Since flying for the first time on January 29, 2010 and entering the service of the Russian Air Force at the end of 2020, many questions have been asked by netizens, when did the Sukhoi Su-57 Felon stealth fighter jet compete in real air-to-air combat, to the point of bringing down the opponent's aircraft?
So far, the Su-57 has been involved in Russia's military operations in Syria, and was said to have been deployed on a limited basis in the early stages of Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February. However, the Su-57 in military operations is deployed for air-to-surface missions, which means that it does not face off against opposing fighter jets.
Quoted from eurasiantimes.com (19/10/2022), it was mentioned for the first time that Russia's fifth-generation fighter jet, the Su-57, managed to bring down an opponent's fighter jet, namely the target of a Su-27 fighter jet belonging to the Ukrainian Air Force.
The claim, originating from svpressa.ru, reveals that the Ukrainian Su-27 was shot down using a hypersonic long-range air-to-air missile, the Vympel R-37M. Still from the same source, it is said that the Su-27 was at an altitude to intercept the Russian kamikaze drone Geran-2 (Shaded-136).
According to the report, the Su-57 was most likely responsible for firing the missile, as US Air Force AWACS patrolling Poland and Romania in 24/7 mode were unable to detect it.
Unfortunately, the location and date of the incident is not stated. For the record, the R-37M missile can also be launched from MiG-31BM and Sukhoi Su-35 fighter jets. It was previously widely reported that the MiG-31BM used these missiles to strike targets in Ukraine.
Samuel Ramani, foreign and defense policy expert, tweeted that a Russian MiG-31 armed with R-37M missiles and Kinzhal hypersonic missiles recently landed in Belarus.
Meanwhile, Russian media claimed that the Russian Air Force used a new technique to locate Ukrainian air defense installations. In this tactic, Russian warplanes fire R-37M (RVV-BD) missiles in anticipation of rocket or missile attacks from Ukrainian air defense systems. Thus, the counterattack of the Ukrainian troops revealed their position.
AWACS Killer
The R-37 missile itself is not very recent, lined up as the Very Long Range Missile, the R-37 design has been first designed since the early 1980s, and was first known to exist in 1989.
With a weight of up to 600 kg and a firing range of up to 398 km, this super long-range air-to-air missile is prepared by Russia (d/h – Soviet Union) as a competitor to the United States' AIM-54 Phoenix. Even the R-37's glide speed reaches Mach 6, while the famous AIM-54 Phoenix is released from the F-14 Tomcat, the maximum speed is Mach 5.
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| AWACS Killer |
With a shooting range beyond visual range, as well as super speed, of course this missile target is very chosen and strategic. For example, the target of the R-37 is the AWACS (Airborne Warning And Control System) reconnaissance aircraft and C4ISTAR capable aircraft.
The latest variant, called the R-37M, can track targets with semi-active and active radar homing. Targets can also dauber from an altitude of 15 to 25,000 meters.
Compared to the first generation R-37 which reached a weight of 600 kg, the R-37M weight can be reduced to 510 kg. The warhead is HE (High Explosive) fragmented with a weight of 60 kg, although it doesn't hit the target directly, the explosion effect is believed to be able to destroy AWACS. Speed is maintained at Mach 6 or 7,350 km per hour.
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