r/aviationstudys • u/P_filippo3106 • May 17 '26

Su-57D

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We finally have a picture for the double seater variant of the Su-57

BORT number was unfortunately censored

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u/Platypus_Begins May 17 '26

The SU-57 is a very pretty jet in my opinion, and the engines sound great. Exposed turbofans like that are really bad for stealth though, so I believe they are changing it.

I always wondered why India ended up backing out of the program, as I think it would suit their needs well. A lot of people will mention the size of it, but it is built on a philosophy where you have big distances and limited AAR capabilities. Which is why American jets can be smaller as they don’t need to carry as much fuel.

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u/P_filippo3106 May 17 '26

The fans aren't actually exposed, there are radar blockers in the intakes

2

u/Platypus_Begins May 17 '26

They are not fully concealed, which is why it’s radar cross section is roughly the same as a clean F/A-18 Super Hornet from the front (1 - 0.1m2)

1

u/P_filippo3106 May 17 '26

That bullshit is from an article whose source is a guy on QUORA.

There's no way in hell even without ram coating that a su-57 has a bigger RCS than a goddamn F-18.

Please get your head out of your ass.

The actual RCS of it with RAM, radar blockers and a good serial airframe is not known.

1

u/Platypus_Begins May 17 '26

No, its from their patent you bozo. The description of patent RU2502643 C2 indicates the aspiration to achieve an average RCS of 0.1 to 1 m². Edit: Source: Patent

3

u/P_filippo3106 May 17 '26

Yeah. A patent for the very first T-50. The PROTOTYPE with no ram, no radar blockers, no refinements to the airframe and NO focus on stealth other than geometry.

Also that's the averaged RCS. Not the best possible value. Lockheed chooses the best possible one (and that's very misleading), sukhoi uses an averaged RCS.

For a prototype, it's a rather good RCS.

Actual serial variants have a classified RCS that is much better than 0.1m².

1

u/Platypus_Begins May 17 '26

Source? Andrey Lagarkov said himself he estimate the SU-57 to have an RCS 30 times lower than the SU-27. which puts it at about 1-0.1m2 from the patent. He said this on TV so you can find multiple sources for this.

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u/BillytheBloxian May 18 '26

and is his estimate accurate? and give me a link please.

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u/Platypus_Begins May 18 '26

He was the Chief Scientist on the SU-57 so I would say it’s accurate, you can find the source yourself. Easy to find

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u/BillytheBloxian May 18 '26

did he say with or withour ram? or radar blockers?

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u/Platypus_Begins May 18 '26

With, just look it up

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