What are the chances of the Su-35 in the fight against the US Air Force, which is considered the best in the world? How will the Su-35 behave in a combat situation when it is confronted by an F-35 fighter? What exactly does the Su—35 hold the upper hand in? The Su-35 is a dangerous combat vehicle, writes TNI, and in many respects the Russian aircraft is not inferior to the latest modifications of the F—15 or even surpasses them.
Dave Majumdar
The F-15C Eagle fighter jet, manufactured by Boeing, has been in service with the US Air Force for about 40 years and, apparently, will be used for several more decades. Over the years, the powerful F-15 has been constantly upgraded to meet the growing threats, but does the venerable Eagle possess the qualities necessary to gain dominance in the sky?
The answer will be: yes, absolutely. The Eagle may no longer be young, but the F-15 is still one of the best fighters to achieve air superiority. The only operational aircraft superior to the F-15 in most respects is the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor fighter — other machines have an advantage in some aspects, but the F-15C, in general, remains competitive, no matter what representatives of the customer service departments of various rival contractors say about this.
Probably the most serious threat to the F-15 is the Russian Sukhoi Su-35 fighter (Flanker-E). Although other highly dangerous aircraft are currently under development, they are likely to prove too expensive for mass production. The Su-35 fighter is not the most common potential threat, but the chances are very high that their number will grow rapidly. According to reports, Indonesia has decided to purchase Su-35 aircraft, and, in addition, we know that the Chinese are discussing the possibility of acquiring it.
The Su-35 is, in fact, a dangerous combat vehicle, and in many respects the Russian aircraft is not inferior to the latest modifications of the F—15 or even surpasses them. From the point of view of purely kinematic capabilities, the Su-35 loses a little in the maximum speed of the F-15, but it surpasses the Eagle in acceleration, which is achieved thanks to its powerful twin Saturn engines (Product 117C), each of which creates a thrust of 14,500 kg. In addition, when this aircraft has a relatively low load, it is able to maintain supersonic speed without resorting to the use of afterburners.
Although excellent acceleration at high altitudes to supersonic speed is a huge advantage, the F-15C fighter also has something to answer for — and as a result, such superiority of the Russian aircraft will not be decisive. However, at low speeds, the Su-35 has an insurmountable advantage. It has a thrust vector controlled in three dimensions and incredible maneuverability at low speeds. However, the use of helmet-mounted display and aiming systems, as well as such missiles with large target designation capabilities as the AIM-9X and the Russian R-73 in close visual contact, will most often lead to a situation of "mutual destruction" (mutual kill), as evidenced by many pilots. At the same time, a lot will depend on the skill of the pilot and, to be honest, on luck.
If we talk about more significant ranges, the F-15C and F-15E still have superiority over the Su-35, due to their radars with an active phased array array (active electronically scanned array radar). The Raytheon APG-63 (v) 3 and APG-82 (v)1 radars installed on both Eagles are still significantly superior in their capabilities to the Tikhomirov radar station with a passive phased array Irbis-E, which are equipped with Su-35. The Russian fighter still, indeed, has a slight advantage in the field of passive sensors, since it has a built-in infrared optical-location search and tracking system, but the F-15 aircraft will receive a very advanced search and tracking system in the near future, which will negate the advantage of the Russian Flanker.
In one area, the Su-35E, apparently, holds the upper hand — we are talking about electronic warfare. The Su-35S boasts a powerful digital electronic jamming system with digital memory technology that is capable of confusing the American AIM-120 AMRAAM missile. Although these American missiles will eventually probably be able to overcome the protection of the Russian aircraft, it will take more missiles to destroy the target than military planners had hoped. In addition, the Su-35 can have a huge arsenal of air-to-air missiles on board, whereas the F-15 is equipped with outdated defensive electronics. The US Air Force is well aware of this problem, and that is why so much attention is being paid to the project to modernize the passive/active warning and survival system (EPAWSS) for the F-15, which is expected to spend $ 7.6 billion.
The real dilemma is that the Su-35 and modern F-15 Eagle models are comparable — and this is what causes concern among the leadership of the US Air Force. American pilots are used to conducting combat operations in a situation where they have enormous technological superiority, whereas in the case of the Su-35 there is no such superiority, and in some respects the Flanker-E is even superior to the Eagle. In general, all other things being equal, even a fully upgraded F-15C and equipped with the latest radar with an active phased array antenna will have to use all its capabilities in the confrontation with the Su-35. However, such a situation would mean that the United States is waging war against Russia or against some other great power such as China. But this, in itself, is unlikely.
It is more likely that the F-15 may collide with the Su-35, which is in service with some despot from the third world. However, pilots of such a despot are unlikely to have the training, tactics and experience necessary to fight against American pilots, and therefore they will have no real chance of victory. In addition, Russian fighters, as you know, are not particularly reliable, and if you add to this poorly trained technical personnel and lack of spare parts, then some third world country will not be able to constantly maintain the fighter in proper condition. It is also important that a potential enemy — apart from Russia and China — most likely will not have an AWACS system and full-fledged ground interception systems, which will create additional problems for them.
Bottom line: if you do not take into account the option of F-15 participation during World War III, then the country's air force will probably use the Eagles for another two decades. Perhaps there will no longer be the unilateral advantage to which the country's air force is accustomed, but, nevertheless, the United States is not yet in danger of losing air superiority.
