VIDEO: Russian Stealth Fighter – A Match for F-22 Raptor?

Is the New Russian Stealth Jet Fighter a Super Weapon?

“Performance-wise it certainly looks to compete with the Raptor,” one senior military official with extensive experience on U.S. fifth-generation fighters told the National Interest.

A new Russian stealth fighter jet, the Sukhoi TA-50 PAK-FA, is scheduled to begin production in 2016. The PAK-FA is already being hailed as a “super weapon” that could outperform US jet fighters, giving Russian the advantage-in-the-air it has sought for decades.

With an expected top speed of over Mach 2.0 and an exceptional flight and navigation systems, the PAK-FA appears to be a tough competitor for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter and the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor. The PAK-FA has been designed to outperform both of these US stealth fighters currently in use.

In addition to power and maneuverability, the PAK-FA shows that Russia has made enormous progress in the area of sensor capability. The plane is equipped with radar arrays which can detect stealth aircraft the size of US fighter planes. In addition, the PAK-FA can perform infrared searching and tracking.

Lt. General Dave Deptula, former US Air Force intelligence chief, told the National Interest Magazine:

“The analysis that I have seen indicates a pretty sophisticated design that is at least equal to, and some have said, even superior to US fifth-generation aircraft. It certainly has greater agility with its combination of thrust vectoring, all-moving tail surfaces, an excellent aerodynamic design, than does the F-35.”

Not all US military officials are convinced. Russians traditionally overstate their accomplishments said one avionics expert

“They sound good and they are good, but they are not as good as they sound.”

According to one analyst, the PAK-FA’s weakness may be its underdeveloped sensor and data fusion technology, which is used to process information about the fighter’s surroundings and transmit that information to the pilot for him to aid his combat decisions. When inferior sensor-data fusion is considered in combination with the lessened stealth measures, it’s not surprising that one senior official in the US aviation industry anonymously said,

“Some may claim that the PAK-FA is a 5th-generation fighter, but it’s more of a 4.5-generation fighter by US standards.”

In spite of potential weaknesses, there is no doubt that the 33,000 pounds of thrust power and unpresedented maneuverability supplied by movable tail fins, the Izdeliye 117 engines and the advanced avionics give the Sukhoi TA-50 PAK-FA a level of performance that could prove to be an advantage over current US 5th generation stealth fighters.

Watch the TA-50 on its Airshow Debut:

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