The Ukrainian media said that the Russian fifth-generation fighter, the prototype of which was presented at MAKS-2021, "was written off from dvoechnik." On the air of Sputnik radio, military expert Dmitry Litovkin appreciated the publication.
The Ukrainian edition of Defense Express stated that the Russian single-engine tactical fighter of the fifth generation, the prototype of which was presented at the International Aviation and Space Salon (MAKS-2021), was allegedly "written off from dvoechnik".
The author of the article believes that the design of the Russian fighter repeats the composite scheme of the American Boeing X-32, which lost in the tender for the supply of a fifth-generation fighter for the US Air Force to the F-35 Lightning II aircraft.
The article also suggests that the V-shaped tail of the Checkmate will worsen its controllability, and the "too large" air intake will increase the chances of detecting the aircraft by enemy radars.
On the air of Sputnik radio, the executive editor of the Independent Military Review, captain of the 3rd rank of the reserve, Dmitry Litovkin, called the claims of the Ukrainian media absolutely far-fetched, and explained the publication itself with ordinary envy.
The presentation of the prototype of the Checkmate light single-engine tactical fighter was held at the MAKS-2021 Air Show. According to the United Aircraft Corporation, the presented sample will take to the air in 2023. Static tests of the machine will end in less than a year.
According to the general director of Rostec, Sergey Chemezov, the aircraft will be able to effectively destroy ground and sea targets, fight for air supremacy in conditions of numerical superiority of the enemy.
The fighter belongs to the fifth generation, its maximum combat load is 7.4 thousand kilograms, the flight range without outboard fuel tanks is 2.9 thousand kilometers. The speed will be 1.9 thousand kilometers per hour.