Su-27 Flanker
The original Flanker: a lifting-body fighter big enough to cross a country without refuelling.
- Blended lifting body
- Cobra manoeuvre
- Huge internal fuel
- Infrared search and track
Specification
- Origin
- Russia
- Manufacturer
- Sukhoi
- Role
- Air superiority
- Generation
- 4
- Introduced
- 1985
- Combat type
- Air
- Spawn code
- flankerf
On the server
The Su-27 entered Soviet service in 1985 as the answer to the F-15. The fuselage between the widely spaced engines generates lift itself, which is why the aircraft can be this large and still turn, and the internal tanks hold enough fuel to fly extremely long missions without external stores. It carries an infrared search and track sensor alongside the radar, so it can hunt without emitting. It also gave the world the Cobra, a demonstration of controlled flight far past the stall angle. On MCS the Flanker is a heavyweight that behaves like a lighter aircraft than it looks. It sustains turns well, has fuel to loiter and stay in the fight, and the infrared sensor is useful against opponents relying on radar warning. Its size makes it easy to see and easy to hit. Recommended for pilots who want reach and staying power in one airframe.