The Aerospace Forces (VKS) of Russia received the first serial fighter of the fifth generation Su-57, RIA Novosti reports, referring to a source familiar with the situation.
“The first serial Su-57 was transferred to the Russian Aerospace Forces,” the source said.
In August, 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.”
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 Chinese Communist Party, citing a publication in Acta Aeronautica et Astronautica Sinica magazine, 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 June, Rostec reported that the Su-57 had flown over 3,500 times.
In December 2019, the Su-57 crashed, which was supposed to become the first such serial fighter adopted by the Russian Aerospace Forces.
In July 2018, Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov said that the Su-35 is considered one of the best aircraft in the world, so “there is no point in speeding up work on the mass production of the fifth generation aircraft [Su-57]”.
By 2028, the Aerospace Forces should receive 76 Su-57 units.
