Key Points and Summary: Russia’s S-70 Okhotnik is a stealthy attack drone designed to operate alongside Su-57 Felon fighters in a “loyal wingman” role. With an internal weapons bay and AI capabilities, it poses a potential threat, but its actual effectiveness remains uncertain.
-Questions about stealth, engine heat management, and Russia’s production capacity persist. A recent crash in Ukraine may provide critical intelligence on its networking and AI capabilities.
Sukhoi S-70 Okhotnik-B Stealth Drone
-While Russia is pushing manned-unmanned teaming, it remains unclear whether it can match U.S. advancements in this domain.
-The S-70’s development highlights Russia’s growing focus on autonomous warfare but also its technological challenges.
Russia’s S-70 Okhotnik Drone: Stealthy Wingman or Overhyped Threat?
Russia’s stealthy S-70 Okhotnik attack drone has been in use for several years. Yet, the lethal platform is now expanding into new operational possibilities as a “loyal wingman” platform to support 5th-gen Su-57s.
“The Okhotnik’s arsenal includes air-to-surface missiles and an array of bombs (glide and operator-controlled) that will not be suspended from the wings, but hidden inside the body to reduce visibility on enemy radar,” Professor Vadim Kozyulin of the Russian Academy of Military Sciences told Russia Beyond, in a 2018 article.
As discussed in the Russia Beyond essay, the Okhotnik appears to present significant threats as it is reported to operate with an internal weapons bay, stealth coatings, and a B-2-esque blended wing-body horizontal, stealthy configuration. The ability to keep weapons inside the aircraft without hanging them underneath on pylons means the drone can attack while operating in stealth mode.
This stealthy drone is quite threatening as it operates with an internal weapons bay and a B-2 bomber or RQ-170 configuration. Of course, an internal weapons bay means that the drone can maintain stealth while in attack mode. The Okhotnik may have external hard points to load up with a large payload of attack weapons.
Yet, such a configuration would expose contours, shapes, and angles more easily detectable by enemy air defenses and ground radar systems.
How Stealthy Is It?
The question of stealth, however, pertains to much more than may meet the observer’s eye, as low-observability also relies upon thermal signature, coating materials, engine placement, and exhaust release. Therefore, fundamental questions about the drone also may pertain to its level of technological sophistication regarding its additional stealth characteristics, meaning what kind of thermal management or heat-reduction does the drone have? How effective are the stealth coatings?
Perhaps most of all, is there an internally buried engine that may ensure the air temperature surrounding the drone is roughly equivalent to the drone itself to essentially “blind” thermal sensors? How is the exhaust managed?
An equally pressing question introduced by the Russia Beyond essay is the development of AI capabilities for the drone, which would exponentially increase its ability to process sensor data, target information, and network with other unmanned and manned systems.
S-70 Drone. Image Credit: Russian Media/Screenshot.
This reduces latency, streamlines attack possibilities, and potentially, networks attack details across much broader and more threatening formations. The operational functionality of the integrated AI-data analysis and the extent to which manned-unmanned teaming networks are “hardened” are also pressing questions regarding the threat posed by the Russian drone.
However, Russia has not yet produced many Su-57s, and there may be questions about whether it has the industrial capacity to build impactful numbers of the new drones. While, of course, even a small number would likely present a credible threat, Russia may not have the ability to “scale” the existence of this drone rapidly.
Finally, while the United States military is known to operate stealthy drones such as the Sentinel, there is no definitive indication that the US operates an “armed” stealthy drone.
However, several are publicly known to be in development.
S-70 Crash/Shoot Down in Ukraine
The crash of a stealthy Russian S-70 Okhotnik drone in the Ukraine war may generate a windfall of intelligence data for Ukraine and the West, mainly because the electronics and computing may offer some indication as to how advanced Russia is in the realm of AI-enabled target data processing, digital networking, and manned-unmanned teaming.
In recent years, Russia appears to be attempting to replicate US success in the realm of “loyal wingman” capability, wherein drones can operate from the cockpit of a manned fighter. The US Air Force has made great progress connecting F-22s and F-35s with drones in the air, and multiple reports now suggest the shot-down Russian stealthy attack drone was operating in coordination with a 5th-generation Russian Su-57 Felon stealth fighter.
S-70 Okhotnik. Image Credit: UAC Russia.
This would make sense given that the Russian media has for years been writing about connecting its Okhotnik drone with its Su-57. Can Russia compete with the US in the realm of manned-unmanned teaming? Evidence surrounding the crash seems to suggest the S-70 Okhotnik was operating in coordination with the Su-57 and was shot down through friendly fire.
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.
