 The first T-50 prototype taking off from an airfield at Sukhoi's production plant in the Far Eastern city of Komsomolsk-on-Amur on Friday, January 29. Photo © Sergei Pashkovsky/Sukhoi. IntroductionThe PAK-FA / T-50 is a Russian project with Indian participation. The fifth generation fighter is being developed by Sukhoi, which is part of Russia's United Aircraft Corporation (UAC), to field capabilities similar to the F-22 Raptor. Flight tests of the fighter started on January 29, 2010 and are likely to be completed by 2012 when the Russian defense ministry and air force are expected to make a call on the project's future. The fighter is expected to enter service with the Russian Air Force by 2015. FeaturesThe T-50 features super maneuverability, super cruise, sensor fusion and stealth with an internal weapon bay. Exact range and speed of the jet will depend on the engines that finally power it. The performance figures given in the subsequent are published estimates. Low Observable (LO) FeaturesThe following LO features are evident in the first prototype:
Not so LO Features
Raptor LO ComparisonThe Russians say the Raptor was primarily designed to evade ground radar. The PAK-FA will be able to detect a Raptor first and then engage it using its superior maneuverability. RangeRussian sources have indicated a range of 3,400-mile, against the Raptor's officially acknowledged range of 1,850 miles, Cruise SpeedCan reportedly super-cruise at 2,000km/h RadarsThe aircraft is expected to feature a variant of the Tikhomirov NIIP AESA radar first displayed at MAKS 2009. At the event, Anatoly Sinany, Tikhomirov’s chief designer, explained that T-50’s radar antenna will have 1,500 T/R modules, produced by Iztok company from Fryazino, near Moscow. The aircarft has five radars: 3 X-band AESA, one in the nose and two on the sides, and 2 L-band in the leading edge root (LEX) extension of the wings. L-Band radars are more effective against VLO targets which are optimized only against X-Band frequencies, but their longer wavelengths reduce their resolution. The current version of the Tikhomirov AESA is able to simultaneously track 20-30 targets. The Russians say, unlike the Raptor, which is designed to evade ground radar, the T-50 is honed for detecting the Raptor earlier and then engaging it in close combat.  The all moving canted fins of the T-50 can be seen in this photo of T-50-1 in its first flight. Tikhomirov NIIP AESAIn an interview with Take Off magazine in February, 2011, Tikhomirov-NIIP Director General Yury Bely said three AESA radars are currently under development and ground based testing. The third T-50 prototype is fitted with the Tikhomirov-NIIP radar, airborne testing of which commenced in July 2012. Sensor FusionThe sensor fusion suite is being developed by Ramenskoye Design Bureau around a six-processor computer and includes visualization tools and flight instrument system. The T-50 will be able to exchange real-time data within the air group and with ground command posts. An infra-red search and track housing was visible in the prototype. PowerplantNew EngineIn April 2013, CEO of United Engine Corporation, Vladislav Masalov told the Voenno-promishlenniy courier that design of the new engines that will power the PAK-FA will be locked by end 2013. "The engine’s new configuration in terms of components was approved by the scientific and technical council last year, because some of the components did not meet the specification in the area of weight, signature, etc. The performance specification is being adjusted at the moment in cooperation with the customer. And we must complete the full-scale design in 2013," he said. According to Vladislav Masalov, the flight testing of the engine should be started in 2015. It was reported earlier that the bench tests of the engine will be started in 2014. Interim Powerplant: NPO Saturn AL-41F1 (Product 117)The initial batch of the fighters will be powered by the 14.5 tons thrust NPO Saturn AL-41F1 (Product 117) engines, the upgraded version of AL-41F1S engine developed for Su-35, which in turn is a derivative of the NPO Saturn's AL-31F series that power the Su-27/Su-30 family of fighters. The Product 117 engine comes with a new full-authority digital engine control unit and uses key components of the AL-41F1S supercruising core. The AL-41F was developed for the Mikoyan MFI fighter (Mikoyan Project 1.44). The Su-35 is the first non-US fighter with substantial sustained supersonic cruise capability, so even initial models of PAF-FA should support good supercruise giving it a good advantage in initial engagement. According to Saturn, the Product 117 engine satisfies most air force requirements (including supercruise ability) but is not a stealthy design. Final Power Plant: Product 30Moscow-based Salut and NPO Saturn are building a brand new stealthy powerplant for the T-50, which is not a derivative of the AL-41F1 (Product 117) engine that powers it. Called Product 30, the new engine will be 30% lighter than the Product 117 engine and come with 30% lower life-cycle cost. The new engine is expected to offer about 17.5 tons (171.6 kn) of thrust in full afterburning mode and somewhere in the range of 12 tons (117.7 kn) in dry mode, allowing the aircraft to comfortably super-cruise at around Mach 1.5. CEO of NPO Saturn, Ilya Fedorov, said in April 2011 that development of the new engine is running ahead of schedule and the first engines will be delivered to the Russian Ministry of Defense in 2015. The first serial T-50s should be acquired by Russian air forces the same year. In November 2012, Evgeny Marchukov, General Designer-Director of A. Lyulka Scientific-and-Technical Center, forming part of NPO Saturn, said the testing of the engine will be started in 2014. (via Lenta.ru) "The first engine will be assembled in two years and the testing will be started in the network of the engine’s full-scale development. This is a brand new engine, that is why its development is taking much time", - Marchukov said. In April 2010 AW&ST reported that the Moscow-based Salut and NPO Saturn, now part of United Engine Corp, will jointly develop the so-called second-stage engine for the T-50. Earlier, NPO Saturn and Salut were competing for the program with designs known as Eniseysk-A and Eniseysk-B, respectively. In March 2010, Sukhoi chief Mikhail Pogosyan said the T-50 would enter service with the air force powered by the Saturn 117. He indicated development of the second-stage engine could take another decade. According to Salut CEO Yuri Eliseev, in order to minimize risks, technologies that will go into the second-stage engine will be developed and tested as upgrades to the Al-31F engines that power the Su-27/Su-30 family of fighters. As part of the first stage of development, a new compressor has been fitted into a new version called AL-31FM1 with a thrust of 27,000 lb., interval between overhauls of 1,000 hr. and service life of 2,000 hr.; compared to 25,000 lb. thrust, 500 hr. between overhauls and 1,500 hr. of service life for the serial AL-31F. The AL-31FM1 already powers modernized Su-27SM Russian air force fighters and has also been approved for installation on Su-34 bombers. A further development, the AL-31FM2, is being bench-tested. The engine features a new combustor chamber and turbine and reached 29,200 lb. thrust.  T-50-1 first flight T/O. Unique Aerodynamic FeaturesThe leading edge extensions above the air-intakes are movable and are being referred to as Povorotnaya Chast Naplyva (PChN) (swiveling LEX part) MaterialsEventually, 40% of the aircraft will be made using composites. The Russians say a new type of carbon plastic was developed for PAK-FA. Weapon LoadEight next-generation air-to-air R-77 missiles / Two anti-ship bombs weighing 1,500 kg each / two long-range missiles developed by the Novator Bureau which can hit targets within a 400 kilometer range. (via RIA Novosti) Cockpit LayoutRussian President Vladimir Putin's visited Sukhoi's offices on Monday, March 1, 2010. The following is a photograph of the T-50 cockpit, a video grab from TV footage of the visit posted on DefenceNet, a Russian language website.  T-50 Cockpit TV Report on Technologies Used in Pak-FABelow is a report on the T-50 program aired by Russian 'Roscosmos TV'. An english languge transalation of the video maybe viewed at Defunct Humanity. AnalysisIDA's unclassified analysis Here is an analysis of the T-50 by a senior US Air Force officer involved in development of the F-117 and F-35. [via Ares] "It is apparent that more concern has been paid to shaping, but there are still many surface intersections and flight test probes that will stress [increase the radar] signature. In addition, we need to understand the internal mechanics of very large inlets to determine how and if engine blockage [of radar reflections] is achieved. In addition, those wing leading edge devices present challenges for [stealth] signature control." "Engines are going to be one of the long poles in the tent here," says one of the U.S. analysts. " It is unclear if in fact the aircraft is flying with the interim [117S] supercruise engine or just the AL-31FP's like those in the Su-30MKI/MKA/MKM for the initial flights. The [refined supercruise] engine likely won't be ready for several years to come, well beyond even IOC [initial operating capability]." Weapons Under Development For T-50Russia is developing tactical air-to-ground missiles and air-to-ari missiles for use with the T-50 Boris Obnosov, the head of the Tactical Missiles Corporation (KTRV), told RIA Novosti in April 2012 that the missiles are currently under test. “The development of Kh-35UE (AS-20 Kayak), Kh-38ME, Kh-58UShKE (AS-11 Kilter), and RVV-MD (AA-11 Archer) class missiles will be completed in 2012-2013,” Obnosov said. Some of the missiles that will arm the T-50 have already been proven with other fighters. The Kh-31PD (AS-17 Mod 2) class missiles, for example, have already been tested using Sukhoi Su-34 and put into serial production, he added. According to KTRV, the Kh-35UE tactical anti-ship missile has a maximum range of 260 kilometers; the supersonic Kh-31PD anti-radiation missile for use against air defense systems, can fly up to 250 kilometers; the Kh-58UShKE missile, designed to destroy pulse radars, can hit targets within 245 kilometers, and the short-range RVV-MD air-to-air missile has a maximum range of 40 kilometers. [via Ria Novosti] Public DebutThe PAK-FA made its public debut at the MAKS airshow on August 17, 2011. Engine MalfunctionWhile taking off on August 21 at MAKS-2011, a bright flame was seen to erupt from the right engine of the second prototype of the T-50. The pilot abandoned take-off and brought the aircraft to a stop using his brake chute. Speaking to the media two days after the incident, NPO Saturn general director Ilya Fedorov acknowledged that the starboard engine "suffered [a] surge" due to a malfunctioning sensor which began feeding "erroneous data" to the airplane's control system. "It was a test for the new machine. During flight trials on any brand new aircraft - and this airplane is undergoing flight trials - malfunctions such as this one are not only possible, but even mandatory." Fedorov said: "The motor did not fail - in fact, it was put by erroneous control input into a wrong mode that caused the surge. This is not an engine failure, but the wrong data input caused by a malfunctioning sensor feeding data to the flight control system. "After what had happened the motor was checked [and] the malfunctioning sensor was replaced by a good one. Today, there is no issue with this engine." InductionInduction of the PAK FA into the Russian AF is expected to start from 2016 with around 60 aircraft being inducted by 2020. [via Take-Off] Flight Test ProgressIn a press release on April 25, 2013, Sukhoi said: "Presently four planes undergo flight tests. Two more aircraft are engaged in ground experimental missions — one plane is a complex ground test stand and the other undergoes static tests. The fifth PAK FA aircraft will join the flight test program in the second half of 2013. Construction of that plane at the Sukhoi’s aircraft plant — Y.A.Gagarin KnAAZ in Komsomolsk-on-Amur is almost complete." The PAF-FA test program had logged 200 sorties by December 12, 2012, 130 by June 2012, and 75 sorties by August 2011. The 100th test flight was flown on November 3, 2011 by Sergei Bogdan flying the T-50-2. Acceptance TrialsRussia's Air Force Commander, Lt. Gen. Viktor Bondarev, said on Sunday, December 23 that the T-50 will start state flight tests in March 2013. The four aircraft currently in the test program will be ferried to Akhtubinsk in the Astrakhan Region in March next year for the state tests. A total of eight aircraft will join the state test program through 2013. "We’ll complete them [the tests] within 2-2.5 years and somewhere in 2015-early 2016 these planes are expected to go into serial production and we’ll start receiving them and supplying our combat units with them," Bondarev added. The Russian Defense Ministry plans to purchase a first batch of 10 evaluation aircraft and then 60 production-standard aircraft after 2015. [via RIA Novosti] Fourth Prototype Joins Test ProgramThe fourth prototype joined the flight test program with its maiden flight on December 12, 2012 at Sukhoi’s KnAAPO aircraft plant in Komsomolsk-on-Amur. The plane was piloted by Sergey Bogdan, a distinguished test pilot and Hero of Russia. The 40 min flight, the 200th of the T-50 flight test program, went as per the flight plan. [via Sukhoi] Third Prototype Joins Test ProgramThe third PAK-FA prototype flew for the first time from Sukhoi’s KnAAPO aircraft plant in Komsomolsk-on-Amur on November 22, 2011. Piloted by Sergey Bogdan, the aircraft spent a little more than an hour in the air before landing safely at the factory airfield runway. The test flight confirmed the stability of the aircraft and satisfactory performance of its engines. Following its acceptance tests, the aircraft was airlifted by an Antonov An-124 Ruslan to Zhukovsky near Mosocw on 28 December 2011. The T-50-3 is equipped with the Tikhomirov-NIIP AESA radar that would be fitted into the operational version of the aircraft. The T-50-3 flew its first sortie from Zhukovsky on June 21, 2012 piloted by Sergei Bogdan. The aircraft will now conduct flight trials of the Tikhomirov-NIIP AESA radar. [via Take-Off] Airborne tests a the new radar system have started, Sukhoi announced Wednesday, August 8, 2012. [via RIA Novosti] 100th FlightOn November 3, 2011 the aircraft flew its 100th sortie at Komsomolsk-on-Amur in Siberia, 21 months after its first flight. In comparison, the F-35 completed its first 100 test flights in 31 months. [vai Flight] Second Prototype Joins Test ProgramA second prototype of the aircraft joined the test program with a 44 min test flight at Komsomolsk-on-Amur, in Russia's Far East on March 3, 2011. "The second prototype of the fifth-generation fighter conducted today [Thursday] its first flight. The aircraft spent 44 minutes in the air...It was a successful flight which met all set parameters," Sukhoi said in a statement.  Second prototype getting airborne on March 3, 2011. Photo Credit: Sukhoi.org More photos of the 2nd prototypes first flight maybe viewed at the Sukhoi website. As on March 3, the first T-50 stealth fighter prototype had logged 39 flight test sorties. On June 17, 2010, Russia Today posted this YouTube video of a flight demonstration by the aircraft. As on March 3, the first T-50 stealth fighter prototype had logged 39 flight test sorties. On June 17, 2010, Russia Today posted this YouTube video of a flight demonstration by the aircraft. On April 30, 2010 Flight magazine quoting a Sukhoi press release reported that the aircraft had been moved from Komsomolsk-on-Amur airport to Zhukovsky near Moscow on completion of the first phase of flight testing comprising 6 sorties. Future flight tests will be done at Zhukovsky, which will also host MAKS in August. News Track(Latest news stories are posted on top) Display at Zhukovsky in August, 2012The T-59 was shown at a festival dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the establishment of Russia’s Air Force, on August 11-12 near the town of Zhukovsky in the Moscow Region. United Aircraft chief Mikhail Pogosyan told Flight magazine in June 2011 that the PAK-FA is likely to fly at the MAKS airshow in August 2011. "There is no aircraft in the world that doesn't undergo certain modifications based on the test [programme] results. The most successful only require minor modifications to support systems. Our experience so far gives us confidence that we will avoid significant problems. The past year gives us sound grounds to say we are moving in the right direction," he said. "We're quite happy and pleased with the course of testing." New Flight VideoThe following new video showing a T-50 test flight appeared on YouTube on May 19, 2010. First FlightA T-50 prototype took to the skies on its maiden flight on Friday, January 29, 2010 from an airfield at Sukhoi's production plant in the Far Eastern city of Komsomolsk-on-Amur. The twin engine aircraft was as piloted by Sergei Bogdan and "performed excellently" during its 47 minutes test flight. "In the course of the flight we conducted initial evaluation of the aircraft controllability," said Sukhoi director general Mikhail Pogosyan. "These [PAK FA] aircraft, together with upgraded fourth-generation fighters, will define Russian air force potential for the next decades," he added. Indian ParticipationInteresting, Pogosyan acknowledged India's attempt to join the program. "I am strongly convinced that our joint project will excel its Western rivals in cost-effectiveness and will not only allow strengthening the defence power of Russian and Indian air forces, but also gain a significant share of the world market," he said. The first stage of flight trials will be completed by 2012, when the Russian defense ministry and air force will make a call on the project's future. Engine Development DelaysSpeaking at MAKS 2009 on Thursday, August 20, 2009 Russian Air Force Chief Alexander Zelin acknowledged problems with the development of FGFA engines. "For the time being the aircraft will use Saturn engines. There are problems, I admit, but research is continuing," he said. Zelin also confirmed a second FGFA prototype is undergoing ground tests. "The second aircraft, which is undergoing ground tests, is already here in Moscow," Zelin said. Taxi TrialsAviation Week reported on December 28, 2008 that the first taxi trials were successfully performed at Sukhoi’s Komsomol-on-Amur KnAAPO manufacturing facility, where prototypes are being built. |
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PAK-FA / T-50 |