A quarter of a century ago, the Su-37, an experimental fighter with super-maneuverability, took to the skies for the first time. It did not go into production, and the only one built crashed during tests in 2002. But the Su-37 fulfilled its task. First, he showed the whole world that Russia can. Secondly, the current Su-30 and Su-35-the object of fierce envy of the pilots of many countries-the descendants of the only one.
There is an opinion that the reason for the appearance of the Su-37 was another desire to "catch up and overtake". In 1995, at the Le Bourget air show, the German-American X-31A struck experts and the public with fantastic maneuverability: it turned aerobatics faster and sharper than conventional aircraft, and then almost froze in the air. The secret of the X-31 was in its tail, where one of the first thrust vector control systems was installed: three rotary panels that deflected the jet stream like air rudders.
However, the following year at the European airshows, the Russian Su-37 impressed the public - and in eight months such an aircraft can not be built. Moreover, the domestic fighter had a much more advanced thrust vector control system - the Chinese are still fighting over the secret of the deflected nozzle flaps. The UVT was the main innovation of the Su-37,but not the only one.
The aerodynamic scheme of the aircraft is an unstable integral triplane: a front horizontal tail is added to the wings and elevators. It improves the fighter's handling at high angles of attack and when flying at low altitude. A digital control system with artificial intelligence elements was responsible for the balance and overall stability. The aircraft could fly in a fully automatic mode at an ultra-low altitude with the circumference of the terrain, attack air and ground targets.
The control system allowed you to control a group of fighters, distributing targets between them (later this function will appear on the Su-30SM). The radar simultaneously tracked 15 targets, firing missiles at 6 of them. The choice of the target for the attack was carried out by turning the pilot's head. The optoelectronic tracking station was supplemented with a thermal imager, and four multifunctional displays appeared in the cockpit. By the way, the control handle of the aircraft in the Su-37 was made in the form of a joystick under the right hand a la F-16. On production machines, this idea was abandoned.
A perfect airframe, a successful control system and engines with a controlled thrust vector made the maneuverability of the aircraft fantastic by the standards of the 90s. And at the present time, too: when you see a 20-ton car circling in the air like a dry leaf, despising inertia and other physical laws, you can't believe that this is possible. And the Su-37 made it a reality. Most of the spectacular aerobatics using supermaneuverability: the Frolov chakra, the forced combat turn, the cobra with an angle of attack of 180 degrees, and others-were first performed by this aircraft.
The Su-37 was an experimental aircraft, a demonstrator of technology and capabilities. The only one built crashed in December 2002 near Moscow during another test flight. Test pilot Yuri Vashchuk ejected safely. But the Su-30SM's combat capabilities, the Su-35's excellent maneuverability, and some features of the Su-57 also remind us of the lost aircraft. The Su-37 did not live and die in vain.
By the way
In the Sukhoi Design Bureau, there was another Su-37-a project of a single-engine attack aircraft with 18 weapon suspension points. However, the entry into the stage of pilot production coincided with the collapse of the USSR and the plane was forgotten.
Anton Valagin
