Sukhoi works on new single-engine light fighter jet

Rostec Corporation has taken on the development of Russia's first single-engine light tactical fighter aircraft. 

The Sukhoi company, which is part of the state-run corporation Rostec, is working on the creation of a single-engine light fighter aircraft, TASS reported with a reference to a source in the aircraft industry.

The prospective aircraft will be able to reach the speed of more than Mach 2 (2,469 km/h). It will also be stealthy and super-maneuverable. The fighter will obtain enhanced take-off and landing performance owing to the thrust vector control engine. The thrust-to-weight ratio will be not lower than one, and the takeoff weight of the aircraft will not exceed 18 tons.

Sergei Chemizov, the head of Rostec, first announced plans to create a single-engine aircraft in December 2020. The corporation considers both manned and unmanned versions of the fighter jet. The project is being carried out without attracting budget funds.

MiG-15 and MiG-17 were first single-engine aircraft produced in the USSR. They had exercised their superb performance during the Korean and Vietnam wars and have long been considered legendary airplanes.

In 1992, the decommissioning of MiG-23, MiG-27 and Su-17M aircraft marked the end of the history of Soviet single-engine combat aircraft. Military experts then believed that Russia had to revisit light fighter jets.