On June 2, 1982, test pilot Gennady Matveenko for the first time took off the first serial Su-27 fighter from the airfield of the Komsomolsk-on-Amur Aviation Production Association.

Yu.A.

Gagarin (KnAAPO).

The development of a promising front-line fighter in the USSR began in the late 1960s, when the military-political leadership of the country came to the conclusion that it was necessary to create a fourth-generation machine.

The aircraft, in particular, was created as a response to the development in the United States of the F-15 Eagle fighter. 

The design of the new machine was entrusted to three leading design bureaus: Sukhoi, Yakovlev and Mikoyan.

Each of them worked on their version of the aircraft.

As a result, it was decided to give the green light to the projects of the Sukhoi Design Bureau and the MiG Design Bureau, which would complement each other, and subsequently received the designations Su-27 and MiG-29.

The preliminary design of the first version of the future Su-27 was completed in 1975.

The prototype machine received the designation T-10 and first took to the air on May 20, 1977.

However, during the tests it turned out that the car did not meet the terms of reference and was inferior to the F-15.

Sukhoi specialists quickly redesigned the aircraft design, in fact creating a new machine, which received the T-10S code.

In April 1981, the prototype made its first flight, and a year later a serial fighter was launched into the sky - which later became the legendary Su-27.

State tests of the machine continued until 1985, and the aircraft entered service with the Soviet Air Force in 1990 after all the shortcomings were eliminated.

Serial production was launched at the aircraft factory in Komsomolsk-on-Amur.

  • Performance of the Russian Knights aerobatic team on Su-27 aircraft during the opening ceremony of the 7th International Naval Show in St. Petersburg

  • RIA News

  • © Igor Russak

The Su-27 is a multipurpose supersonic all-weather front-line fighter designed to gain air supremacy.

The machine is made according to the integrated aerodynamic scheme, in which the wing and fuselage actually form a single whole.

Due to this, lift is created not only by the wing planes, but also by the hull.

In the late 1980s, the chief pilot of the Sukhoi Design Bureau Viktor Pugachev set eight world climb records on the Su-27, in particular, he reached a height of 12 thousand meters in 58.1 seconds.

The unique power plant of the fighter consists of a pair of AL-31F bypass engines with afterburners developed by NPO Saturn under the guidance of the outstanding design engineer Arkhip Lyulka.

An important innovation in the design of the aircraft was the use of a fly-by-wire control system (EDSU) instead of mechanics.

This increased the maneuverability and stability of the aircraft.

Su-27 became the first Russian fighter equipped with this system. 

“The presence of EDSU, a new radar, an optical-electronic aiming system, advanced weapons allowed the Su-27 to become the best in its time,” the Rostec press service noted.

The fighter is armed with a 30 mm GSh-301 automatic cannon (ammunition load of 150 rounds) and a wide range of rocket weapons.

Ammunition is placed on ten hardpoints, and the maximum combat load of the fighter is 6 tons.

A distinctive feature of the Su-27 is its high maneuverability.

Thanks to this, such aerobatics as the Pugachev Cobra and the Frolov Chakra (performed on the Su-37, one of the modifications of the Su-27M) were first performed on the aircraft.

In addition, it is on the Su-27 and aircraft created on its basis that the famous Russian Knights fly - the only air group in the world that performs group aerobatics on heavy fighters.

Su-27 and its family

The Su-27 fighter became the ancestor of a whole family of aircraft for various purposes.

The most advanced and modern of the Su-27 modifications, according to experts, is the 4++ generation fighter Su-35.

When it was created, innovative technologies were used, which were then used in the production of the fifth generation Su-57 fighter.

First of all, this concerns avionics.

The Su-35 is designed to intercept and destroy all classes of air targets in long-range and short-range air combat and fight for air supremacy.

In addition, it can be used to destroy ground and surface military targets covered by air defense and located at considerable distances from the base airfield.

According to the United Aircraft Corporation (UAC), this aircraft combines the qualities of a modern fighter (super maneuverability, effective means of detection, high supersonic speed and long flight range, the ability to organize group actions) and a good tactical aircraft (a wide range of weapons, a modern multi-channel system electronic warfare, reduced radar visibility and high combat survivability).

Depending on the combat missions, it can be equipped with air-to-air and air-to-surface missiles, adjustable aerial bombs, unguided projectiles, and single bomb clusters.

In addition, the fighter is equipped with a 30 mm GSh-301 cannon.

The Su-35 was actively used by the Russian Aerospace Forces during the hostilities in Syria, and is also used during a special military operation in Ukraine.

In the post-Soviet years, the Su-34 two-seat front-line bomber, which replaced the Su-24, was also created on the basis of the Su-27.

These machines also went through Syria and are used in Ukraine. 

“The Su-34 uses high-performance long-range air-to-surface and air-to-air guided weapons with multi-channel application.

It is equipped with a highly intelligent radar countermeasures and defense system.

The Su-34 has a developed system of combat survivability, including an armored cockpit, ”the UAC experts say.

  • Su-34

  • © PJSC United Aircraft Corporation

"One of the best fighters in the world"

According to analysts, the Su-27 has become one of the symbols of the domestic air force of the twentieth century.

As retired colonel Viktor Baranets noted in an interview with RT, the Soviet military industry invested in this machine all the best that it had at that time.

“He largely determined the appearance of our military aviation,” the expert said.

“We managed to make one of the best fighters in the world, which continues to successfully perform combat missions.

It differed from its predecessors in many ways: a more powerful engine, a fire control system, and crew protection can be listed for a long time.

It was a fundamentally new fighter," Baranets stressed.

  • Su-35

  • © PJSC United Aircraft Corporation

The expert added that the modernization reserve for this platform has not yet been exhausted.

“Every outstanding and ingenious machine, like the Kalashnikov assault rifle, will always have many modifications.

Su-27 is no exception.

By the way, he still has huge reserves for modifications.

After all, weapons are changing, new electronics and other stuffing appears.

This allows us to improve existing models without fundamental changes in the design,” said Baranets.

A similar opinion is shared by military expert Yuri Knutov.

“The Su-27 is a standard fighter.

This is a platform that can be used, including in advanced aircraft.

I think that modifications of the Su-27 will still be in demand for ten years, no less, or even more.

It all depends on what technologies will be developed.

There is still room for modernization there, which allows these machines to remain in service for a long time, ”concluded the interlocutor of RT.