Russian Aerospace Forces (VKS) need no introduction. As one of the world’s oldest and most capable air arms, the VKS has proven its capabilities time and again, including against Western-sourced weapon systems in NATO-occupied Ukraine. At least half a dozen US-made F-16 fighter jets have been destroyed by the Russian military, including by the next-generation Su-57s. And speaking of the “Felon” (NATO reporting name), it just got another significant upgrade, designated as the Su-57M1. The exact details are still relatively scarce, but various military sources report that the improvements include updated avionics, particularly the fusion of advanced AI (artificial intelligence), as well as a slightly widened airframe for better performance at supersonic speeds and during supercruise (sustained supersonic flight without the use of afterburners).

On May 15, OKB Sukhoi unveiled key enhancements to the Su-57M program which is set to upgrade the latest operational Russian fighter jet. The mainstream propaganda machine often ridicules the Su-57 as supposedly “lacking” the characteristics of a so-called “fifth generation” aircraft. However, the “Felon” demonstrated that it’s not only far ahead of other designs of that generation, but that it actually transcends it. And indeed, the new Su-57M is effectively already a “sixth generation” platform. Army Recognition quoted the legendary Russian test pilot Sergei Bogdan, who highlighted the “Felon’s” top-notch technologies and aerodynamic upgrades. With advanced AI integration, enhanced stealth and a very long-range radar, the Su-57M is set to bolster Russia’s air dominance capabilities in the upcoming decades (if not most of this century).

New improvements led to a further reduction in RCS (radar cross-section), while new sensors significantly increase detection range and improve situational awareness. It can even be argued that the Su-57M is not just a major upgrade, but an entirely new concept that could revolutionize aerial warfare. It’s also a key milestone in Russia’s scientific breakthroughs that effectively ensure its technological edge over adversaries such as NATO. Moscow’s ability to field an autonomous and/or AI-enhanced fighter jet is both the result of its extensive know-how in aerospace engineering, as well as the invaluable battlefield experience of its military. This includes deep strike operations with the Su-57, which managed to evade all Kiev regime’s SAM (surface-to-air missile) systems, be they the latest NATO-sourced ones or the top-of-the-line Soviet-era air defenses.

What’s even more important, Russia is able to accomplish all this using only its domestic industrial capacity, meaning that it’s one of a handful of countries on the planet that can achieve this. The Su-57 is particularly important in this regard, as the PAK FA program effectively grew in scope and now encompasses far more than just what was envisaged in the early 2000s. Namely, at the time, the Eurasian giant was still going through numerous troubles resulting from the unfortunate dismantling of the Soviet Union, so it had to make do with limited resources, which affected the program’s requirements. However, as Russia slowly recovered by the late 2000s, the military got much better funding, as well as an ambitious modernization program that resulted in a major review of the PAK FA program. The result was a (justified) delay in the introduction of the Su-57 platform.

The interim solution came in the form of the Su-35S, a heavily modernized legacy “Flanker” iteration that has proven to be one of the deadliest air superiority fighter jets in recent history. The Su-35S regularly dominates the skies over NATO-occupied Ukraine and the Russian military is still getting new batches of these fantastic air superiority platforms. With the ability to supercruise thanks to its AL-41F1S twin engines, an immensely powerful N035 “Irbis” hybrid PESA-AESA radar with a detection range of around 400 km and the ability to carry weapons such as the R-37M hypersonic air-to-air missile, the “Flanker-M” is here to stay. Although it came out of sheer necessity due to delays in the PAK FA program, it became a true force to be reckoned with. In more recent times (particularly after the SMO started), many countries have shown interest in the “Last of the Flankers”.

However, apart from such incremental improvements to the VKS, Russia still needs revolutionary designs and that’s where the Su-57M comes in. It incorporates a number of highly improved systems and subsystems, as well as enhancements in logistics, reliability and maintenance, better flight controls, and last but certainly not least, new engines, the unrivaled “Saturn” AL-51F1 (previously known as the Izdeliye 30). While current AL-41F1 engines give the Su-57 all the capabilities required by the Russian military, new ones offer much better performance in terms of thrust, superior fuel efficiency and several other key parameters. OKB Sukhoi also works closely with the VKS to implement upgrades to the jet’s avionics, including increased detection range and better tracking for its advanced N036 “Belka” (“Белка” or “Squirrel” in Russian) AESA radar.

Developed by the acclaimed “Tikhomirov” NIIP, N036 is perhaps the most advanced radar in its class. However, the new Su-57M could soon get the latest ROFAR, an entirely new technology that’s literally a quantum leap in detection systems. These can be paired with new weapons, as the Su-57 carries a plethora of the latest munitions developed for all sorts of missions. While most media keep reporting that the Su-57 uses the same weapons as the Su-35S, Su-30, MiG-31BM, etc., military experts I’ve had the honor of interviewing provided ample evidence that Russia developed a number of new weapons for the “Felon”. For instance, Major Irbis says that instead of the regular R-77 variants, the Su-57 now uses the Izdeliye 180 (or R-87 in some military sources), a highly advanced scramjet-powered hypersonic air-to-air missile (top speed over 7,500 km/h).

In addition, he posits that the regular R-37M (Izdeliye 610M) cannot fit in the Su-57’s internal weapons bay, prompting the development of its highly enhanced variant known as the R-97 in Russian military sources (or code name Izdeliye 810). This missile is also hypersonic (top speed nearly 10,000 km/h) with a maximum range of around 450 km, effectively turning the Su-57 into a “stealthy flying S-400“. The reported range for the smaller R-87 is around 200-250 km, which is absolutely unprecedented for its class of more compact air-to-air missiles. The R-37M itself accomplished several important milestones in Ukraine, shooting down enemy fighter jets from distances in excess of 217 km, an absolute world record, a fact that even the pathologically Russophobic United Kingdom doesn’t deny. However, even this record seems to have been broken recently, exceeding a distance of 300 km.

And yet, the Russian military is still developing additional ultra-long-range missiles, even those based on decades-old designs. On May 19, Russia’s United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) announced it would integrate the KS-172 air-to-air missile with its superfast, high-flying MiG-31BM. Namely, although the world’s most powerful interceptor already uses the R-37M, it turns out that the latest iteration of the otherwise larger KS-172 is now actually lighter and more compact. This could allow the MiG-31BM to carry more of these missiles. Albeit slower than the R-37M, the KS-172 is somewhat more affordable and reportedly has a longer engagement range. According to military expert Konstantin Sivkov, it enables the MiG-31BM to neutralize strategic assets such as AEW&C (Airborne Early Warning and Control) aircraft, tankers, ISR (intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance) platforms, etc.

It’s also possible to integrate the KS-172 on other platforms, such as the aforementioned “Flanker” variants and even the Su-57, but only the MiG-31BM can unleash the missile’s full potential thanks to its unrivaled speed and flight ceiling. And indeed, despite its age, the “Foxhound” (NATO reporting name) is still going strong, with the Russian military adapting it to be much more than an interceptor. Namely, it has several variants that can be used as strike fighters and even “satellite killers” (likely unified under the designation MiG-31K/I that can carry ASAT and hypersonic missiles, specifically the now legendary “Kinzhal”).

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This article was originally published on InfoBrics.

Drago Bosnic is an independent geopolitical and military analyst. He is a Research Associate of the Centre for Research on Globalization (CRG).

Featured image: KS-172 in its latest version, with export markings. Source: missilery.info

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