Stealth operations

This post is about the long awaited Russian military aircraft technology response, Sukhoi T-50, to the US F-22 Raptor. For those who do not keep up with fighter aircraft, the F-22 is America's top of the line fighter aircraft being referred to as the only operational 5th generation fighter currently in existence. The other US 5th generation fighter is the F-35 Lightning II planned for delivery later this year. In a nutshell, these aircraft have all of the latest developments in avionics, materials, engines, and electronics integrated into an advanced system. Once distinction of the next generation aircraft is stealth technology or the ability to evade most radars. 5th generation aircraft have a significant advantage during combat over older 4th generation and earlier fighters.

The Sukhoi T-50 is a product of the once proud Russian military industrial complex under the Soviets that easily kept up with the Western bloc countries until communism fell in 1991. Now, the Russian arms producers are just a remnant of their former greatness. It partially explains why it took so long to produce the initial prototype. It appears as if the plane has a long way to go before actually combat readiness.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin hailed the flight as a "big step forward," but admitted that "a lot remains to be done in terms of engines and armament."

Reading further into the article, it appears the new technology is NOT a significant change from the prior generation of aircraft.

The NPO Saturn company said in a statement that the jet has new engines, but military analysts suggested that they were a slightly modernized version of the Soviet-era engine powering the Su-27 family of fighters.

"It's a humbug," said independent military analyst Pavel Felgenhauer. "It's just a prototype lacking new engines and a new radar. It takes new materials to build a fifth-generation fighter, and Russia lacks them."

It appears as if this new plane is an upgrade for the Russian military and not really a true 5th generation fighter. In the end, I think Russia may have it right in improving upon their tried and true technology into better weapons. In contrast, the US spent tens of billions of dollars to build a complete new weapon without a defined military need or combat role.