The Sukhoi Su-47 Berkut (Russian: Сухой Су-47 Беркут—Golden Eagle) (NATO reporting name Firkin), also designated S-32 and S-37 (not to be confused with the twin-engined delta canard design offered by Sukhoi in the early 1990s under the designation Su-37) during initial development, was an experimental supersonic jet fighter developed by Sukhoi Aviation Corporation. A distinguishing feature of the aircraft was its forward-swept wing.
The Su-47 had its first flight on December 29, 1995, and began testing in 1996. The program suffered from frequent delays due to budget constraints caused by the collapse of the Soviet Union; it was finally canceled in 2008 without ever entering production.
The Su-47 was designed solely as a technology demonstrator prototype. It first flew on September 25, 1997, at Zhukovsky Air Base, with test pilot Alexander A. Yablontsev at the controls. The second aircraft, the first production model, first flew on June 19, 2002, piloted by Sergey Bogdan. In 2003 and 2004, pilot Denis Troshev performed a series of aerobatic maneuvers that revealed the aircraft’s agility and stability as well as its ability to readily withstand sustained G-forces above +8G. On December 21, 2007, this Su-47 took part in aerobatics demonstrations during which it demonstrated supermaneuverability by completing a Pugachev’s Cobra.
The Sukhoi Su-47 Berkut is a single-seat twinjet supermaneuverable fighter aircraft designed by Sukhoi. The aircraft is named after the golden eagle, a bird of prey that can reach speeds of up to 120 km/h. It was designed and developed from 1987 to 1995 as a replacement for the Soviet MiG-29.
The aircraft’s use of thrust vectoring and advanced aerodynamic controls were considered revolutionary at the time.
The two other airframes originally planned for construction were canceled due to a lack of funding.
In the end, it’s clear that the Su-47 aircraft is a powerful fighter jet with potential beyond the Russian air force. And while it certainly has its issues and critics, it’s doubtful that such problems would be easily remedied. At the end of the day, new technologies are developed all the time to supplement or even replace existing ones. The question is whether or not there is still a need for this type of technology in present-day Russia and beyond. The reality is that this may very well be the first and last production run for this particular fighter jet, particularly given Russia’s economic troubles at present. The world has changed in many ways since the 1980s when this plane was first conceived and later unveiled. But that doesn’t mean that the Su-47 will never fly again—it just means its future lies in different hands than those of its current owners.
The future of the Su-47 aircraft, and that of other next-generation aviation, is open to debate. While there are many more advanced fighter jets being developed, the simple fact is that no existing or future fighter jet can fully replace the Su-47. Neither does it seem to be a likely candidate for replacement. Instead, what the Su-47 has done is carve out its own place in aviation history and created an entirely new class of aircraft, one that offers capabilities never before conceived. The future of aviation will almost certainly be shaped by these next-generation jets and the vision they represent, but they are unlikely to have as profound an impact on military aviation as the success of the Su-47.