First Ukrainian strike on Russian Su-57: Insights into Russia's most advanced fighter
Photo: Ukraine firstly attacked Su-57 in Russia (wikipedia.org)
Ukrainian defenders have struck a Russian Su-57 aircraft for the first time on Russian territory. This is Russia's most advanced fighter.
Read more about the enemy's most valuable aircraft in the article below by RBC-Ukraine.
Contents:
Details of the special operation
What is known about the aircraft
Details of the special operation
The Main Intelligence Directorate reported that a multi-role fighter Su-57 was attacked for the first time in Russia. This happened at the Akhtubinsk aerodrome in the Astrakhan region, 589 kilometers from the front line.
Satellite images published by the Main Intelligence Directorate show that on June 7, the Su-57 was intact on the aerodrome, while on June 8, blast craters and characteristic fire marks appeared near it.
This marks the first successful strike on a Su-57 since the beginning of the full-scale war.
What is known about the aircraft
The Su-57 is a Russian multi-role fighter classified by Russia as a fifth-generation fighter. It is considered the most advanced and valuable fighter of the adversary. However, analysts note that the Su-57 does not fully meet fifth-generation characteristics.
The aircraft is designed to destroy all types of air targets, engage enemy ground and surface targets, conduct long-range airspace monitoring, disable enemy command posts, headquarters, and control systems.
The Su-57 made its first flight in January 2010. In 2019, Russia announced the beginning of serial production of these aircraft, with the first serial Su-57 released in 2020.
Specifications of the Su-57:
- Crew: 1 person
- Length: 19.7 meters
- Wingspan: 14 meters
- Height: 4.8 meters
- Loaded weight: 30 tons
- Maximum speed at altitude: approximately 2600 km/h
- Flight duration: up to 5.8 hours
- Service ceiling: 20,000 meters
According to Russia, this fighter can deploy a wide range of guided and unguided bombs and missiles of small, medium, and large ranges. These include the Kh-31, Kh-35, Kh-38, Kh-58, and Kh-59 missiles, which are frequently used by occupiers to shell Ukraine.
Use of Su-57 in the war
Russia claims to have begun deploying the Su-57 in the early weeks of the full-scale invasion. According to explanations from the Ukrainian Air Force, Russians are attempting to keep these aircraft further away from the front line.
However, strikes from Su-57s on Ukraine have been documented. In particular, in 2022, Russians conducted strikes from these fighters in the Poltava, Kirovohrad, and Odesa regions.
Sources: press service of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense, data from Wikipedia, and the specialized edition of Militarnyi media.
