The Formidable Flanker Family  Western designers and manufacturers have often blamed the Soviets for stealing their designs. But the Soviets have always had a very large and well-funded research and development base and fighter aircraft developed by the Soviets over the years have been neither copies nor inferior to their Western counterparts.  Although technologically inferior in some ways, they were more advanced and better constructed in other ways. the openness of the Russin aerospace industry after the end of the Cold War has dispelled some age-old myths regarding Russian military aircraft.  No more can they derisively written off as crude copies of older but superior American and British designs. The new generation Russian fighters are formidable state-of-the-art weapons platforms with better performance envelopes than any other contemporary aircraft.  Western analysis so far has been flawed because the design compulsions and traditions of the Russian designers had not been fully comprehended and evaluated them by Western standards. The Russian fighters have to be evaluated on their own terms, keeping in mind the constraints of operational philosophy and requirements underlying the design. Development History  The Flanker originated at the Central Aero/Hydrodynamic Institute in Moscow where baseline research was carried out. The aircraft first flew on May 20 1977, but further development was protracted because computer-generated comparisons revealed it to be inferior to the McDonnell Douglas F-15 with less than 75 per cent weapons system and performance capabilities.  A reconfigured definitive prototype was flown on April 20 1981 but failed to meet the stringent specifications of the Russian Air Force forcing further radical redesign. After serious brainstorming and after heads rolled, a new design team (under the same chief, Mikhail Simonov) produced the basic design of the Su-27 family seen today. The resulting prototype, described by test pilot Vladimir Ilyushin as , the aeroplane he had waited all his life for", entered production 1985.  The avionic of the basic Su-27 was continually upgraded gradually moulding it into a multi-role platform. Soviet doctrine envisaged a massed but non-nuclear war with NATO requiring a long-range air superiority fighter to protect large formation deep strikes to the NATO rear. The Su-27's tremendous range and great payload potential made it a natural choice for the role.  The Su-27S and then SK ('S' improved; 'K' export commercial) continued in production until early 1990. The enormous versatility of the design was exploited to produce a large number of multi-purpose variants. In order to garner as much of scarce government funding as possible all variants were designate with different numbers. The Flanker Family Su-27UB  The obvious initial linear projection was an operational trainer, Su-27UB, inducted into service in 1986. Su-30  Closely base on the trainer, the Su-30 is a two-seat interceptor optimised for long duration (more than 10 hours) air superiority missions. It achieved Initial Operational capability with the Russian Air Force in 1993 and was further developed into the multi-role Su-30M (export Su-30MK) with 12 hardpoints to carry 8000 kilograms of stores. Su-33  A navalised Su-27 with limited multi-role capability, the Su-33, was the first variant to incorporate the "unstable-integrated-three-plane" configuration. Economic constraints have forced the Russian navy to abandon plans to field four 60,000-ton conventional carriers and only one, the Kuznetsov, is now expected to serve. Therefore, it is not likely that the Su-33 would be produced in great numbers. Su-34  Structural refurbishment produced a dedicated shipboard side-by-side trainer, that quickly demonstrated great potential to be a deep-interdiction maritime strike aircraft. It entered production as the Su-34 and Su-32FN to replace the Su-24 Fencer. The dramatic reduction in the demand for carrier-borne fighters has put further production of this variant in jeopardy. Su-35  A progressive development of the Su-27 possessing genuine dual-role capability was initiated in 1988. The definitive fighter, designated Su-35, had an all-moving foreplane, digital flight control system, four multi-function cockpit displays, 30 degrees inclined ejection seat and retractable in-flight refuelling probe. The fighter was expected to be procured in large numbers for the air forces of the CIS. However, this has not been the case and the future of the fighter looks bleak. Su-37  Variant with the Thrust Vector Control (TVC) that is being advertised by the Sukhoi bureau as a "fifth-generation super manoeuvrability fighter". Currently the aircraft is only a technology demonstrator, but the conversion to operational combat capability is expected to be simple and swift.  Despite a killing stranglehold of economic travails and a pragmatic reorganisation of the aerospace industry in the CIS, the obvious insertion of capital from sales to the Peoples Republic of China and India have put Sukhoi back on the rails. So today, the Su-27, Su-27SK/SMK, Su-30K/MK, Su-33, Su-34/32FN, Su-35 and the Su-37 are all either in limited production, are being prepared for additional export production, have ceased production with tooling still intact or are tooled up to go into production for the Russian Air Force, Navy and at least four export customers. It is estimated that the production facilities can deliver any variant within a lead-time of 18 months. Basic Configuration  A modern fighter is built around its radar. The size and shape of the antenna, which is a direct function of its primary mission, determines the rest of the specifications of the fighter. The Su-27 has a one-metre diameter forward fuselage bulkhead from where the rest of the fuselage flows as a semi-monocoque structure using the maximum amount of titanium alloys so far seen in any fighter. Titanium alloys have the best strength-to-weight ratio but it is about 80 times more costly and requires special fabrication techniques. About 30% of the Su-27 is made of titanium as compared to about 1.5% in the F-16 and around 24% in the F-15.  The Flanker is powered by two Saturn Lyulka Al-31F two-shaft afterburning turbofans weighing 1530kg each producing 122.6 knots of thrust. The Su-35 uses the improved AL-35 (2400 lb thrust extra) and the Su-37 uses the Al-37FU with TVC. The Al-31F has a subsonic cruise specific fuel consumption of 0.67kg per hour per kg and the engine has a very respectable 8:1 thrust-to-weight ratio.  The Su-35 is equipped with the NIIP N011 coherent pulse Doppler, look-down/shoot-down, multi-mode, low altitude terrain following/avoidance radar.  The radar has a search range of 100km and can track to 65km against MiG-21 class targets. It can track 15 targets and engage 6 simultaneously. PhazotronZhuk-27 and Zhuk-ph electronically phased array radar - search range 140km capable of tracking 24 and ripple fire engagement of eight targets - can be retrofitted into any Flanker model.  The Flanker's weapons load is formidable. In addition to the GSh-301 cannon (150 rounds) up to 10 AAMs can be carried in the air superiority role:-2 x semi-active radar homing R-27R (AA-10A 'Alamo-A') under fuselage - 2 x IR homing R-27T (AA-10B 'Alamo-B') on centre wing pylon - 2 x semi-active radar homing R-27ER (AA-10C 'Alamo-C') OR IR homing R-27ET (AA-10D 'Alamo-D') beneath each wing - 4 x R-73A (AA-11 'Archer') OR R-60 (AA-8 'Aphid') close range AAMs on outer pylons.  The Flanker is compatible with all air-launched Russian weapons. Impact and Implications term "super manoeuvrability" defines controllability up to 60-70 degrees of Alpha with transients exceeding 120 degrees.  Although experiments have been on going and technology demonstrators have been flown in the West, the Russians have already fine-tuned the TVC to achieve it. The key to supremacy in a "dogfight" is the ability of a pilot to engage an enemy advantageously irrespective of the initial relative positioning of the aircraft.  TVC permits post-stall manoeuvring and weapons pointing which are impossible in conventional aircraft. The Su-37 has completed the flight-testing regime and is ready to enter operational duties. The AL-37FU engine can deflect its nozzle at a rate of 30 degrees per second and is utilised primarily in the pitch plane. The engine can be retrofitted in any Su-27 variant with minimal modifications. The export plans for the aircraft raises the prospect that India or a country in Asia may achieve the first operational capability on TVC in the world.  The advent of the Su-27 and its derivatives and their open availability to any bidder with the necessary financial backing is a worrisome prospect. It raises the spectre of a high-tech arms race in volatile areas around the globe. Already the French have been forced to offer the Rafale instead of the Mirage-2000 to nations in South-East Asia as a counter to the Flanker.  In a shrinking world market for new fighters, the Su-27 derivatives offer more than any other fighter available. Sales are only restricted by dubious after-sales and through-life-support facilities. The Su-35 offers the best suite of sensors and offensive and defensive avionics anywhere, which together with its armament has no rival.  The flight demonstration of the Su-37 has been described as "seeing a giant war-fighting beast translating in all directions and spitting fire like a dragon with many arms". While this may be an overly poetic write up, the fact that this aircraft has truly gone on to being the first genuine fifth-generation fighter without a comparable opponent in the sky at present should be a constant worry factor for war planners.  The counters to this aircraft by Western terms only in the developmental stage and near-term response does not seem possible. Reliance on stealth and BVR solutions can achieve air superiority in conditions wherein the enemy defences have been degraded sufficiently. But when faced with and adversary capable of and willing to absorb certain attrition in order to overwhelm a technologically superior force, the situation may well become untenable. In such a situation the Su-27 will form the war winning force.  Although the Cold War is considered a thing of the past (at least officially) the world is far from organised peace. There remains a distinct possibility that the Flanker would be encountered in its virulent hostile form in any of the hot spots sooner than later.  The Flanker system degrades the technological superiority of the Western air forces to a stage wherein they are not an effective edge anymore. In fact the shoe may be on the other foot. The concept of global reach, presence and engagement advocated by the United States Air Force makes a particularly strong case for a closer look and healthy appreciation of the capability of this fighter, even if deployed by a technologically inferior air force.  The attainment of Air Dominance, necessary for the success of all other operations, may not be an attainable goal when faced with an adversary deploying the Flanker with a mindset to ignore own losses.