In the next two years, the engine from the Su-35 will be tested on combat aircraft Su-30SM
Moscow. January 3. INTERFAX - Deliveries to the Russian military of upgraded Su-30SM2 fighters with a more advanced engine and armament may begin in 2023, an aviation industry source told Interfax.
"Currently, special flight tests (SLI) of the Su-30SM aircraft with the AL-41F-1C engine are being carried out (serial Su-35 - IF fighters are equipped with the same). It is planned that they will be completed by December 2023," the agency interlocutor said.
According to him, in total, the aircraft will have more than 150 test flights, now about 10% have been completed.
The source noted that at the moment, when upgrading the fighter to the level of the Su-30SM2, emphasis is placed on equipping with additional aviation weapons. The issue of installing AL-41F-1C engines on it and conducting tests starting from 2023 is being resolved.
"In the process of performing the SLI on Su-30SM(D) and Su-30SM2 aircraft, it is planned to issue a preliminary conclusion, which will allow, according to the decision of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, to deliver Su-30SM2 aircraft with AL-41F-1C engines in 2023," the agency interlocutor said.
As Interfax reported, at the Army 2020 forum, the Ministry of Defense and the UAC signed a contract for the supply of upgraded Su-30SM2 for the VKS and the Russian Navy. Earlier, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said that the agency would order 21 new-built fighters.
According to the head of the UAC Yuri Slyusar, the combat capabilities of the upgraded aircraft will be significantly expanded, including through a new range of weapons. In addition, the Su-30SM2 will be fully import-substituted.
On August 12, 2020, Shoigu announced that the specialists of the Irkutsk Aircraft Factory installed the engines used on the Su-35S on the Su-30SM fighter, flight tests will be conducted in the near future.
The development of a new modification of the Su-30SM fighter became known in July 2019. Then an Interfax source in the aviation industry reported on the ongoing work under the code "Su-30SM(D)", which involves the installation of the most modern AL-41F-1C aircraft engines on the Su-30SM, which have increased thrust, resource and efficiency, so that the fighter can stay in the air longer with the same amount of fuel.
The Su-30SM (serial upgraded) is a multi-purpose fighter of the "4+" generation, developed by the Sukhoi Design Bureau and mass-produced at the Irkutsk Aircraft Factory of the Irkut Corporation (both companies are part of the UAC). It is designed to gain air supremacy, block enemy airfields at great depth, and destroy air, ground and sea targets with high-precision air-to-air and air-to-surface weapons.
Su-30SM aircraft have been serially supplied to the troops since 2013. To date, they have become the most numerous type of modern fighters in service - the VKS and the Russian Navy have already received more than 100 such machines.
