PAK-FA, T-50: News #3

Earlier there where complaints in this thread about aircraft factory conditions. Came across this today.

I am gonna go ahead and point out that is not a T-50 or KnAAZ so the picture is irrelevant. And the guy complained about "production facilities" when the picture showed static testing facilities. He then acted like he knew that all along but that is clearly nonsense of course.

There is footage of T-50 construction but very little and clearly it is very prototype-ish still considering the very very slow output (there has been plenty of factors from testing affecting that too of course).

The US and Russia have been competing arms exporters since the dawn of the Cold War.

Although the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, the deep-seated rivalry between the US and Russia never fully died out and is now stronger than it's been in decades thanks the Russian annexation of Crimea, the war in Ukraine, and competing interests in Syria. Likewise, the two countries are equally competitive in the realm of military hardware.

The US and Russia are both producing their own fifth-generation fighters. While the US is developing the F-35 in conjunction with select worldwide partners, Russia is developing its own fifth-generation fighter, the Su-50.

And like the F-35, the Su-50 will have multiple variants. The following chart from Russian arms manufacturer Sukhoi shows the intended plan for all versions of Russia's most advanced fighter jet.


The base model of the Su-50 is also known under its prototype name of the T-50 PAKFA. There have been five T-50s built so far. The plane's final version (the Su-50) is supposed to be fully operational by 2016.

Once complete, the Su-50 will serve as a base model for future fifth-generation aircraft. Some versions of the plane are intended for export, with the bulk of them being developed for India.

The Indian version of the plane, called the Su-50E, will be similar to the Su-50 but modified according to certain demands from the Indian Air Force. Russia and India are also co-developing the Su55-FGFA, a twin-seater version of the Su-50 that will be specially designed for the Indian Air Force.

This close level of coordination between Russia and India highlights the consistently close military relations the two countries have enjoyed. India is the world's largest arms importer, and it received 75% of all of its armaments from Moscow in 2013.

Aside from India, Russia also plans to complete variants of the Su-50 for South Korea and Iran. The South Korean version, the Su-50EK, should be ready for export by 2018 while the Iranian Su-50ES version will be ready by 2022.

http://www.businessinsider.in/This-chart-shows-all-of-the-versions-of-Russias-fifth-generation-fighter-jet/articleshow/51746673.cms

F-35 has three variants A,B,C but Pak-fa has many.

max steel wrote:F-35 has three variants A,B,C but Pak-fa has many.

The A, B, and C are variants, but are "operational, serial production" variants. Just one of the bazzillion things wrong with the F-35 program was in fact the demand for an aircraft designed to suit all three branches of the US Armed Forces (and then some considering their export clients) right from the get go. The utter stupidity of the idea boggles my mind to this day. Historically, aircraft will make the jump to another branch if the aircraft unexpectedly performs within the criteria required by that aforementioned branch, further development and research on an already substantiated platform (like the Su-27) will usually provide a very affordable and effective solution. The F-35 is completely backward in this respect.

According to pictures released on the internet, Russia’s Sukhoi T-50 PAK FA fighter aircraft started flight test campaign armed with air-to-surface weapons. These tests took place at the Gromov Flight Research Institute, located at the Zhukovsky Air Base.




Pictures unveiled on the russianplanes website first showed the T-50-2 prototype fitted with Kh-31 anti-ship missiles. A second series of pictures unveiled a few days before show the same prototype aircraft performing a test flight armed with two Kh-31 anti-ship missiles. The Kh-31, also dubbed X-31 in Russia, is a Russian air-to-surface missile. It can reach a Mach 3.5 max speed, depending on variants. Its warhead is equipped with a 94kg HE shaped charge. The Kh-31 has an operational range of up to 110 km.

A few days later, the website released pictures showing the same aircraft fitted with 6 free fall bombs. The PAK FA previously had only performed flight tests with air-to-air missiles.

Russia’s T-50 PAK FA is a fifth-generation fighter programme of the Russian Air Force. The T-50 prototype first flew on 29 January 2010 and the first production aircraft is slated for delivery to the Russian Air Force starting in late 2016 or early 2017. Yuri Borisov, Russia’s deputy minister of defence for armaments stated in 2015 that the Air Force will slow PAK FA production and reduce its initial order of 150 aircraft to 12 jets due to the nation’s deteriorating economy, along with the manufacturer’s ability to produce the more complex aircraft.

http://idrw.org/first-pictures-of-russias-t-50-pak-fa-fighter-fitted-with-air-to-surface-weapons/.

Ready for Syria.

This plane still planning to hit serial production in 2017 whats the official amount the Russians are ordering so far?.

SeigSoloyvov wrote:This plane still planning to hit serial production in 2017 whats the official amount the Russians are ordering so far?.

12 on order atm, so called "0 series".

Militarov wrote:

SeigSoloyvov wrote:This plane still planning to hit serial production in 2017 whats the official amount the Russians are ordering so far?.

12 on order atm, so called "0 series".

Are these training/test versions?

Any idea how many they claim to order once it hits serial production.

SeigSoloyvov wrote:

Militarov wrote:

SeigSoloyvov wrote:This plane still planning to hit serial production in 2017 whats the official amount the Russians are ordering so far?.

12 on order atm, so called "0 series".

Are these training/test versions?

Any idea how many they claim to order once it hits serial production.

0 series is always used to figure out possible issues during actual field use, its last chance to apply fairly radical changes to the design before it hits serial production, if something proves to be bad idea, unpractical etc etc. So basically those are test aircraft, but issued to an actual unit rather than being flown by company test pilots.

Well, they mentioned some 200 serial production borts. Naturally number depends on source, they go between 200 and 250.

This plane needs some stealth shaped missile casings.

Genjurooo wrote:This plane needs some stealth shaped missile casings.

It got something better - internal bays.

Russian PAK-FA carries out intensive weapon testing

The Sukhoi T-50 PAK-FA 'fifth-generation' combat aircraft has conducted trials of munitions launched from its internal weapons bays for the first time, the former commander-in-chief of the Russian Aerospace Forces (VKS) told state TV.

General Vladimir Mikhailov made the announcement, but the claim has not been confirmed by any other sources, and neither has it been disclosed which weapon types were launched during the trials.

Three of the five PAK-FA prototypes are currently in the Ministry of Defence's test centre in Akhtubinsk, which specialises in the testing of mission systems and airborne weapons. These are the T-50-3, T-50-4, and T-50-5R, which are the only aircraft fitted with radars and other targeting sensors.

At the same time, the T-50-1 and T-50-2 are undergoing captive-carry tests in Zhukovsky near Moscow with various configurations of external loads. Among the noticed configurations there are two air-to-surface Kh-31 and two air-to-air R-73 missiles, and also six 250-kg free-fall bombs.

According to unofficial information, a sixth prototype will depart the production facility in Komsomolsk-on-Amur at the end of April. It will be the first aircraft of the second test batch, reportedly fitted with significant changes in the airframe structure.

Russia to test-fly PAK FA fighter powered with Phase II engine in late 2017

The first flight of the Russian fifth-generation fighter (Russian acronym - PAK FA) powered by the Phase II engine is slated for late 2017, Yevgeny Marchukov, general designer/director, Lyulka Design Bureau (an affiliate of the Ufa Engine Production Association, UMPO), told TASS on Thursday, March 10, 2016.

"If all goes to plan, the Phase II engine’s fight flight on the flying testbed will take place late in 2017, with a T-50 (PAKFA) prototype to act as flying testbed," the general designer said.

"One of the flying testbed’s engine nacelles will house a Phase I engine and the other the advanced one," he added.

According to Marchukov, the Phase II engine is in the prototype manufacture, demonstrator assembly and core engine test stages. The first core engine has been tested, with good enough results produced. The second core engine’s assembly is nearing the end. "We will test the engine demonstrator this summer," Marchukov said.

The general designer emphasized: "The Phase II engine designed for the PAK FA is a Generation 5+ design, even a Generation 5++ one." The engine is 15-20% superior to the previous ones in terms of specific characteristics.

"The engine’s characteristics have been refined through a sharp improvement in the operating cycle parameters, efficiency of units and introduction of advanced technologies and materials in the first place. It features higher thrust and a sizeable reduction in specific fuel consumption in virtually all operating modes, i.e. not only in the cruising range mode, but in the acceleration and afterburning modes as well - the modes the aircraft is normally flown in. This implies a life cycle cost reduction," the general designer explained. "In addition, a hefty specific weight reduction through advanced technologies and materials has been planned."

According to Marchukov, "there have been difficulties in the development of the advanced engine, because not all of the materials have been certificated, and we may not use them for now. Therefore, the early prototypes will be somewhat different to the ones used in the official trials. We are working on the powerplant in cooperation with the plane’s designers, including the work on the air intake, because it is an all-new engine designed to remain in service for 30 years at the least."

"We plan to use the advanced engine’s core engine to derive a whole spectrum of advanced powerplants for aviation and power generation applications," the general designer concluded.

Austin wrote:Russia to test-fly PAK FA fighter powered with Phase II engine in late 2017

The first flight of the Russian fifth-generation fighter (Russian acronym - PAK FA) powered by the Phase II engine is slated for late 2017, Yevgeny Marchukov, general designer/director, Lyulka Design Bureau (an affiliate of the Ufa Engine Production Association, UMPO), told TASS on Thursday, March 10, 2016.

"If all goes to plan, the Phase II engine’s fight flight on the flying testbed will take place late in 2017, with a T-50 (PAKFA) prototype to act as flying testbed," the general designer said.

"One of the flying testbed’s engine nacelles will house a Phase I engine and the other the advanced one," he added.

According to Marchukov, the Phase II engine is in the prototype manufacture, demonstrator assembly and core engine test stages. The first core engine has been tested, with good enough results produced. The second core engine’s assembly is nearing the end. "We will test the engine demonstrator this summer," Marchukov said.

The general designer emphasized: "The Phase II engine designed for the PAK FA is a Generation 5+ design, even a Generation 5++ one." The engine is 15-20% superior to the previous ones in terms of specific characteristics.

"The engine’s characteristics have been refined through a sharp improvement in the operating cycle parameters, efficiency of units and introduction of advanced technologies and materials in the first place. It features higher thrust and a sizeable reduction in specific fuel consumption in virtually all operating modes, i.e. not only in the cruising range mode, but in the acceleration and afterburning modes as well - the modes the aircraft is normally flown in. This implies a life cycle cost reduction," the general designer explained. "In addition, a hefty specific weight reduction through advanced technologies and materials has been planned."

According to Marchukov, "there have been difficulties in the development of the advanced engine, because not all of the materials have been certificated, and we may not use them for now. Therefore, the early prototypes will be somewhat different to the ones used in the official trials. We are working on the powerplant in cooperation with the plane’s designers, including the work on the air intake, because it is an all-new engine designed to remain in service for 30 years at the least."

"We plan to use the advanced engine’s core engine to derive a whole spectrum of advanced powerplants for aviation and power generation applications," the general designer concluded.
 

Not bad if it bears fruit. Estimates before claimed 2019.

PAK FA in two seat version? Indians once ordered Su-30MKI which was good enough to be happily procured by Russian Navy and AF. Do you think that by analogy 2 seat PAK FA version will be procured by RuAF?

GunshipDemocracy wrote:PAK FA in two seat version?  Indians once ordered Su-30MKI which was good enough to be happily procured by Russian Navy  and AF. Do you think that by analogy 2 seat PAK FA version will be procured by RuAF?

Probably but in limited numbers, to be used for training of pilots for PAK-FA family like SU-30M2 is for modern T10 family fighters.

Militarov wrote:

GunshipDemocracy wrote:PAK FA in two seat version?  Indians once ordered Su-30MKI which was good enough to be happily procured by Russian Navy  and AF. Do you think that by analogy 2 seat PAK FA version will be procured by RuAF?

Probably but in limited numbers, to be used for training of pilots for PAK-FA family like SU-30M2 is for modern T10 family fighters.

But Su-30SM are being used as combat multi-role fighters...

Edit: Su-30SM instead SM2

GunshipDemocracy wrote:

Militarov wrote:

GunshipDemocracy wrote:PAK FA in two seat version?  Indians once ordered Su-30MKI which was good enough to be happily procured by Russian Navy  and AF. Do you think that by analogy 2 seat PAK FA version will be procured by RuAF?

Probably but in limited numbers, to be used for training of pilots for PAK-FA family like SU-30M2 is for modern T10 family fighters.

But Su-30SM2 are being used as combat multi-role fighters...

SU30M2 has main role of providing training for modernised SU-27SM squadrons and preparation for SU30SM. But sure they still have kept their combat capabilities. I expect same to be with possible two seater on PAK-FA platform.