performance over short range; and heavy fighters, which are intended to operate over longer ranges, in contested airspace and adverse meteorological conditions. While the second type was exemplified historically by specialized night fighter and all-weather interceptor designs, the integration of mid-air refueling, satellite navigation, on-board radar and beyond visual range (BVR) missile systems since the 1960s has allowed most frontline fighter designs to fill the roles once reserved for specialised night/all-weather fighters.
The Mikoyan MiG-29 is a twin-engine fighter aircraft designed in the Soviet Union. Developed by the Mikoyan design bureau as an air superiority fighter during the 1970s, the MiG-29, along with the larger Sukhoi Su-27, was developed to counter new U.S. fighters such as the McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle and the General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon. The MiG-29 entered service with the Soviet Air Forces in 1982.
The Sukhoi Su-33 is an all-weather carrier-based twin-engine air superiority fighter designed by Sukhoi and manufactured by Komsomolsk-on-Amur Aircraft Production Association, derived from the Su-27 and initially known as the Su-27K. Compared with the Su-27, the Su-33 has a strengthened undercarriage and structure, folding wings and stabilators, all for carrier operations. The Su-33 has canards, and its wings are larger than the Su-27 for a slower stall speed. The Su-33 has upgraded engines and a twin nose wheel, and is air refuelable.
The Mikoyan Project 1.44/1.42 was a multirole fighter technology demonstrator developed by the Mikoyan design bureau. It was designed for the Soviet Union's MFI project for the I-90 program, the answer to the U.S.'s Advanced Tactical Fighter (ATF). The MFI was to incorporate many fifth-generation jet fighter features such as supermaneuverability, supercruise, and advanced avionics, as well as some degree of radar signature reduction.
The Mikoyan MiG-29M is a Russian multirole fighter developed in 2005. It is based on unified platform together with Mikoyan MiG-29K. The predecessor of the MiG-29M was designed by Mikoyan Design Bureau in the Soviet Union during the mid-1980s and was known as "MiG-33" during the 1990s.
The Vympel NPO R-77 missile is a Russian active radar homing beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile. It is also known by its export designation RVV-AE. It is the Russian counterpart to the American AIM-120 AMRAAM missile.
A supersonic aircraft is an aircraft capable of supersonic flight, that is, flying faster than the speed of sound. Supersonic aircraft were developed in the second half of the twentieth century. Supersonic aircraft have been used for research and military purposes, but only two supersonic aircraft, the Tupolev Tu-144 and the Concorde, ever entered service for civil use as airliners. Fighter jets are the most common example of supersonic aircraft.
The Sukhoi Su-57 is a twin-engine stealth multirole fighter aircraft developed by Sukhoi. It is the product of the PAK FA programme, which was initiated in 1999 as a more modern and affordable alternative to the MFI. Sukhoi's internal designation for the aircraft is T-50. The Su-57 is the first aircraft in Russian military service designed with stealth technology and is intended to be the basis for a family of stealth combat aircraft.
The Mikoyan MiG-29K is a Russian all-weather carrier-based multirole fighter aircraft developed by the Mikoyan Design Bureau. The MiG-29K was developed in the late 1980s from the MiG-29M. Mikoyan describes it as a 4+ generation aircraft.
The PJSC United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) is a Russian aerospace and defense corporation. With a majority stake belonging to the Russian government, it consolidates Russian private and state-owned aircraft manufacturing companies and assets engaged in the manufacture, design and sale of military, civilian, transport, and unmanned aircraft. Its headquarters are in Krasnoselsky District, Central Administrative Okrug, Moscow.
The AL-41 is a designation for two different Russian military turbofan engine variants by NPO Lyulka-Saturn. The original AL-41F, development designation izdeliye 20, was a variable-bypass ratio turbofan engine, designed for supercruise flight for the MFI program, which resulted in the Mikoyan Project 1.44. It is considered by Jane's as the Russian counterpart to the General Electric YF120 engine which lost to the more conventional fixed-bypass YF119 in the Advanced Tactical Fighter engine program.
The Teen Series is a popular name for a group of American combat aircraft. The name stems from a series of American supersonic jet fighters built for the United States Air Force and the United States Navy during the late 20th century. The designations system was the 1962 United States Tri-Service aircraft designation system, which reset the F-# sequence. The term typically includes the Grumman F-14 Tomcat, McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle, General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon, and McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet.
Yakovlev Yak-50 was an early experimental turbojet interceptor aircraft designed in 1948 by the Yakovlev OKB in the USSR. The aircraft was essentially a stretched version of the Yakovlev Yak-30 (1948), with a more powerful engine and greater wing sweep. The Yak-50 is perhaps most significant as the first Yakovlev aircraft equipped with velosipednoye (bicycle) landing gear, a trademark of later Yakovlev designs. The Yak-50 designation was later reused for a propeller-driven aerobatic and trainer aircraft.
The Soviet post-PFI projects refer to several Soviet and Russian Air Force projects initiated to replace the PFI-era aircraft.
The Mikoyan LMFS Liogkiy Mnogofunktsionalniy Frontovoi Samolyet (LMFS)—or Light Multi-Function Frontline Aircraft, also known as the MiG-XX, was a proposed light Russian single-seat all-weather stealth multirole combat aircraft. The design is derived from the company’s PAK FA proposal, which was rejected in favor of Sukhoi's, along with lessons learned from the cancelled Mikoyan MiG-1.42/1.44. It was supposed to replace the Mikoyan MiG-29 and MiG-35 and be a more affordable complement to the PAK FA, which became the Sukhoi Su-57. However, by 2021, the project was no longer under development, while Sukhoi unveiled its own LTS medium-weight single-engine stealth fifth-generation fighter.
The Sukhoi S-54 was a series of three closely related aircraft proposals; the S-54 trainer aircraft, S-55 light fighter designed for export, and the S-56 carrier-capable light fighter. All members of the family resemble the Sukhoi Su-27 in general form, or the Sukhoi Su-33 more closely, but built around a single Saturn AL-31 engine instead of two, and scaled down accordingly to a smaller layout. The design was offered to several potential customers, including South Africa and India, but was turned down. Development is apparently on hold, awaiting a launch customer.
The Mikoyan MiG-35 is a Russian multirole fighter that is designed by Mikoyan, a division of the United Aircraft Corporation (UAC). Marketed as a 4++ generation jet fighter, it is a further development of the MiG-29M/M2 and MiG-29K/KUB fighters. According to a Russian defense industry source, the Mikoyan MiG-35 is essentially an upgraded variant of the MiG-29KR. Many consider MiG-35 a new name given by Mikoyan for marketing. The first prototype was a modification of the aircraft that previously served as a MiG-29M2 model demonstrator given temporary name MiG-35 but a later prototype was a different model with different equipment that served as the base for the MiG-35 as is known today. Mikoyan first officially presented the MiG-35 internationally during the 2017 Moscow air show; the first two serial production aircraft entered service in 2019.
