Su-27

Su-27

Su-17M4

Su-27

Su-17M4

USSR

VIII Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
12.7	12.7	12.7

Class:

Fighter

Jet fighter

Research:410 000

Purchase:1 100 000

Show in game

Description

Shortly after the Vietnam War, both the United States and the Soviet Union got to work on a new generation of fighter aircraft that favoured manoeuvrability and dogfight performance over top speed, after seeing how badly "missile truck" designs like the F-4 Phantom II performed against more nimble aircraft that were as much as 20 years older. In 1969, the Soviet Union received details through spies on the USAF's F-X program and the aircraft it was leading to, the F-15 Eagle. As a result, the Soviets also decided to adopt a "Heavy support" doctrine with their new generation of fighters, with a smaller amount of a larger, more powerful aircraft supporting a larger amount of smaller, cheaper "frontline" aircraft just as the US was going to do with the F-15 and F-16 respectively. The design of the heavy fighter was handed to OKB Sukhoi, which quickly produced the T-10 prototype. The T-10 had many shortcomings, and after a lot of work with TsAGI to iron out the issues, the Su-27 would take to the skies for the first time in 1977. Development would continue further, and the first true "production models" would only enter service in 1985, beginning a fruitious life in Soviet service, and later in Chinese, Ethiopian, Vietnamese, Eritrian, Indonesian, Ukranian, Kazakh, Uzbekh, and Russian service with many aircraft of the type still seeing combat today.

The Su-27 (NATO reporting name: Flanker) was introduced in Update "Air Superiority" as the top-end heavy fighter for the USSR tree, capping off the Sukhoi line and beginning its transition from high speed fighter-bombers to the venerable Flanker family. The Su-27 is a jack of all trades yet a master of almost none, and that playstyle is its strongest suite. The Flanker carries a very generous amount of air to air missiles (ten), including up to six heat-seeking missiles with HMD targeting, and four of the infamous R-27ER coupled with the strong N001 Mech radar. The Flanker's lethal missile selection allows it to dispatch distracted many enemies at safe distances, and when push comes to shove, the Flanker's inherently unstable airframe and fly-by-wire control systems allows it to perform high angle-of-attack manoeuvres and partial post-stall manoeuvres at lower speeds, including the famed Cobra manoeuvres. All in all, the Su-27 should be played as a jack of all trades, and fits best into a very aggressive playable due to its lethal missiles, great avionics and sensors, and nimble flight performance. One must, however, be aware of various enemies you can encounter in the Flanker, such as all the aircraft that carry IRCCM missiles due to the Flanker's large heat signature as a result of the two massive AL-31 engines, but also be careful of dogfighting aircraft from the F-15 Eagle family, as the Eagle's superior TWR and high-speed handling as a result of the stable airframe will give F-15 players an advantage in some scenarios.

General info

Flight performance

Air brakes

Allows you to dramatically reduce the flight speed by releasing special flaps

Drogue parachute

Reduces braking distance when landing on any runway

Max speed

at 12 000 m2 498 km/h

Turn time23 s

Max altitude16 000 m

Engine2 х Saturn AL-31F

Type

Cooling systemAir

Take-off weight46 t

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 _,___ m)		Max altitude (metres)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (metres/second)		Take-off run (metres)
	AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
Stock	___	___	16000	__._	__._	__._	__._	___
Upgraded	___	___		__._	__._	__._	__._

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	+	-
1,540	700	-	652	600	~__	~__

Optimal velocities (km/h)
Ailerons	Rudder	Elevators	Radiator
< 680	< 750	< 700	-

Engine performance

Engine			Aircraft mass
Engine name		Number	Basic mass		Wing loading (full fuel)
Saturn AL-31F		2	16,420 kg		417 kg/m2
Engine characteristics			Mass with fuel (no weapons load)				Max Gross Weight
Weight (each)	Type		13m fuel	20m fuel	30m fuel	44m fuel
1,520 kg	Afterburning low-bypass turbofan		19,240 kg	20,614 kg	22,711 kg	25,820 kg	33,798 kg
Maximum engine thrust @ 0 m (RB/SB)			Thrust to weight ratio @ 0 m (WEP)
Condition	100%	WEP	13m fuel	20m fuel	30m fuel	44m fuel	MGW
Stationary	7,219 kgf	11,656 kgf	1.21	1.13	1.03	0.90	0.69
Optimal	7,219 kgf (0 km/h)	15,640 kgf (1,540 km/h)	1.63	1.52	1.38	1.21	0.92

Survivability and armour

Flares/Chaff

Aircraft countermeasures to distract IR and radar-guided missiles and also AA radar

Crew1 person

Speed of destruction

Structural0 km/h

Gear700 km/h

Examine the survivability of the aircraft. Note how vulnerable the structure is and how secure the pilot is, whether the fuel tanks are armoured, etc. Describe the armour, if there is any, and also mention the vulnerability of other critical aircraft systems.

Modifications and economy

Repair costBasic → Reference

AB2 922 → 4 432

RB8 434 → 12 794

SB9 931 → 15 065

Total cost of modifications326 000

501 000

Talisman cost3 200

Crew training310 000

Experts1 100 000

Aces3 600

Research Aces1 350 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

90 / 320 / 500 %

256 / 256 / 256 %

Modifications

Flight performance	Survivability	Weaponry
Compressor Research: 9 000 Cost: 14 000 370 New boosters Research: 12 000 Cost: 18 000 490 Wings repair Research: 13 000 Cost: 20 000 530 Engine Research: 20 000 Cost: 31 000 810	Fuselage repair Research: 9 000 Cost: 14 000 370 G-suit Research: 12 000 Cost: 18 000 490 Airframe Research: 12 000 Cost: 18 000 490 Cover Research: 13 000 Cost: 20 000 530 EFS Research: 20 000 Cost: 31 000 810	GSh_301_belt_pack Research: 9 000 Cost: 14 000 370 R-73 Research: 9 000 Cost: 14 000 370 Flares/Chaff Research: 9 000 Cost: 14 000 370 S-8KO Research: 9 000 Cost: 14 000 370 ZB-500 Research: 9 000 Cost: 14 000 370 R-27T Research: 12 000 Cost: 18 000 490 S-25 Research: 12 000 Cost: 18 000 490 OFAB-100 Research: 12 000 Cost: 18 000 490 GSh_301_new_gun Research: 13 000 Cost: 20 000 530 R-27R Research: 13 000 Cost: 20 000 530 B-13L Research: 13 000 Cost: 20 000 530 B-13L Research: 13 000 Cost: 20 000 530 FAB-250 Research: 13 000 Cost: 20 000 530 R-27ET Research: 20 000 Cost: 31 000 810 R-27ER Research: 20 000 Cost: 31 000 810 FAB-500 Research: 20 000 Cost: 31 000 810

Armaments

Ballistic Computer
CCIP (Guns)	CCIP (Rockets)	CCIP (Bombs)	CCRP (Bombs)	Lead indicator

Offensive armament

The Su-27 is armed with:

• 1 x 30 mm GSh-30-1 cannon, wing root-mounted (150 rpg)
• 96 x large calibre countermeasures

The Su-27 uses the same 30 mm autocannon as the MiG-29 with the same limited ammunition count of 150 rounds. Although it is not as forgiving as the American M61 Vulcan and demands precision, it has no spool up time and will deal heavy damage to any aircraft it hits. Something to note is that the Su-27's cannon is mounted on the right side of the fuselage, whereas the MiG-29's mount is on the left.

Suspended armament

The Su-27 can be outfitted with the following ordnance:

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
100 kg OFAB-100 bombs		1	6	6	6	6	6	6	1
250 kg FAB-250M-62 bombs			1, 2	1	1	1	1	1, 2
250 kg OFAB-250-270 bombs		1	1, 2, 6	1, 5	1, 4	1, 2	1, 5	1, 2, 6	1
250 kg OFAB-250Sh bombs			1, 2	1	1	1	1	1, 2
500 kg FAB-500M-62 bombs			1, 2	1	1	1	1	1, 2
500 kg FAB-500Sh bombs			1, 2	1	1	1	1	1, 2
ZB-500 incendiary bombs			1, 2	1	1	1	1	1, 2
S-8KO rockets			20, 40					20, 40
S-13OF rockets			5, 10					5, 10
S-25O rockets			1, 2					1, 2
S-25OF rockets			1, 2					1, 2
S-25OFM rockets			1, 2					1, 2
R-27ER missiles			1	1	1	1	1	1
R-27ET missiles			1					1
R-27R missiles			1	1	1	1	1	1
R-27T missiles			1					1
R-73 missiles	1	1	1					1	1	1
Maximum permissible loadout weight: 8,040 kg Maximum permissible weight imbalance: 1,500 kg

Default weapon presets

Without load 2 x R-73 missiles 6 x R-73 missiles 2 x R-27T missiles 6 x R-27R missiles 2 x R-27ET missiles 6 x R-27ER missiles 80 x S-8KO rockets 20 x S-13OF rockets 4 x S-25O rockets 38 x 100 kg OFAB-100 bombs (3,800 kg total) 8 x 250 kg FAB-250M-62 bombs (2,000 kg total) 30 x 250 kg OFAB-250-270 bombs (7,500 kg total) 8 x 250 kg OFAB-250Sh bombs (2,000 kg total) 8 x 500 kg FAB-500M-62 bombs (4,000 kg total) 8 x 500 kg FAB-500Sh bombs (4,000 kg total) 8 x ZB-500 incendiary bombs

The Su-27 has a fairly wide arsenal. The air-to-air armaments are generally similar to the MiG-29SMT, with highly agile R-73 IR missiles for short-range combat and various marks of R-27 missiles for medium to long range engagements. However it has a large advantage in capacity over the MiG-29; a full air superiority loadout consists of four R-73s and up to six R-27s, which makes it an excellent missile truck for BVR jousting.

The extended-range R-27ER and R-27ET are the most capable members of the R-27 family and should be used once unlocked. The R-27ET (and its less advanced R-27T) can only be mounted on the inboard wing pylons for a maximum capacity of two, but this is sufficient for a couple of long-range sneak attacks to round out the Su-27's engagement capabilities. The inboard pylons can also mount R-73s instead for pilots who want to bring as many dogfight missiles as possible.

The Su-27 is limited to only unguided bombs and rockets for ground attack, so unlike the MiG-29SMT it cannot use TV-guided missile or bombs for standoff engagements. One notable feature is that it can carry up to four S-25O heavy bunker-buster rockets made famous by the Su-25, which can be a fun surprise for combined battles when enemy SAMs are suppressed or confused. All rockets are mounted in double racks on the inboard pylons, leaving the other pylons available for R-73s, R-27s, or bombs in a multirole loadout.

Usage in battles

Created as as fighter to combat the F-15 Eagle, this aircraft can equip up to 6x R-27 SARH missiles, which are famous for being extremely effective. Along with this, a new, capable radar lets the Su-27 engage in BVR fights better than any soviet fighter before it.

Not only that, but you get access to the R-73, a 40G missile that is feared among oponnents for being unpredictable, and precise. You can use this missile to engage targets at close range, and if the fight transitions into a dogfight, do not worry. Although it's big, and mounts a lot of missiles, it's not slow or bulky. In fact, it's the opposite, as this aircraft can engage in short dogfights in a way never seen before: The Su-27 can pull extreme AOA without problems.

Even if you're struggling to get on the tail of the enemy, you can simply lead your nose with no problem even if it seems impossible to do so, allowing for quick usage of a dogfight missile (R-73).

However, watch out: The Gripen, F-16 and even the MiG-29 will almost always outturn you, so if you're in a fight with any of them, and the dogfight starts getting too long, you'll have to start considering retreating from the fight.

Pros and cons

Summarise and briefly evaluate the vehicle in terms of its characteristics and combat effectiveness. Mark its pros and cons in the bulleted list. Try not to use more than 6 points for each of the characteristics. Avoid using categorical definitions such as "bad", "good" and the like - use substitutions with softer forms such as "inadequate" and "effective".

Pros:

• Can carry up to 10 powerful missiles, getting access both to the R-73 and R-27
• Capable of extreme maneuvers, due to the AOA tolerance
• Can stay in the air for a long time, thanks to the huge fuel load

Cons:

• Although it pulls extreme AOA, it can't stay in dogfights for too long
• The SPO-15 RWR doesn't provide information about the exact vehicle

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

Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.

See also

Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:

• reference to the series of the aircraft;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

External links

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

• topic on the official game forum;
• other literature.