By RIA Novosti,
Farnborough (Russia) : Russia is ready to export the new state-of-the-art Su-35 Flanker-E multi-role air superiority fighters to India and other partner countries, Russia’s state-run arms exporter Rosoboronexport said Tuesday.
“India and countries like Algeria and Malaysia are our partners and if they express their interests, we will offer them Su-35 fighter while fulfilling our current obligations”, Alexander Mikheyev, head of the air force department at Rosoboronexport, said at the Farnborough International Air Show in England.
Russia last year did a staggering $14.5 billion arms trade with India, selling weapons from advanced fighters to main battle tanks and warships.
India has many arms and equipment in its inventory that have been manufactured by Russia. Many of these are being co-produced in India. These include MiG and Sukhoi fighters, T-90 and T-72 tanks, AN-32 planes, the Ilyushin (Gajraj) aircraft, submarines, vessels and missiles.
According to Sukhoi, which is part of Russia’s United Aircraft Corp, the Su-35 fighter powered by two 117S engines with thrust vectoring combines high manoeuvrability and the capability to effectively engage several air targets simultaneously, using both guided and unguided missiles and weapons systems.
The aircraft features the new Irbis-E radar with a phased antenna array, which allows the pilot to detect and track up to 30 air targets, while simultaneously engaging up to eight targets.
It is equipped with a 30-mm cannon with 150 rounds and can carry up to eight tonnes of combat payload on 12 external mounts.
“The (Su-35) aircraft has attracted a lot of attention,” Sukhoi’s deputy head Sergei Korotkov said at a news conference in Farnborough Tuesday.
“As part of our business plan, we expect to sell about 160 (Su-35) planes,” he added.
The company earlier said it was planning to start deliveries of the new aircraft to foreign clients in 2011 and produce Su-35s over a period of 10 years up to 2020.