Ukrainian Su‑27s challenge Russian dominance over Kursk region

Ukrainians have occupied a significant area of the Kursk region in Russia, and despite very limited capabilities, Ukrainian aviation is actively operating there. An example is a patrol by a Ukrainian Su-27 aircraft, most likely hunting for drones or helicopters. Here is what this machine can do.

Ukrainians are faring well on the ground in the Kursk region, but the situation looks different in the air, where the Russians have the advantage. Only the high activity of Ukrainian air defense keeps the Russians, one might say, at a distance.

However, the air defense has problems combating low-flying targets such as helicopters or drones, for which the best "hunter" is their own aircraft. In the video below, a Ukrainian Su-27 from the 831st Tactical Aviation Brigade can be seen searching for targets. Alternatively, the Su-27 may also serve as bait for Russian aircraft to fall into a trap set by air defense systems.

The Su-27, developed by the Sukhoi design bureau, took to the air for the first time in May 1977. It was the Soviet Union's answer to the American F-15 fighter jets. As a result, a heavy twin-engine machine was created, with an empty weight of 35,274 pounds and a maximum weight of 66,139 pounds.

Most of the weight is occupied by fuel reserves in the internal tanks amounting to 20,723 pounds, and the weapon payload possible to be distributed over 10 pylons is 9,700 pounds. This translates to a much greater operational range than that of the MiGs, amounting to about 2,175 miles and an altitude of up to 62,335 feet.

This, combined with very good aerodynamics and a maximum speed of Mach 2.35, made it the deadliest aircraft NATO pilots could encounter during the Cold War. After the fall of the USSR, the aircraft were acquired by countries such as China, where they were copied and put into service as the J-11. The Su-27 design was further developed by the Russians into the Su-30, Su-34, and Su-35, which found quite a few buyers among countries reluctant to purchase aircraft from the U.S. (mainly in Africa and some countries in Asia).

The armament of the Su-27 primarily includes short-range R-73 air-to-air missiles, outdated medium-range R-27 missiles, aerial bombs up to 1,102 pounds, or unguided missile launchers. The exception was the Vympel R-77 medium-range missile, developed at the end of the USSR, with a range of up to 49 miles, conceptually similar to the AIM-120 AMRAAM missiles, hence its nickname Amraamski.

It was the first Soviet/Russian air-to-air missile with an active "fire-and-forget" radar head. Thanks to its onboard radar, it could track a target from a distance of about 12 miles. Ukraine possesses an unknown number of these missiles.

In addition, Ukrainians improvised to integrate the Su-27 with Western weapons, as recordings have emerged of the use of AGM-88 HARM anti-radiation missiles or JDAM-ER guided bombs. It is worth noting that Ukraine likely has a very small number of Su-27 aircraft capable of flying.

Ukraine had just over 30 units before the war, and at least 16 have been destroyed, and a significant portion of the remaining units may have been withdrawn from service due to wear and problems with spare parts. Ukraine did not receive new Su-27 aircraft, unlike the MiGs.