The Checkmate aircraft will have no built-in gun for the first time in decades

The new Russian light tactical aircraft The Checkmate or the Su-75 does not have a built-in gun for the first time since the pre-war years.

According to Mikhail Strelets, the chief designer of The Checkmate, instead of the built-in gun, the aircraft may carry suspended gun containers. In turn, the head of Rostec, Sergei Chemezov, said that the new fighter jet would be equipped with suspended weapons with a total weight of 7.4 tons.

Such a decision may be due to the fact that the aircraft is primarily intended for export. The use of the built-in gun requires high qualification of pilots, so the designers refused such an option. In addition, the new fighter is marketed as an open architecture platform that can be easily modified depending on the needs of specific customers.

Another peculiarity of The Checkmate is the Matryoshka automated logistic support system. The Checkmate is the first Sukhoi aircraft to have received this system. The Matryoshka, created as an analogue to ALIS and ODIN networked technical support systems for the US-made F-35 fighter, will allow monitoring the technical condition of the aircraft in real time throughout its life cycle. It is expected that this will make Checkmate's after-sales service significantly more efficient and cheaper.

Rostec Corporation unveiled the specimen of the first Russian light tactical single-engine fighter during MAKS-2021 International Aviation and Space Airshow. For foreign customers, the aircraft will be called The Checkmate. Inside Russia, it will most likely be called Su-75. According to Rostec CEO Sergei Chemezov, it will cost from $25 to $30 million. The Checkmate will go on its maiden flight in 2023. First shipments of the new fighter jet are to begin in five and a half years.