Russia's twin-engine answer to the F-22 and F-35. It combines low-observable shaping, internal weapons bays and supercruise performance, though independent analysts judge its radar cross-section and production numbers to trail well behind its American rivals. Developed by Sukhoi (United Aircraft Corporation).
Russia's twin-engine answer to the F-22 and F-35. Developed by Sukhoi (United Aircraft Corporation).
Photo: Anna Zvereva: https://www.flickr.com/people/130961247@N06, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia CommonsSee Specifications for full detail.
The Sukhoi Su-57 is a Russian twin-engine stealth fighter developed by Sukhoi for the Russian Aerospace Forces. It first flew in 2010 and carries its weapons internally in tandem belly bays to reduce radar signature.[1]
Production has run well behind plan - only a few dozen of a planned 76 aircraft were in service by the mid-2020s. It has flown combat missions over Ukraine from stand-off range since 2022, and Algeria became its first export customer, receiving initial Su-57Es in early 2026.[2]
The PAK FA program of the early 2000s set out to give Russia what the F-22 had given America: a fifth-generation air-superiority fighter combining stealth, supercruise, sensor fusion and super-manoeuvrability. Sukhoi's T-50 design won the assignment, flying first on 29 January 2010 from Komsomolsk-on-Amur.[1]
The philosophy diverged deliberately from Lockheed's: where the F-22 buys survivability almost entirely through signature, the T-50 blended moderate stealth with extreme agility - 3D thrust-vectoring nozzles, relaxed stability, enormous control authority - betting that a fighter which is hard to see AND nearly impossible to out-turn beats one optimised for either alone.[1]
India joined as co-developer in 2007 with plans for a two-seat FGFA derivative, then withdrew in 2018 citing cost, technology-sharing and stealth-performance concerns - a loss of funding and scale from which the program's economics never fully recovered.[1]
The Felon's airframe is a widescreen blend of Flanker heritage and stealth shaping: widely spaced engines with a lifting body between them, all-moving tail surfaces, serrated skins and S-shaped(ish) inlets, and two tandem internal bays sized for its principal air-to-air and cruise missiles, with wing-root bays for short-range weapons. Western assessments generally credit a real but partial signature reduction - well above Flanker, short of F-22/F-35 class.[1]
Its sensor suite is ambitious: the N036 Byelka radar spreads five AESA arrays around the airframe (including side-looking and L-band wing arrays aimed at counter-stealth), paired with an infrared search-and-track ball and a heavily automated cockpit. The intended second-stage AL-51 'izdeliye 30' engines - promising supercruise and serrated stealth nozzles - began flying on production aircraft only in the mid-2020s, years behind schedule.[1]
Deliveries tell the program's story: a 2019 order for 76 aircraft by 2028, first serial delivery in 2020 (after the very first production jet crashed pre-delivery in 2019), and a trickle thereafter - Western estimates put the operational fleet in the dozens by the mid-2020s, with 2025's deliveries to the VKS reported as minimal while export airframes took priority.[3]
Over Ukraine the Su-57 has flown combat missions since 2022 - launching stand-off missiles from Russian airspace and reportedly conducting some defence-suppression sorties - while Moscow keeps its rarest fighter carefully clear of contested airspace. Ukrainian long-range drone strikes claimed damage to at least one Felon at Akhtubinsk in 2024, underlining why: each airframe is, effectively, irreplaceable in the near term.[1]
The export breakthrough came late but concretely: Algeria confirmed itself as launch customer in early 2025[4], with a reported 2021-vintage contract for 14 Su-57Es - roughly six delivered from 2025, footage confirming operations alongside Algerian Su-35s by February 2026 - and India, post-2025 border tensions, publicly re-examining the type it once abandoned.[2][5]
The program's second decade is about volume and derivatives: a modernised Su-57M with the definitive engines, the single-engine Su-75 'Checkmate' pitched as its affordable stablemate (still unflown years after its 2021 rollout), and teaming trials with the S-70 Okhotnik-B stealth combat drone - the Felon cast as command node for Russia's loyal-wingman ambitions.[1]
Sanctions run through everything: Western-sourced machine tools and electronics named in leaked documents, workarounds through third countries, and a production system visibly straining to scale. The Su-57's engineering is no longer its hardest problem; its industrial base is.[3]
Verdicts on the Felon split along what you measure. As a technology demonstrator for Russian aerospace - vectoring stealth, distributed AESA, weapons-bay integration - it delivered genuine firsts for its industry. As a fleet, it has yet to matter: numbers too small to shape any campaign, held back from the one war its country is fighting.[1]
Its next decade will decide which reading holds: Algeria's jets entering full service, India's choice pending, engines finally maturing - or a small fleet overtaken by sixth-generation programmes already flying elsewhere.[2]
Su-57s essentially never broadcast civil ADS-B and rarely leave Russian or, now, Algerian airspace, so confirmed Flightradar24 sightings are effectively unheard of; most public tracking of the type instead comes from geolocated video, satellite imagery of Akhtubinsk and Lipetsk, and air-show flypasts such as MAKS.
| Performance | |
| Max Speed | 1,153 kn (1,327 mph / 2,135 km/h) |
|---|---|
| Cruise SpeedCruise Speed — The economical speed an aircraft sustains for the bulk of a flight - lower than maximum speed, chosen for the best balance of time and fuel burn. Glossary → | Mach 1.3 supercruise (sustained supersonic flight without afterburner) |
| RangeRange — How far an aircraft can fly without refuelling. Quoted figures vary with payload, speed and reserves - see also ferry range and combat radius. Glossary → | 2,175 mi on internal fuel; extended further with aerial refuelling via retractable probe |
| Service CeilingService Ceiling — The highest altitude at which an aircraft can still climb at a useful rate (typically 100 ft/min). Above it, the air is too thin to keep climbing meaningfully. Glossary → | 65,600 ft |
| Airframe & Weight | |
| Wingspan | 46 ft 3 in |
| Length | 65 ft 11 in |
| Height | 15 ft 1 in |
| WeightMTOW — Maximum Take-Off Weight - the heaviest an aircraft is certified to be at the start of its take-off run, including fuel, crew, payload and the aircraft itself. Glossary → | empty: 40,785 lb; normal takeoff: 55,115 lb; MTOW: 77,160 lb |
| Power & Payload | |
| Engines | 2 x Saturn AL-41F1 (izdeliye 117) turbofans, ~142 kN afterburning thrust each; later production shifting to the more powerful izdeliye 30 (AL-51F1) |
| ArmamentArmament — The weapons an aircraft can carry: guns, missiles, bombs and rockets, whether mounted internally, on wing hardpoints, or in bomb bays. Glossary → | 1 x GSh-30-1 30mm cannon (150 rounds); internal bays for R-77M/R-37M air-to-air missiles and Kh-38/Kh-59MK2/Kh-69 stand-off missiles or KAB-250/500 guided bombs; 6 external hardpoints for non-stealth missions |
| Crew | 1 |
| CapacityPayload — Everything an aircraft is carrying that isn't the aircraft or its fuel: passengers, cargo, or weapons. Payload and fuel usually trade off against each other. Glossary → | N/A - single-seat fighter; internal bays carry ~1,500 kg (3,300 lb), rising to ~10,000 kg (22,000 lb) total with external hardpoints in non-stealth loadouts |
| Program & Service | |
| Manufacturer | Sukhoi (United Aircraft Corporation) |
| Origin | Russia |
| First Flight | January 29th 2010 |
| Service Entry | December 1st 2020 |
| Number Built | 32 |
| Unit Cost | ~$35-42M (officially cited figure); Western analysts believe true program unit cost is considerably higher given low-rate production |
3 notable events involving the Su-57 Felon, 2019 to 2026. 0 deaths are recorded across the 2 of these with a figure listed. Curated rather than exhaustive.
The first serial-production Su-57 crashed and exploded on impact roughly 68 miles from the Komsomolsk-on-Amur plant, reportedly during a flight-control or engine-related test. The pilot ejected and was rescued alive.
Ukraine's military intelligence said a drone strike hit an Su-57 at Akhtubinsk airfield, roughly 589 km from the front line. A Russian military-affiliated channel acknowledged shrapnel damage, though the full extent and repair status were unconfirmed.
An Su-57 crashed near Zvenigorod, west of Moscow, during what Russia's defence ministry called a takeoff accident. Russian military bloggers suggested the capital's air-defence batteries may have shot it down, a cause Russian officials have not confirmed. The pilot ejected safely.
| Su-57 (T-50) | Baseline production fighter for the Russian Aerospace Forces, following the T-50 prototype programme. |
| Su-57M | Upgraded production standard re-engined with the more powerful izdeliye 30 (AL-51F1) turbofan. |
| Su-57E | Export configuration with modified IFF and export-cleared systems; first delivered to Algeria from 2025. |
| Su-75 Checkmate (LTS) | Related lightweight single-engine stealth fighter concept developed alongside the Su-57 for export markets, not a direct variant. |
Source: 19FortyFive
Source: The War Zone
Source: 19FortyFive
Numbered as cited in the Overview article. Click a reference to see where it's used.
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