Su-35 Jets Delivery to Russian AF Completed, Upgraded Version on Anvil

The last three Su-35S fighter jets were delivered to the Russian Aerospace Forces (RuAF) recently as part of a five-year contract for 50 such aircraft, the Russian Ministry of Defence announced today.

"Specialists of the 485th military office of the Russian Defense Ministry accepted three Su-35S multirole fighter jets of the 4++ generation. The planes have been redeployed from the plant in Komsomolsk-on-Amur to bases of the Russian Aerospace Forces," the ministry said on its website.

The next order for the Su-35 jets, expected to be signed by this year end, could see important upgrades to the aircraft including engine, radar and electronics.

 “The major changes you could see in a future version of the Su-35 include an upgraded engine, possibly a derivative of the so-called ‘Second Stage’ engine of the Su-57 stealth jet. An upgrade to the IRBIS passive phased-array radar, electronic countermeasures and a fire control system to accommodate some of the new weapons is also on anvil,” according to a source familiar with Russian aircraft industry.

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu announced in August 2020 that the RuAF will sign a new contract worth 70 billion rubles ($927 million) for the supply of an additional batch of Su-35 fighter jets. "By the end of the year, we plan to conclude an additional state contract for the supply of multifunctional Su-35S aircraft. The contract will amount to 70 billion rubles," Shoigu said in Komsomolsk-on-Amur at a meeting with representatives of the Sukhoi plant which manufactures the Su-35 and Su-57 jets.

The need to upgrade the Su-35 arises from the development of the Su-30SM2 aircraft. The modernized version of the Su-30SM will be shoe-horned with the AL-41-1S engine from the Su-35 as well as its IRBIS-E radar. The Su-30SM2 upgrade is expected to be a good candidate for Su-30 customers such as India, Malaysia, Indonesia and several others.

The industry source told defenseworld.net that the upgraded Su-35 could be benchmarked against the United States’ F-15EX as a heavy fighter jet capable of carrying much heavier ordnance load than the Su-57 in less-defended battle-spaces. “For this, a more powerful engine and active phased array radar is a must,” he said.

Russia has invested a lot in the radar and the new engine (also called Article 30 engine) of the Su-57 and may want to exploit them in other aircraft as well to achieve economies of scale. Currently, an upgrade to Su-35 will fit this bill, he said.

The Su-57’s N036 Byelka radar system with five AESA arrays, 3 X-band and 2 L-band is an interesting concept.  The antennae are mounted in the nose and sides of the fuselage besides the wings to give the aircraft a 360 degrees coverage. The N036 will be the first AESA radar mounted on a Russian fighter. The Su-35 could use a modified version of the same radar to achieve superior detecting and tracking ability as compared to the current IRBIS-E radar.