The era of fourth-generation aircraft penetrating at low altitudes to attack ground targets has passed. (Epoch Times Cartography)
[The Epoch Times, December 28, 2023]In today’s society, the role of weapons and the military has been given a deeper meaning than killing. Strong military power is often used as a deterrent to maintain world peace and human security. The war, though it became covert, never ceased.[Current Affairs and Military]takes you to the front to see clearly the details and truth of the battle between good and evil.
In recent days, various sources have shown that multiple Russian Air Force Su-34 attack aircraft have been shot down. On December 22, three Su-34s were shot down. Then there was news that another Su-34 was shot down on December 25, and 4 Su-34s were shot down within three days. This “Christmas gift” received by the Ukrainian Air Force is too expensive to be believed.
Ukrainian Air Force spokesman Yurii Ihnat said Russia had reduced the number of air strikes after losing three Su-34 attack aircraft in southern Ukraine on Friday. He said the enemy was now trying to conduct as much reconnaissance and intelligence gathering as possible in the southern region where the Russian fighter jet was downed. They obviously wanted to know what weapon destroyed the fighters. Inat said, “The enemy realizes that our systems, including long-range systems provided by our partners, can be deployed in other areas, not just the area where the Russian Su-34 was shot down. The downing of the Russian aircraft may be more likely to occur.” many.
Ukrainian Air Force Commander Mykola Oleshchuk announced on Sunday night that another Su-34 worth £40 million had been shot down over Mariupol. He said that it had been confirmed that the Su-34 fighter-bomber in the direction of Mariupol was hit by a Ukrainian anti-aircraft missile and that the aircraft did not return to the airport.
On the Ukrainian battlefield, the dramatic incident of high-performance attack aircraft being shot down in succession in a short period of time indicates that there have been subtle changes in the Ukrainian air defense operations. This change is likely to force Russia to reconsider the subsequent combat methods of its air force. But no matter how it changes, the intensity of the Russian Air Force’s strikes against Ukrainian ground forces will not increase. On the contrary, the support and protection of Russian ground forces will weaken. This may cause a turning point in the subsequent battlefield situation, thereby affecting the course of the war.
As the protagonist of this battlefield emergency, what happened to the always tough Russian Su-34 attack aircraft, so that it was defeated by the Ukrainian troops and was unable to fight back?
Let’s see what kind of aircraft the Su-34 is.
The Sukhoi Design Bureau is famous for its multi-purpose fighter jets. Especially after the advent of the Su-27 fighter jet, the limelight has surpassed the MiG series fighter jets of the Mikoyan Design Bureau. As a result, in 2006, Russia merged Mikoyan, Sukhoi, Ilyushin, Irkut and Tupolev independent design bureaus that specialized in designing fighters, transport aircraft and bombers into the new United Aviation Manufacturing Company (ОАК) . The tradition of Sukhoi multi-role fighter jets highlighting ground attack capabilities has reached its peak with the Su-34, which is almost a bomber with fighter performance.
The Kremlin touted the Su-34 as the crown jewel of military aviation. Due to its crazy quirks, flat platypus-like nose and unique ground attack capabilities, the West nicknamed it the “Hellduck” and its NATO codename. “Fullback”. The Su-34 has many features that make it unique among today’s combat aircraft.
As early as 1977, the former Soviet Union proposed developing a successor to the Su-24 variable-sweep wing attack aircraft. They added the Su-24’s more mature navigation/attack sensors to the Su-27 fighter. This resulted in the Su-34 attack aircraft, which resembles the Su-27. This makes it look very similar to the Su-27 at first glance, but they are still fundamentally different. The Su-34 has a widened fuselage and changes in various sensors and systems. This makes it more suitable for ground attacks while having certain anti-air capabilities.
The first Su-34 mass-produced in Novosibirsk made its first flight in December 1993. In 2000, prototypes equipped with radar began to launch anti-ship missile tests. After more than ten years of modification, evaluation and experimentation, it was not until March 2014 that the “Defender” was put into service. Since then, the Russian Aerospace Forces has purchased approximately 150 aircraft. Defender has been involved in operations in Syria since Moscow began its intervention in the Syrian civil war in September 2015.
The Su-34 uses two AL-31FM1 Saturn turbofan engines, has a maximum speed of Mach 1.8 when fully loaded with ammunition, and a maximum range of 4,000 kilometers. It can fly further if it is refueled in the air. The Russians talk a lot about the range of the Su-34, but in fact, with the same bomb load, it cannot fly farther than the F-15E. The bigger problem is that the Su-34, which does not have any stealth capabilities, can only use primitive low-altitude penetration tactics to approach enemy targets, and low-altitude flight will greatly shorten its combat radius.
The most easily identifiable feature of the Su-34 is its huge “platypus”-like nose radome, which hides the Sh141 radar antenna, which is a large X-band Passive Electronically Scanned Array (PESA) antenna. It can track 10 air targets and attack 4 of them at the same time. Its effective detection range is about 75 miles. In ground attack mode, it can detect large warships up to 80 miles away, bridges up to 60 miles away, or moving vehicles up to 19 miles away. These data show that the capabilities of the Su-34 fire control system are really inferior to the F-15’s original AN/APG-70 radar, not to mention the F-15E’s new AN/APG-82 active electronics. Scanning array (AESA) radar.
The Su-34 has a normal bomb load of 4 tons and a maximum bomb load of 8 tons. It is equipped with 10 weapon hardpoints under the wings and fuselage. Its main air-to-air weapons are the R-77 (AA-12) medium-range air-to-air missile and the R-73 (AA-11 or Archer) short-range air-to-air missile. Its ground attack weapons include Kh-55, Kh-59, Kh-25 and Kh-29 air-to-surface missiles, as well as several types of glide bombs. It can also carry Kh-31, Kh-35, Kh-41 and P-800 Oniks anti-ship missiles as well as Kh-58 anti-radiation missiles. Its 30mm GSh-301 cannon is armed with 180 rounds.
Although it is armed to the teeth with various bombs and missiles, its backward electronic equipment and fire control system make its air combat capabilities basically not worth mentioning. When fighting with Western fourth-generation fighter jets, it can basically see the opponent’s The plane had already fallen into attack range before. Its ground attack capability is also limited by the “myopic” radar search range, forcing it to enter the dangerous surface-to-air missile defense range and launch attacks on targets at close range. For an aircraft without any stealth capabilities, this is simply like suicide. This is probably the main reason why it is frequently shot down by anti-aircraft missiles.
The Hellduck’s cockpit is a unique side-by-side two-seat layout with the pilot on the left and the navigation/weapons systems operator on the right. The crew entered the cockpit via a ladder lowered from the nose gear bay, and both crew members were equipped with ejection seats. The entire cockpit is wrapped by a titanium alloy “box” with a thickness of about 0.6 inches. This reminds us of the American A-10 attack aircraft, indicating that the Su-34 has considered close support operations. However, in the face of modern air defense systems, this does not improve the survivability of pilots. This may be the reason why the US Air Force promotes the retirement of the A-10. In this sense, the Su-34 is comparable to the A-10. Although the Su-34 flies faster, that does not change the fundamental problem.
The most incredible thing is that the Su-34, which looks more like a fighter jet, is said to be equipped with a kitchen and bathroom for the crew. The interior space of the aircraft may indeed have some special design for long-range missions with multiple aerial refuelings, but it is an exaggeration to say that there is a kitchen and toilet. In fact, the “kitchen” is nothing more than a heater that heats canned food. The “toilet” is just a metal can with a funnel-shaped opening. According to Sukhoi, the crew can stand or lie down in the cockpit to ease the physical exertion of long flights. Although these facilities are simple, they are already very luxurious for an attack aircraft or fighter-bomber.
Traditionally, Soviet ground attack aircraft were designed only to engage ground targets, so they tended to be equipped with built-in targeting systems rather than air-to-ground attack pods like Western fighters. Compared with the targeting pod with an omnidirectional sensing probe, the Su-34 targeting system has a very narrow field of view and tracking range, and its performance is even worse especially in low-altitude flight.
Although the Su-34 is also equipped with a series of radar, communications and optical modular reconnaissance/jamming pods. But overall performance didn’t impress. Development of the Su-34 continues, with attempts to further enhance the aircraft’s attack capabilities through modifications to the radar, targeting and navigation systems, and new weapons.
The Su-34 looks weird and powerful. Although it is nicknamed the “Hell Duck”, it can be said that it was born at the wrong time. The era when it began to be equipped with troops was completely different from the battlefield environment envisioned when it was originally designed. It is almost as equipped as the F-35, the fifth-generation multi-purpose stealth fighter of the United States, and is equipped with troops. However, its pot-bellied figure and blurred radar basically offset all its strengths, and it was defeated in the face of modern air defense systems.
Written by: Xia Luoshan (reporter of “The Epoch Times”, who has experienced military life for more than ten years, mainly engaged in military teaching and some technical management work)
Produced by: Current Affairs Military Production Team
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2023-12-28 13:00:50
