Sukhoi Su-47: Russia Only Built 1 of These Fighters for a Reason

Key Points and Summary: The Su-47 Berkut, Russia’s forward-swept wing experimental jet, was a pivotal development in modern fighter technology.

-Emerging in the late 1990s, the Su-47 showcased exceptional maneuverability, maintaining airflow at steeper angles and enabling agile combat performance.

-While its unique wing design was not adopted for production models, the lessons learned from its development informed the Su-35 and Su-57 jets.

-With the Su-35 achieving a world-class thrust-to-weight ratio and the Su-57 incorporating stealth features, the Su-47’s influence is evident in their advanced aerodynamics, agility, and radar-absorbing materials.

-The Berkut remains a testament to Russia’s innovative approach to air combat.

Su-47: How Russia’s Forward-Swept Wing Jet Shaped Future Fighters

The experimental Su-47 Russian demonstrator fighter jet was somewhat of a short-lived airframe.

Yet, numerous public accounts suggest that its innovations propelled the development of the country’s two most advanced fighter jets, the 4th-gen “plus,” Su-35 and the 5th-gen “Su-57.” 

The Su-47 emerged in the late 90s as a developmental project featuring a unique “forward-swept” wing designed for advanced maneuverability. The “forward-swept” wing looks quite different, as it involves a forward-slanting dual wing design, which scientific research explains increases “maneuverability” because it sustains airflow over the surface of the aircraft during a steeper climb. 

Su-47 Advanced Science

An interesting essay in the BBC’s “Science Focus” magazine describes the maneuverability advantages associated with “forward-swept” wings. 

“Forward-swept wings make an aircraft harder to fly, but the advantages are mainly down to maneuverability. They maintain airflow over their surfaces at steeper climb angles than conventional planes, which means the nose can point higher without the aircraft going into a dangerous stall,” the essay says. 

There is a contradictory, if not somewhat paradoxical, quality to this configuration, given that neither of the two advanced aircraft the Su-47 is credited with influencing have a similar configuration.

Both the Su-35 and the Su-57 have standard fighter-jet backward-slanting wings. This circumstance raises questions about what lessons may have been learned by the Su-47. Some of the details likely involve advanced aerodynamic concepts and next-generation engineering. Yet, the lessons learned are credited with improving the performance of Russia’s two most advanced aircraft. 

According to the BBC Science article, the Su-47 reached advanced speeds of Mach 2.2 yet retained high agility at subsonic speeds. This maneuverability enabled the aircraft to adjust its angle of attack while maintaining supersonic speed and air-combat maneuverability. 

Thrust to Weight Ratio

The specific manner in which the Su-47 test aircraft influenced subsequent Russian 4th- and 5th-generation aircraft may be difficult to fully discern. Yet, the impact appears significant due to the advanced performance characteristics of the Su-35 and Su-57. As an upgraded or next-generation derivative of the high-speed Su-27, the Su-35 is credited with an ability to rival the F-22’s speed and thrust-to-weight ratio. 

Computer generated image of the Su-47 fighter. Image Credit: Creative Commons.

The World Defense publication lists the Su-35 as having the highest thrust-to-weight ratio in the world, apart from an F-22 that uses a round nozzle. The Su-35 has a thrust-to-weight ratio of 1.30, and the F-22, with round nozzles, is listed at 1.37, which places the Su-35 among the best air-supremacy dog-fighting platforms worldwide. 

The documented speed of the Su-35 allows for the possibility that the short-lived experimental Sukhoi Su-47 and the technologies it introduced have informed the development of the Su-35.

One might interpret the Su-47 as an “agility-enhancing” bridge project influencing a new generation of fighter-jet power in considerable measure because advanced or high thrust-to-weight ratios vastly improve the ability of an aircraft to successfully engage in air-to-air combat. 

Yet another potential advantage may pertain to stealth attributes because the Su-47 is credited with using some radar-absorbing materials.

The radar-absorbing construction likely influenced the development of both stealthy 5th-generation aircraft and quasi-stealthy 4th-gen plus aircraft such as the Su-35. 

Su-47. Artist Rendition. Image Credit: Creative Commons.

About the Author: Kris Osborn 

Kris Osborn is the Military Technology Editor of 19FortyFive and President of Warrior Maven – Center for Military Modernization. Osborn previously served at the Pentagon as a highly qualified expert in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army—Acquisition, Logistics & Technology. Osborn has also worked as an anchor and on-air military specialist at national TV networks. He has appeared as a guest military expert on Fox News, MSNBC, The Military Channel, and The History Channel. He also has a Masters Degree in Comparative Literature from Columbia University.