F22 against Su37. Their comparison

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

The requirements for fifth-generation aircraft are quite extensive. The main ones can be expressed in two terms - ste alth and multifunctionality.

Americans have high hopes for the F-22. We are armed with a multipurpose Su-37. And many military experts are wondering. Can F22 win against Su37?

The history of the F-22 aircraft

The US plans have long been the creation of such an aircraft, which would be fundamentally different in its flight characteristics from those aircraft that existed in service.

The Air Force Command has formulated the basic requirements for the proposed fighter.

The car should have:

• new avionics;
• computer driven engines;
• should remain invisible to aerial target detection.

The contest itself was started already in the middle of 1986. Teams from two design bureaus were involved in the work on the creation of a new machine. The conditions of the competition limited the time frame: 50 months were allotted for design.

At the same time, the comparison option has not yet been stipulated: W22 vs. Su37.

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

Huge amounts of money were spent in the design process. As a result, customers immediately discarded the expensive radar, which served as a circular view of the vessel. We also had to abandon additional optical and protective systems. Such sacrifices are caused by the fact that the project went beyond the funding of the F-22 project.

In the summer of 1991, a car won by companies such as Lockheed, Boeing and Dynamics.

Expensive toy?

Probably everyone remembers the expression "worth its weight in gold"? So, these words are very suitable for the American F22 aircraft. 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, then the total price of the "superweapon" has approached $350 million!

So, the price of 19.7 tons of gold (and that's how much an empty F-22 weighs) during 2006 was the same $350 million!

How the Su-37 was created

The decision to create the Su-37 was made back in 1986 by the 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" against the "Raptor" (USA).

The aircraft was created with the involvement of the design bureau named after P. Sukhoi and named after A. Lyulka (Design Bureau "Saturn"). Other institutions and organizations were also involved in the work. Among the developers was the French company "Sekstan Avionik"

Experimental flights, in which new powerful AL-37FU engines were tested, were carried out in the early 90s. Engines were created with increased thrust and rotary nozzles.

The test results were so successful that they accelerated the creation of a new aircraft.

But August 1991 came, and a series of events followed - the collapse of the Soviet Union, the liquidation of Minaviaprom and, as a result, funding for the work was stopped. All this led to the fact that the program to create a promising aircraft was curtailed and safely forgotten.

So opponents from the United States at that time could only rejoice that in the virtual war "Raptor" against the Su-37" they lost such a serious opponent.

F-22 Raptor design features

When arming the F-22, the Americans, in order to reduce visibility on enemy radars, decided to place all weapons inside the aircraft.

There are seats on the wings of the aircraft for mounting mounted weapons on the aircraft, but they are practically not used for camouflage purposes.

The use of composite materials in the body of the flight machine (which is 40% of the total coverage) has reduced the total weight of the structure. In addition to reducing weight, the use of such materials makes it possible to increase the resistance of the structure to overheating.

Also, the body of the aircraft was covered with a material that successfully absorbed radio waves. For the same purpose (to increase ste alth), the cockpit canopy and compartments under the chassiswere made in sawtooth form. Such shapes made it possible to effectively dissipate the reflected electromagnetic waves from the enemy radar.

In terms of ste alth, of course, the F22 wins (against the Su37). The diamond shape of the wing also helps.

The Raptor's power plant is a combination of two P&W F119-PW-100 engines, which house the aircraft's characteristic flat jet nozzles. 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 kgf, the aircraft can easily overcome the sound speed barrier. And such a parameter can boast of a few combat vehicles, including the 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 protection for the fighter, depending not only on its weight, but also on the selected flight mode. The aircraft is also equipped with an automatic recovery system from the "corkscrew" mode.

The cockpit has also undergone a radical transformation. The central control knob has been replaced with a side control. And the engine control levers were replaced with strain gauges, which directly improved engine control through joysticks.

What did it give? Increased piloting accuracy, improved controlaircraft when the pilot is subjected to high g-forces. The aircraft was equipped with an integrated fly-by-wire control system, which automatically changes the thrust vector of the power plant. This decision made it possible to give the aircraft super-maneuverability at low and almost zero flight speeds, which has a positive effect when comparing the F22 against the Su37.

The information field on the dashboard has also changed. In front of the pilot there are now four multifunctional LCD monitors developed by the French firm "Sekstan Avionik". The monitors are equipped with solar protection 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 cockpit has increased the tolerance 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 combatant pilots.

How much does the Su-37 cost

According to the results of a broad marketing analysis conducted by the developers, it was found that potential buyers of the Su-37 are represented by a range of 24 countries. The number of advance orders from different countries already equals 1,000 items!

Such great interest is explained not only by the unique characteristics, but also by the attractive cost of the aircraft on the international market, which, especially in comparison (F22 vs. Su37), does not exceed $30 million.

Armament"Raptor"

The combat power of the F-22 Raptor is made up of a 20mm M61A2 Vulcan cannon, designed for 480 volleys. The vehicle can also carry six AIM-120C AMRAAM air-to-air missiles and two AIM-9M Sidewinder missiles on wing pylons.

The aircraft also carries a bomb load, which consists of JDAM guided bombs and GBU-39 guided bombs. At the same time, supersonic speed does not prevent the aircraft from attacking.

Combat equipment of the Su-37

Comparison of the F-22 and Su-37 must begin with the small arms and cannon armament of the Russian fighter. It consists of a rapid-fire single-barreled 30-mm cannon GSh-301, which is located in the right wing and has 150 rounds of ammunition.

Supplements firearms with rocket and bomber equipment. It is placed on beam holders at 12 points:

• 6 - under the wing panels;
• 2- under the wingtips;
• 2 - under engines;
• 2- under the cetraplane.

Aircraft can be equipped with:

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

When using Kh-29L, S-25LD and Kh-59M missiles, the fighter is equipped with weapon control pods.

All unguided airborne weaponsearth collects a total mass of 8 tons. It can be represented by:

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

The early warning complex is represented by a pulse-Doppler radar with a fixed antenna array and an airborne rear-view radar.

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

"Jumping" Su-37

The domestic "Drying" has acquired such high fighting qualities that they must be mentioned separately.

The aircraft can change the slope to an angle of up to 180°, maintain it for the entire time while the missile is being launched. The combat vehicle has no restrictions in the angles of attack. And due to the increase in lift, it became possible to perform new aerobatics:

1. Turn in the plane by 360°.
2. Forced fire turn.
3. Turn vertically.
4. Performing a "cobra" at angles of 150° - 180°.
5. Flip when performing the "bell" figure.
6. Coup, with a loss of altitude by 300-400m.

With such maneuvering possibilities, it looks extremely advantageousSu-37 "Terminator" (against F-22 "Raptor"), which provides him with superiority in air combat.

Early warning systems on F-22

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

The American plane has an AN/APG-77 type radar on board. The installation is equipped with a phased antenna, which consists of 2000 elements, allowing both to receive and emit signals.

With the help of radar, target detection is performed at ranges of 225 km. While the airborne radar recognizes targets at a distance of 525 km.

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

Experts doubt?

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

And this is no coincidence. The entry into the arena of hostilities in Syria of new Russian aircraft showed the whole world the power of domestic weapons!