Analysts Ryan Bauer and Peter Wilson, in an article for the American research organization RAND, declared the Su-57 a fourth-generation fighter that faced “numerous problems and setbacks.” The blog bmpd LiveJournal drew attention to the relevant publication of specialists.
“Even fully developed, the Su-57 is likely to be similar in performance to another upgraded fourth-generation heavy fighter-bomber, the F-15EX, which lacks stealth as the F-35, but is equipped with similar avionics,” the authors conclude.
Analysts are confident that “the numerous problems and setbacks faced by the Su-57 fighter have reduced the likelihood of its delivery for export until the mid-2020s.” The experts named the unprepared engine of the second stage as the main challenge of the project.
“In the end, what makes a fighter a fifth-generation product is not only its stealth, but also a set of advanced avionics and sensors around the perimeter of the airframe. Currently, only the F-35 has both of these features and is in serial production, ”the authors note.
In July, the publication of the Chinese portal Global Times named the American F-22 Raptor and F-35 Lightning II, as well as the Chinese J-20, but not the Russian Su-57, as fifth generation fighters. The internationally oriented publication, overseen by the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, citing a publication in Acta Aeronautica et Astronautica Sinica, cited the opinion of the deputy director of science and technology of Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC), J-20 general designer Yang Wei …
In December 2019, in a publication on the Chinese portal Sohu, the Russian Su-57 was declared a 4 +++ generation fighter (3 +++ in the Chinese version). It also said that “Russians need to work harder so that they are not left behind by other countries of the world.”
Thus, the Celestial Empire reacted to the crash of the Su-57, which was to become the first Russian production model of the fifth generation fighter, that happened in the same month.
