Su-9
Contents
Description
Towards the end of the Second World War, the USSR quickly began pursuing multiple jet-powered fighter projects to catch up to the western Gloster Meteor, Me-262, and F-80. One such project was "Aircraft K" from the Sukhoi design bureau, which was heavily influenced by captured German designs (namely the Me 262). The aircraft was originally conceived to use the new and upcoming indigenous Soviet jet engines being designed by Lyulka and Tumansky, however, due to setbacks on those programs, the aircraft plan was changed to instead use reverse engineered copies of the German Jumo-004 engine. The aircraft would bear the shape of the Me 262, but in reality, was almost completely different, having different weight distributions, wing design, tailplane shapes, and more importantly, a completely revised flap and airbrake system. This aircraft, now called the "Sukhoi Su-9", would finally fly in 1946 for the first time, where it was quickly revealed that the German engines were rather underpowered. The Lyulka TR-1 engines originally intended for the plane would finally be completed, however, it was revealed that mounting them required extensive redesign of the aircraft, which directly resulted in the Su-11 prototype.
The Su-9 was introduced in Update "Ixwa Strike". It is probably one of the better Soviet starter jets, as unlike the MiG-9, it is very forgiving in terms of manoeuvrability, and unlike the Yak-15, it is not limited by its low ammo count and top speed. The low velocity guns will take time getting used to, especially for players new to Soviet jets, but getting acquainted with the twin 23 mm and single 37 mm combo will prove fruitious as most Soviet jets for this rank and the next will have some variation of the same gun setup. All in all, the Su-9 acts as a great stepping stone from the propeller aircraft into the jet age of Soviet aircraft.
General info
Flight performance
Describe how the aircraft behaves in the air. Speed, manoeuvrability, acceleration and allowable loads - these are the most important characteristics of the vehicle.
| Characteristics | Max Speed (km/h at 6,000 m) |
Max altitude (metres) |
Turn time (seconds) |
Rate of climb (metres/second) |
Take-off run (metres) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AB | RB | AB | RB | AB | RB | |||
| Stock | 855 | 818 | 12400 | 29.4 | 31.0 | 15.7 | 15.7 | 1,000 |
| Upgraded | 927 | 886 | 28.8 | 29.0 | 27.4 | 21.0 | ||
Details
| Features | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Combat flaps | Take-off flaps | Landing flaps | Air brakes | Arrestor gear | Drogue chute |
| ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | X | X |
| Limits | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wings (km/h) | Gear (km/h) | Flaps (km/h) | Max Static G | |||
| Combat | Take-off | Landing | + | - | ||
| 1025 | 420 | 558 | 529 | 380 | ~12 | ~4 |
| Optimal velocities (km/h) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Ailerons | Rudder | Elevators | Radiator |
| < 480 | < 580 | < 660 | N/A |
Engine performance
| Engine | Aircraft mass | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Engine name | Number | Basic mass | Wing loading (full fuel) | |||||
| Klimov RD-10 | 2 | 4,175 kg | 288 kg/m2 | |||||
| Engine characteristics | Mass with fuel (no weapons load) | Max Takeoff Weight | ||||||
| Weight (each) | Type | 15m fuel | 20m fuel | 30m fuel | 45m fuel | 50m fuel | ||
| 760 kg | Axial-flow turbojet | 4,729 kg | 4,904 kg | 5,268 kg | 5,815 kg | 6,021 kg | 6,520 kg | |
| Maximum engine thrust @ 0 m (RB / SB) | Thrust to weight ratio @ 0 m (100%) | |||||||
| Condition | 100% | WEP | 15m fuel | 20m fuel | 30m fuel | 45m fuel | 50m fuel | MTOW |
| Stationary | 874 kgf | N/A | 0.37 | 0.36 | 0.33 | 0.30 | 0.29 | 0.27 |
| Optimal | 874 kgf (0 km/h) |
N/A | 0.37 | 0.36 | 0.33 | 0.30 | 0.29 | 0.27 |
Survivability and armour
- 6 mm steel above pilot's head
- 12 mm steel headrest
- 12 mm steel behind pilot
- 15 mm steel behind frontal fuel tank
- 15 mm steel in front of armament
- 90 mm bulletproof glass in front of pilot
- Self-sealing fuel tanks (1 cleaver-shaped one behind pilot, 1 cleaver-shaped one in front of pilot)
Modifications and economy
| Flight performance | Survivability | Weaponry | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
Armaments
Offensive armament
The Su-9 is armed with:
- 1 x 37 mm N-37 cannon, nose-mounted (40 rpg)
- 2 x 23 mm NS-23 cannons, nose-mounted (100 rpg = 200 total)
Suspended armament
The Su-9 can be outfitted with the following ordnance:
- Without load
- 1 x 250 kg FAB-250M-46 bomb (250 kg total)
- 2 x 250 kg FAB-250M-46 bombs (500 kg total)
- 1 x 500 kg FAB-500M-46 bomb (500 kg total)
Usage in battles
Air RB
This plane has great firepower but always watch the ammo count so you won't run out of bullets. The plane has 90 mm of bulletproof glass in front of the pilot, so your pilot has a high chance of survival in head-ons. Once the plane gets up to speed, it becomes a great bomber hunter. Keep in mind that this plane has a slow acceleration. Use HE belt or air targets belt as it will shred enemy aircraft in pieces with just a few well-aimed shots. Boom & Run tactics are recommended against fighters, but make sure you have some speed before attacking.
Ground RB
The Su-9 is capable of destroying ground targets with its suspended armament. When dive bombing, don't pull out too late as the engines aren't that powerful. It is possible to destroy some light and medium tanks with the right ammunition belt. For destroying tanks, top-down approaches are heavily recommended.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Powerful offensive armament
- Airbrakes
- Bomb options
Cons:
- Bad acceleration and bad climb rate
- Low ammunition count
- Very sluggish with suspended armament
History
Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the aircraft in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the vehicle and adding a block "/History" (example: https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Vehicle-name)/History) and add a link to it here using the main template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <ref></ref>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <references />. This section may also include the vehicle's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under === In-game description ===, also if applicable).
Media
- Skins
- Videos
See also
External links
| Sukhoi Design Bureau (Сухого Опытное конструкторское бюро) | |
|---|---|
| Jet fighters | Su-9 · Su-11 |
| Su-27 | Su-27 · Su-27SM |
| Strike aircraft | |
| Su-2 | BB-1 · Su-2 (M-82) · Su-2 MV-5 · Su-2 TSS-1 |
| Su-6 | Su-6 · Su-6 (AM-42) · Su-6 (M-71F) |
| Su-7 | Su-7B · Su-7BKL · Su-7BMK |
| Su-8 | Su-8 |
| Su-17 | Su-17M2 · Su-17M4 · Su-22M3 |
| Su-24 | Su-24M |
| Su-25 | Su-25 · Su-25BM · Su-25K · Su-25T · Su-25SM3 · Su-39 |
| Export | ◊Su-22UM3K · ◔Su-22M3 · ◊Su-22M4 |
| J-11* | |
| *CKD and SKD kits assembled by Shenyang Aircraft Corporation | |
| USSR jet aircraft | |
|---|---|
| Bereznyak-Isayev | BI |
| Yakovlev | Yak-15 · Yak-15P · Yak-17 · Yak-23 · Yak-28B · Yak-30D · Yak-38 · Yak-38M · Yak-141 |
| Mikoyan-Gurevich | MiG-9 · MiG-9 (l) · MiG-15 · MiG-15bis · MiG-15bis ISh · MiG-17 · MiG-17AS · MiG-19PT |
| MiG-21F-13 · MiG-21PFM · MiG-21S (R-13-300) · MiG-21SMT · MiG-21bis | |
| MiG-23M · MiG-23ML · MiG-23MLD · MiG-27M · MiG-27K | |
| MiG-29 · MiG-29SMT | |
| Lavochkin | La-174 · La-15 · La-200 |
| Sukhoi | Su-9 · Su-11 |
| Su-7B · Su-7BKL · Su-7BMK · Su-17M2 · Su-17M4 · Su-22M3 | |
| Su-24M | |
| Su-25 · Su-25BM · Su-25K · Su-25T · Su-25SM3 · Su-39 | |
| Su-27 · Su-27SM | |
| Ilyushin | IL-28 · IL-28Sh |
| Tupolev | Tu-14T |
