The UK's defense ministry said on Monday that as Russia's war campaign continues, Moscow is hesitant to deploy some of its modern aircraft over the skies of Ukraine. They said that the Kremlin has likely limited operations of Su-57 Felon fighter jets within Russian borders for fear of "reputational damage" in case they are shot down.
On the other hand, the government agency also said that Vladimir Putin's soldiers are thought to be using modern aircraft to lob long-range missiles into Ukraine's territory as it was seen flying last summer.
Su-57 Felon Jet
According to the UK Defense Ministry, the Su-57 Felon is Russia's most sophisticated fifth-generation supersonic combat fighter jet. The Russian official media even said that the Russian military got its first Su-57 fighter, capable of supersonic cruising speeds, in 2020.
The non-profit policy thinks tank RAND Corporation said the twin-engine, single-seat jet has been under development since 2002, intending to compete with the F-35 fighter jet.
Newsweek reports that the Royal United Services Institute in the UK regarded the Su-57 Felon fighters as "not yet having evolved into a viable frontline weapons system," but they were still stealth aircraft with "potential."
The Su-57 was spotted flying over Syria in 2018 while still in construction. The Russian official media news releases also frequently mention the aircraft. On August 2022, the country's state media reported that the Russian Aerospace Force (VKS) was scheduled to receive 22 Su-57 planes by the end of 2024, and its number will rise to 75 by 2028.
However, military researcher Harry J. Kazianis believes it would be bad PR for Russia to send its Su-57 aircraft into Ukraine if the latter manages to shoot it down. It would doubt the capabilities of the Russian military and airforce much more than they already do.
Russia's Su-57 Felon Jet Vs. US F-35, F-22 Fighter Jets
Russia's Su-57 Felon jet was developed in hopes of competing with the F-35 jet of the US. Russian state media hailed its arrival into the hands of the Russian military in 2020.
A separate report from Newsweek said that the F-22 Raptor aircraft of the US is also a fifth-generation stealth jet hailed by manufacturers at Lockheed Martin as the "best air dominance fighter in the world" with a wingspan of 44.5 feet and length of 62 feet, which first took to the skies in 1997.
But the Su-57 Felon jet was mostly compared to the F-35 by the same manufacturer as F-22 Raptor. Lockheed Martin describes the former as the "most lethal, survivable, and connected fighter aircraft in the world." It is a 51.4-foot-long aircraft with 35 feet wingspan, a vital part of the US Air Force.
Experts argue that the Su-57 does not truly compare to the F-22 or F-35 in the traditional set despite being a stealth aircraft and exceeding the capabilities of fourth-generation fighter jets. They said there is no way Russia is more advanced in stealth technology, weapons, and pilot training.
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