Russia Likely To Unveil New Fifth-Generation Sukhoi Stealth Fighter Aircraft At MAKS Air Show: Report

Russia is likely to unveil a new Sukhoi fifth generation fighter aircraft at an air show near Moscow.

The event will be attended by Russian President Vladimir Putin later on Tuesday (20 July).

Earlier, ahead of the launch of the MAKS air show, a brief promotional featured pilots from India, UAE, Vietnam and Argentina, suggesting that Russia wants to pitch the aircraft for export.

The aircraft would be touted as a rival to the United States' F-35 stealth fighter, according to Oleg Panteleyec, head of the Aviaport analytical agency, reports Economic Times.

It should be noted that Sukhoi is owned by United Aircraft Corporation (UAC), which is part of the Russian state-owned aerospace and defence conglomerate Rostec.

Earlier in May, Russian state news agency RIA had cited a defence source as saying that Sukhoi has been developing a fifth generation single-engine light multi-role fighter jet.

The aircraft is likely to have a maximum speed of over Mach-2 i.e. more than double the speed of the sound. The weight of the aircraft is expected to not exceed 18 tonne mark. Further, it will also have features like reduced radar visibility and high manoeuvrability.