MOSCOW – Russia’s newest ally Turkey on Tuesday got a first-hand experienceof the 5th Generation supersonic stealth combat aircraft Sukhoi Su-57E, theexport version of the jet, at the International Aviation and Space SalonMAKS-2019 at Zhukovsky International Airport, near Moscow. TurkishPresident Recep Tayyip Erdogan had a close look at the Su-57E accompaniedby Russian President Vladimir Putin and Industry and Trade Minister DenisManturov on the opening day of MAKS-2019.
Turkey has been eyeing the Sukhoi Su-57linkafterthe United States of America threw it out of the 5th Generation stealthfighter F-35 Lightning II programme over its decision to go ahead withRussian S-400 Triumf anti-air defence system. Russia, too, is exploring theopportunity to export the Su-57 which has been combat-tested during inSyria in early 2018 and is in the process of joining its Aerospace Force. Afew days before MAKS-2019, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov hadtold Interfax news agency that Erdogan will be shown the Su-57 and Su-35fighters.
Turkey’s pro-government newspaper Yeni Safak had in early June 2019reported that the country was weighing the option of acquiring the Su-57and China’s Shenyang J-31 fifth-generation fighters if the USA decided tonot go ahead with the deal to sell 100 F-35s to it. There is a strongpossibility that since the USA has already carried out its threat andremoved Turkey from the F-35 programme and refused to deliver the jetswhich it (Turkey) had already paid for, the European nation may go in for afighter built by some other country.
The Yeni Safak report also mentioned that Turkey has planned to speed upthe development of an indigenous fighter, negotiate with Russia for gettingthe design of Su-57 and includes talks with China for buying the J-31 jetas both the aircraft are much cheaper than the $100 million F-35. EvenTurkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu had in April 2019 announced thathis country would buy advanced fighters from “another place” if the USArefused to sell the F-35.
Russia S-400 Triumf, an extremely advanced anti-air defence system, hasbeen a thorn in USA’s flesh with the latter warning Turkey that themissiles and radars would be able to map F-35’s stealth profile and exposeits vulnerabilities. Russia has already delivered the first batch of S-400system to Turkey in July and is in the process of supplying the secondbatch of missiles.