First Aircraft Due for Delivery this Year
Photographs are in circulation of the first five Su-35s on order for the Egyptian air force. They were seen at Novosibirsk Tolmachevo airport, apparently en route from the Gagarin Aircraft Plant in Komsomolsk-on-Amur.
The photographs, first seen in late July, follow on satellite imagery from May showing four Su-35s on the ground at the Gagarin plant, with colour schemes matching those seen on Egyptian Air Force MiG-29s. MON sister publication The World Defence Almanac shows that Egypt ordered 24 Su-35s from Russia in 2018 at a total cost of approx. $2 billion (€1.7 billion). The aircraft are expected to be delivered this year. China and Indonesia have also ordered the type (24 and 11 respectively), with the former nation having received its latest batch in 2018.
An evolution of the Su-27 FLANKER, the Su-35 features all new avionics, including the IRBIS phased array radar with a claimed range of 400km and upgraded AL-41F1S engines with thrust vectoring.
The aircraft has been operational in the Russian Air Force since 2014 and its performance in Syria, according to MON sources, was a strong driver behind the Egyptian selection of the aircraft to supplement and modernise its fighter capabilities.
