F22 against Su37. Their comparison

Requirements for the fifth generation aircraft are quite extensive. The main of them can be expressed by two definitions - low visibility and multifunctionality.

Americans have high hopes for the F-22. We are armed with a multi-purpose Su-37. And many military experts are asking themselves a question. Will it be possible to defeat F22 against Su37?

History of the creation of the aircraft F-22

The plans of the United States have long been the creation of such an aircraft, which would radically differ in its flight characteristics from those aircraft that were in service.

The Air Force command formulated the basic requirements for the proposed fighter.

The machine should have:

• New avionics;
• Engines running computers;
• Must remain invisible to the means of detecting air targets.

The competition itself was started already in mid-1986. To work on the creation of a new machine, teams from two KBs were involved. Terms of the competition limited the time frame: the design was given 50 months.

At the same time, the variant of comparison was not specified: F22 against Suk37.

And by the beginning of 1990, both cars with the designations "Product YF-22" and "Product YF-23" were ready.

In the design process, huge amounts of money were spent. As a consequence, customers immediately discarded the expensive radar, which performed the function of a circular survey of the vessel. Also, we had to abandon the additional optical and protective systems. Such sacrifices are caused by the fact that the project went beyond the financing of the F-22 project.

In the summer of 1991, the machine won, in the creation of which took part such companies as Lockheed, Boeing and Dynamics.

Expensive toy?

Probably everyone remembers the expression "in weight of gold"? So, these words are very suitable for the American aircraft F22. Against the Su37 (we will find out its price later) only the initial cost of the "American" was 4.5 times higher. And if we also take into account indirect costs, the full price of the "superweapon" has reached the $ 350 million mark!

So, the price of 19.7 tons of gold (and so much weighs an empty F-22) during 2006 was the same 350 million dollars!

How the Su-37 was created

The decision to create the Su-37 was made in the distant 1986 military-industrial complex under the USSR Council of Ministers.

The first prototype was created taking into account the realities of the Cold War - the Russian "Terminator" versus "Raptor" (USA).

The aircraft was created with the involvement of design bureaus named after P. Sukhoi and A. Lyulka (OKB "Saturn"). Also, other institutions and organizations were involved in the work. Among the developers was the French firm "Sextan avionics"

Experimental flights, in which the new powerful engines AL-37FU were tested, were conducted in the early 90s. The engines were created with increased thrust and with swivel nozzles.

The results of the tests were so successful that they made it possible to accelerate the creation of a new aircraft.

But August 1991 came, and a series of events followed - the disintegration of the Soviet Union, the liquidation of the Minaviaprom and, as a result, the financing of the works was stopped. All this led to the fact that the program to create a prospective aircraft was curtailed and safely forgotten.

So opponents from the US in those days could only rejoice that in the virtual war "Raptor" against the Su-37 "they lost so serious rival.

Design Features F-22 Raptor

With the F-22, Americans, in order to reduce the visibility on the enemy radar, decided to put all the weapons inside the aircraft.

Landing places on the wings of the aircraft for the placement of mounted weapons on the plane are, but for the purposes of camouflage they are practically not used.

The use of composite materials in the body of the flying machine (which is 40% of the total coverage) allowed to reduce the overall weight of the structure. In addition to reducing weight, the use of such materials can increase the resistance of the structure to overheating.

Also, the body of the aircraft was covered with a material that successfully absorbed radio waves. With the same purpose (to increase low-visibility) the pilot's cockpit and the chassis under the chassis were made in sawtooth form. Such forms made it possible to effectively dissipate reflected electromagnetic waves from the enemy radar.

On the parameters of low-visibility, of course, wins F22 (against Cy37). This is also assisted by a diamond-shaped wing shape.

The Raptor power plant is a combination of two P & W F119-PW-100 engines, on which flat jet nozzles characteristic for this aircraft are placed. The use of ceramic materials in their design can significantly reduce the visibility of the machine in the IR spectrum.

With an engine power of 11,000 kg, the aircraft can easily overcome the speed barrier of sound. And this parameter can boast a few number of combat vehicles, including F-22 and Su-37.

Features of the Su-37

The Russian rival F-22 is equipped with an automated control system. This ensures the movement of absolutely all aerodynamic controls and the rotation of the engine nozzle with the control knob.

The electronic system automatically provides fighter protection, depending not only on its weight, but also on the chosen flight mode. Also, the aircraft is equipped with an automatic withdrawal system from the "corkscrew" mode.

The pilot's cabin was also subjected to a radical transformation. The central control knob was replaced by a side handle. And the engine control levers were replaced by strain gages, which directly improved the control of the engine by means of knobs.

What did it give? Improved piloting accuracy, aircraft control improved when the pilot was subjected to large overloads. The aircraft was equipped with an integral electric remote control system, by means of which the propulsion vector of the propulsion system is automatically changed. This decision made it possible to give the aircraft super maneuverability at small and almost zero flight speeds, which positively affects the comparison of F22 against Su37.

The information field on the instrument panel has also changed. Before the pilot, there are now four multifunctional LCD monitors developed by the French company Sextan Avionics. The monitors are protected against sunlight and, now the pilot can see the main dynamic parameters in any weather conditions.

An additional indicator is also installed on the background of the windshield, which displays the necessary information.

Increasing the comfort level of the cabin increased the portability of overloads for the pilot, and this, in turn, makes it possible to fully realize all the combat capabilities of the Su-37 vs F-22 combat vehicle even by drill pilots.

How much is the Su-37

Based on the results of a broad marketing analysis carried out by the developers, it was found that the potential buyers of the Su-37 are represented by a spectrum of 24 countries. The number of advance orders from different countries already equals 1,000 products!

Such a great interest is due not only to the unique characteristics, but also to the attractive cost of the aircraft on the international market, which, especially in comparison (F22 versus Suk37), does not exceed $ 30 million.

Armament of the Raptor

The fighting power of the F-22 Raptor consists of a 20-mm gun of the M61A2 Vulcan class, designed for 480 salvos. The machine can also carry six AIM-120C AMRAAM air-to-air missiles and two AIM-9M Sidewinder missiles on the wing pylons.

The aircraft also carries a bomb load, which consists of corrected JDAM type bombs and guided bombs like GBU-39. In this supersonic speed does not prevent the aircraft from making an attack.

Combat equipment Su-37

Comparison of the F-22 and Su-37 must begin with the rifle and cannon armament of the Russian fighter. It consists of a quick-firing single-barreled 30 mm gun GSh-301, which is located in the right wing and has a 150-round ammunition.

The rocket and bomber equipment complements firepower. It is placed on beam holders in 12 points:

• 6 - under the wing brackets;
• 2- under the tips of the wing;
• 2 - under the engines;
• 2- under the Tsetlanoplan.

The aircraft can be equipped with:

• 8 guided air-to-air missiles;
• 10 medium-range missiles with active homing heads;
• 6 missiles for close air combat R-73;
• 6 with adjustable air bombs KAB-500Kr with guidance system.

When using the X-29L, S-25LD and X-59M missiles, the fighter is equipped with weapons control containers.

All unmanaged air-to-ground air-defense equipment collects 8 tons in total. It can be represented by:

• 16 bombs FAB-500M54;
• 14 bombs FAB-500M62 FAB-500M62;
• 14 incendiary tanks ZB-500;
• 48 by the OFAB-100-120 bombs;
• 8 containers of KMGU;
• 120 unguided rockets S-8 (6 blocks B-8M1);
• 30 S-13 missiles (6 UB-13 units);
• 6 missiles S-25 (in PU O-25).

The complex of early detection is represented by pulse-Doppler radar with fixed antenna array and onboard radar for rear view.

The Su-37 sighting system consists of a thermal imager, which is combined with a laser rangefinder-designator. In this case, the installation allows you to detect and conduct several targets at the same time.

"Jumping" Su-37

Domestic "Drying" has acquired such high fighting qualities that they should be mentioned separately.

The airplane can change the slope by an angle of up to 180 °, withstand it for the entire time while launching the rocket. The combat vehicle has no restrictions in the angles of attack. And due to the increase in the lifting force , it became possible to perform new aerobatics figures:

1. Turn in the plane by 360 °.
2. A forced fire turn.
3. Turn on the vertical.
4. Execution of "cobra" at the corners of 150 ° - 180 °.
5. Flip during the execution of the "bell" figure.
6. A coup, with a loss of altitude of 300-400m.

With such maneuvering capabilities, the Su-37 "Terminator" (against the F-22 "Raptor") looks extremely advantageous, which provides him with superiority in aerial combat.

Early warning systems on F-22

The onboard equipment consists of two installed CIP computers, each of which is equipped with 66 modules. They consist of a 32-bit processor class i960.

On board the American aircraft there is a radar type AN / APG-77. The unit is equipped with a phased antenna, which consists of 2000 elements, which allow both receiving and emitting signals.

Using the radar, target detection is performed at distances of 225 km. While the airborne radar detects targets at a distance of 525 km.

Own protection system prevents interception of the radar signal of the enemy. Such an F-22 system (against the Su-37) helps to detect the target, so the enemy does not notice it with the help of his equipment.

Experts doubt?

Currently, US military experts are very doubtful of their air superiority.

And this is not accidental. Entering the arena of military operations in Syria, new Russian aircraft showed the world the might of domestic weapons!