A Sukhoi Su-57 fighter crashed on December 24 some 120 km (65 nm) from the Dzemgi aerodrome shared by the KnAAPO factory and the Russian Air and Space Force (VKS). In a short statement confirming the accident, the authorities of the Khabarovsk region in southeast Siberia, where the plant is located, said that the aircraft belonged to the factory.
The unnamed pilot ejected safely and was picked up by a Mi-8 search-and-rescue helicopter. “The pilot managed to escape the crippled machine,” the statement said. It added that the accident happened during an engine check. The aircraft disintegrated completely in an explosion, but since it was flying over an unpopulated territory, there were no casualties or material damage on the ground. The cause for the crash is yet to be determined.
This is the first crash for the Su-57—also known under the manufacturer’s internal designation T-50 and NATO reporting codename “Felon”—since the type’s first flight in January 2010. Ten prototypes were assembled and flown through 2017, in addition to three airframes for ground testing. The airplane that crashed is believed to be the 11th flying aircraft and the first production example to be assembled for subsequent delivery to the VKS.
The KnAAPO plant commenced preparations for series production back in 2013, but in 2017-2018 the defense ministry decided to postpone it, arguing that the Su-35S—proven in Syria—should stay in production until such time that the Su-57 becomes mature enough for a large purchase. At the Army 2018 military-technical forum, the Russian ministry of defense placed only a small order, a move that surprised many. President Putin intervened in May 2019, announcing the purchase of 76 aircraft. The respective contract was signed at the Army 2019 show. Putin personally inspected the exportable Su-57E with Turkey's President Erdogan at MAKS 2019. He confirmed that the type had received export clearance.
Back in 2010, India received an exclusive offer to use the Su-57 as a platform for the co-development of the Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA), effectively a two-seat version for the Indian Air Force and export. New Delhi agreed but took the decision to cancel the project in 2018. This year, Indian Air Force officials said they may consider buying a quantity from Russia after the type enters service with the VKS.
Following public demonstrations of the Su-57E, a number of countries have expressed an interest in buying it, including Turkey, Myanmar, Peru, Pakistan, and Iran. More recently, Chinese state media reported about the possible purchase of a quantity with the intention of using the Su-57’s technologies and components for improving locally designed fifth-generation fighters.
Speaking to an assembly of 150 attachés from foreign armed forces in Moscow on December 17, the chief of the general headquarters (chief of staff), first deputy defense minister General Valery Gerasimov, mentioned “a second combat testing” of the Su-57 in Syria that happened earlier this year, “during which all tasks planned were successfully performed.” The type was spotted for the first time in the theater in February 2018. Gerasimov also said that during the outgoing year, the VKS had received 139 “modern aircraft,” while stating that the Su-57 was still in flight test. In an effect, this means that the type will not enter service at the end of this year, contrary to earlier statements by MoD and industry leaders.
It remains unclear how many deliverable Su-57s will receive the already certified AL-41F-1M engines before production shifts to the more modern “Item 30” engine. One development prototype outfitted with an experimental Item 30 has been in flight test since late 2017. Last month, Anatoly Serdyukov, head of aviation programs at Rostec, told media that a total of 16 flights had been performed. He further said that in October the aircraft made “one more sortie to trial the engine qualities in different flight regimes, including testing of the vectoring nozzle and oil system under negative g-loads.”