Russia unveiled a new single-engine fighter at the Zhukovsky International Airport on the outskirts of Moscow. The relevant pictures were first published on social media on July 15 as if they were leaked photos. They are published deliberately. However, it is unclear whether this is a model of the new-generation Russian fighter or a prototype. If this is a prototype it also means the aircraft is one of the best-kept secrets of the Russian defence industry in recent decades.
The images show a full-size airframe wrapped in a black protective covering. The aircraft will take place during the MAKS 2021 show.
The fighter appears to be smaller than the Su-57 twin-engine stealth fighter, which entered service last year. Most probably, it has a single-engine from what is visible in the photographs.
According to previous reports, this new fifth-generation aircraft developed by Sukhoi has a maximum take-off weight of 18 tons, a maximum speed of over Mach 2. The new aircraft does not have horizontal stabilizers, depending on the vectoring of the exhaust and its vertical stabilizers in the form of V for pitching manoeuvres.
A website launched ahead of the aircraft’s unveiling on the first day of the show indicates that the fighter might be called “Checkmate”.
National Interest reported that the jet might be “optionally manned”, which means it could have the capability of flying with or without an operator on board.
The new jet is speculated to have a low radar signature, a hallmark of stealth technology. Russia has struggled to master stealth technology owing to the sanctions-hit economy and production limitations.
