the competitiveness of the Komsomolsk
plant. Furthermore, as the new aircraft
was then intended solely for export, the
entire program was funded exclusively
by Sukhoi and its partners. The first
Su-35-1, ‘901’, flew on February 19, 2008,
followed by ‘902’ on October 2, 2008.Into service
Despite glowing early evaluation,
customers failed to materialize, and the
Russian Ministry of Defense stepped
in to order 48 examples of the Su-35S
during the MAKS airshow in August 2009.
The VKS concluded that converting 10
fighter regiments, each equipped solely
with 36 aircraft (the Russian Aerospace
Forces currently have as many ‘Flanker’operational units) with expensive
fifth-generation fighters was too costly.
Therefore another fighter, simpler and
cheaper than the Su-57 (PAK FA), was
needed. It still, however, had to meet
requirements including a range of at least
3,000km, which ruled out a lightweight
type. Consequently, the Su-35 (along with
the Su-30SM) will now complement the
Su-57 in the future Russian fighter force.
On May 3, 2011, Su-35S-1, the first
aircraft in Russian Aerospace Forces
configuration — and the third Su-35 to
fly — made its first flight at Komsomolsk-
on-Amur. Avionics integration problems
pegged back initial testing. Indeed,
as mentioned above, the Su-35S only
recently completed the second stage ofstate evaluation, which means that it fully
meets requirements of the contracting
authority. The appropriate document was
signed on October 2, 2017.
However, Su-35S deliveries to Russian
units began several years earlier. On
February 12, 2014, the first batch of
12 aircraft was ceremonially inducted
to the first operational unit, the 23rd
IAP (Istrebitelnyi Aviatsionnyi Polk,
Fighter Aviation Regiment) at Dzyomgi
(Komsomolsk-on-Amur). In July 2015
deliveries commenced to the 22nd IAP at
Tsentralnaya Uglovaya (Vladivostok), and
then in December 2016 to the 159th IAP at
Besovets in Karelia near the Finnish border.
In December 2015, Russia ordered
50 more fighters, increasing the totalTop: The Su-35’s
twin AL-41F1S
(izdeliye 117S)
engines in full
reheat during a
display routine.
The thrust-
vectoring agility
of the Su-35 is
nothing short of
extraordinary.
Above left to right:
A Su-35S with red
Kh-38Ms air-to-
ground missiles
loaded.
The Su-35
is touted as
the Russian
Aerospace Forces’
accompaniment
to the Su-57.72 February 2018 //^ http://www.combataircraft.net
FIGHTER FOCUS // Su-35
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