Russia Could Soon Develop VTOL Stealth Jets for its Helicopter Carriers

Russian aircraft manufacturer, Yakovlev is ready to start work on a fifth generation vertical take off and landing (VTOL) fighter jet.

These jets-probably based on the Su-57 stealth jet or also the much lighter single engine Su-75 could be the aircraft of choice for basing on the  Project 23900 amphibious assault ships two of which are expected to enter service by 2028.

The company, part of the United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) has preserved technical knowledge gained from developing the world’s first VTOL fighter, the Yak-36 in 1964, an updated version, the Yak-38 that landed on the aircraft carrier, Moskva, in 1972 and the Yak-141, the world’s first supersonic VTOL aircraft in 1987.

VTOL and Short take off and vertical landing (STOL) aircraft such as the F-35B are gaining the attention of Navies since they require a small operating footprint making for compact aircraft carriers. Japan has converted a former helicopter carrier into an aircraft carrier, Izumo that will host the U.S.-made  F-35B VTOL jets.

According to the General Director of PJSC Yakovlev, Andrey Boginsky, for the past 60 years, the Russian company has accumulated a wealth of experience and expanded its competencies in the development and operation of VTOL aircraft and is ready to implement them in a short time.

Boginsky is reported to have commented on his company’s VTOL aircraft plans during a media interaction at Irkutsk, where the Yakovlev plant is located.

The General Director said that his company has not only preserved but also increased its capabilities in creating VTOL aircraft. "Our designers have studied the prospects for creating even more advanced machines that correspond to the level of the fifth generation of combat aviation. The topic of a vertical takeoff and landing aircraft was frozen in the difficult 1990s, but we have preserved the scientific and technical groundwork. Its combination with new aviation technologies allows us to return to the creation of vertical takeoff and landing aircraft fairly quickly," he is quoted a saying in press release.

The increasing interest in VTOL fighters stems from Russia’s nearly dead aircraft carrier projects. Its only aircraft carrier, Admiral Kuznetsov is under repairs since the last two years after suffering a fire. Carrier based jets such as the MiG-29K and the Su-34 are in hangers and Russian effectively has no aircraft carriers for forces projection.

Given the huge cost and long lead time of developing aircraft carriers, the already in-development Project 23900 amphibious assault ships could offer a faster and cheaper alternative provided the VTOL aircraft can be developed in time.