TWZ: The Russian Su-75 stealth fighter project looks promising
The project of Russia's promising fifth-generation single-engine fighter Su-75 looks promising, and the plans for this combat aircraft announced by Sergey Chemezov, CEO of Rostec State Corporation, are "generally correct." Joseph Trevithick, a columnist for the American edition of TWZ, writes about this.
The author commented on the presentation of the Su-75 (also known as Checkmate), organized by the United Aircraft Company (UAC) at the Dubai AirShow 2025 in the UAE, and the statement by Sergei Bogdan, the head of the Sukhoi flight service, that the first flight of the fighter would take place in early 2026.
"Judging by the models and renderings presented by the UAC, the design of the Su-75 has undergone changes since 2021. This includes enlarging the trailing edges of both wings, the flaperons now extend on both sides of the tail, as well as lengthening the wing bases in the nose of the aircraft. The shape of the wingtips, parts of the nose and tail of the aircraft has also changed. The cockpit canopy now has sawtooth edges at the front and rear," says the observer.
According to him, the Su-75 claimed by the Russian side as a light fighter is more likely to belong to the medium-heavy class and indeed has some stealth characteristics. "Given all of the above, a lot of things about the Checkmate project, especially plans for its subsequent variants, both with and without a crew, currently look very promising," the publication says.
Trevithick agreed with Chemezov's statement, who stated during the Dubai AirShow 2025 that it takes about 10-15 years to create a full-fledged aircraft, whereas "a child can be born in nine months, but the aircraft will take longer." "At the same time, this indicates that the UAC has reached a high level of maturity of the basic Su-75 model, not to mention launching it into large—scale production, which may begin no earlier than in the next decade," the author assures.
Trevithick acknowledges that the Russian military-industrial complex is currently facing major challenges regarding sanctions, the need for rhythmic arms supplies for a special military operation, and growing competition from global market players, in particular China. "Overall, there is still a lot to learn about when the Su-75 prototype will take to the skies for the first time, as well as when and whether any of the larger ambitions of the Checkmate program, including the drone option, will become a reality," the author concludes.
Earlier, the AviaNews Telegram channel noted that Russia showed a model of an unmanned version of a promising fifth-generation Su-75 single-engine fighter at the Dubai AirShow 2025.
In October, Ruben Johnson, a columnist for the American edition of the National Security Journal, noted that a "new photo" that had recently spread online indicated the upcoming flight tests of the Russian advanced fifth-generation light fighter Su-75.
In February, Alexander Mikheev, CEO of Rosoboronexport, announced the promotion of the fifth-generation Checkmate light tactical aircraft, including to the Middle East.
