What will Russia's Su-57 super fighter do if it is present in Syria?

Unofficial information about Russia deploying super fighter Su-57 in Syria was posted on social networks, attracting the attention of many world military experts.

Although the Kremlin and the Russian Ministry of Defense have not yet commented on this information, military experts have given their opinions on the missions that the Su-57 super fighter jet could undertake if deployed in Syria.

Andrei Frolov, Editor-in-Chief of a Russian military publishing house, told RBC that the Su-57's deployment in Syria is an effective way to promote this super fighter, especially to the Indian market through the influence of the Russia-India 5th generation fighter development cooperation program (FGFA) with the participation of Sukhoi and HAL.

“Lockheed Martin is present in the Indian market, and India’s FGFA project is in trouble,” Frolov said. “The announcement of the Su-57 in 2017 and its deployment in Syria now is aimed at convincing India that the FGFA is a real project, with a prototype that not only flies but is fully combat-capable.”

For his part, Lieutenant General Nikolai Antoshkin, commander and combat instructor of the Russian Air Force, explained that although the first squadron of Su-57s will soon be deployed at the Lipetsk Combat Training Center, the fighter, like other weapons, is tested primarily in combat. Therefore, sending Su-57s to Syria is a natural solution.

Lieutenant General Antoshkin emphasized that the Su-57 is an excellent and useful tool in case of any provocation against the Russian military in Syria. In addition, Lieutenant General Antoshkin also commented on rumors surrounding the US Air Force deploying F-22 Raptor fighters to Syria because of the presence of the Russian Air Force there.

Lieutenant General Antoshkin commented that Russia's Su-57 has higher maneuverability than the US F-22 thanks to its 3D thrust vector engine system, which allows the Su-57 to easily reach Mach 2 speeds.

“With the integrated Belka radar system, the Su-57 can detect stealth fighters and track 10 targets at the same time. In addition, the fighter's excellent electronic warfare module helps to prevent enemy homing missiles,” Lieutenant General Antoshkin explained.

In terms of weapons systems, the Su-57 has two internal weapon bays arranged along the length of the fighter, each of which can carry four K-77M air-to-air missiles with a range of nearly 200 km and is a worthy opponent of the US AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile.

The deployment of just two Su-57 super fighters in Syria will not be enough to give Russia a military advantage on the Syrian battlefield, Lieutenant General Antoshkin said, but this is enough to make potential opponents of the Russian military think very carefully about clashing with the Russians on the Syrian battlefield.

Many Western military experts agree that Russia's deployment of the Su-57 super fighter in Syria, if any, is aimed at advertising weapons and collecting valuable intelligence about the strength of the US Air Force in the region.

MagazinePopular MechanicsHe said that the deployment of the Su-57 super fighter in Syria will give the Russian military the opportunity to “study a lot about how jet engines work in less than ideal conditions, how good the sensors are at tracking targets in the sky and on the ground, and how difficult it is to maintain the operation of this fighter jet thousands of kilometers away from Russia.”

However, the magazine said that Russia's Su-57 fighter jets may have to face US F-22 fighters in US-controlled airspace, as well as be threatened by attacks carried out by rebels targeting Russia's Hmeymim Air Base in Syria.

And editor Dave Majumdar ofNational Interest, in an interview with Russian military expert Vasily Kashin at the Moscow-based Center for Comprehensive and International Studies, commented that the deployment of the Su-57 in Syria is aimed at real combat testing, which will help prepare for the mass production of the Su-57.

The deployment of the Su-57 in Syria will help the Russian military gain valuable experience and data on the Su-57's combat operations in real combat conditions, including its active electronically scanned array radar and electronic intelligence systems. There may even be some limited combat missions performed by the Su-57, editor Majumdar wrote./.