Is the Su-57 really worse than the F-22?

Machinery of War Discussion
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838

It’s a good missile, compared to AMRAAM the larger diameter does give a slight edge in radar performance even on the inital variant with PD radar, though range is probably its biggest weakness at least now with more advanced missiles around.

AAM-4 (PD radar) has about 100km range, while AAM-4B (AESA radar) still only has a range of ~120km, and that on the same missile with from what I understand the guidance logic simply giving more efficient flight paths so it might not even be implemented in War Thunder (Especially considering J/ARG-1 isn’t even modeled either).

So it might still struggle compared to longer ranged weapons like AIM-120D or Meteor unless we see experimental variants like AAM-4 TDR or JNAAM.

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839

Do you have dates for when this was made. Also the F-22 RWR can geolocate radar signatures, the whole 3d direction finding thing is what it uses to cue radar onto a very far away target

Since an AESA focused on a small narrow beam will have better range than the wide search mode typically used, it further increases the range the F-22 can detect and get ranging data on targets

And as for being “needlessly expensive”

It’s Lockheed. And it’s still one of if not the best air superiority fighters in the world 25 years after its creation

840

That’s just your guess.

841

Su-57 apparently is M1.3, F-22 can exceed M1.7

842

2012

Thats exactly what I meant. Why spent such money on an aircraft that is already really expensive and doesn’ even lack in capability?
I don’t say that it’s not fitted, but I can see why it wouldn’t.

843

It’s like $350 million a piece

For anything else id agree with you, but this plane is the definition of overkill

Also, 2012 means it’s much newer than the AN/ALR-94 on the F-22 (first one delivered to USAF 1999)

844

Maybe, but considering how long HMD integration took we can’t assume they added everything.

It was overkill originally, but ugrades for an aircraft that is already seen as too much are unlikely to continue overloading it with everything you got and raise the cost further.

845

HMD only took that long bc dimensions of the cockpit were not really suited for it, due to stealth

846

I assume they mean mm lol I don’t think there’s 4in of coating, that seems like it would be absurdly heavy.

847

But it did end up implemented. If it had been seen as priority, it could’ve been done much sooner.

848

Is AN/ALR-94 3D RWR? I thought it’s 2D only

849

It’s good enough to provide enough information for a accurate, very narrow radar beam, so I’d assume 3d would be necessary for something like that

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850

Where do you get these numbers from?Nothing has ever been published anywhere for the Su-57

851

Here

852

Ahaah What nonsense, neither the dimensions nor the mass of the empty have ever been published.There are not even mathematical calculations confirming 1.3M SC

853

Ok then what is the supercruise speed?

854

I do not know, I did not do the calculations for the Su-57

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855

PIRATE can range fully accurately using kinematic ranging, its a state of the art IRST and cost as much as the radar did to develop. There is a reason LEGION and IRST 21 utilise the same tech. We know CAPTOR-M can range to within 10 metres, PIRATE is described as having equal accuracy in range and better in angular resolution than the radar.

Pirate can also guide missiles all the way with 2-way datalink.

856

the reason legion and irst21 use the same tech is that legion is literally just an irst21 put in a pod

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857

its a radar, so yes

just not possible without laser ranging. it compares visual/IR signature, size, angle etc with models stored in its data and then calculates a rough range to target

how rough exactly im not sure, but its not as accurate as a radar unless the actual range to target is like… visual