Belarusian Air Force Receives Enhanced Su-30SM2 Fighters with Su-35’s Engines and 3D Thrust Vectoring

The Belarusian Air Force has received a new batch of Su-30SM2 fighter aircraft from Russia, which reportedly completes a contract signed for 12 of the aircraft. The Su-30SM2 is the only post-Soviet fighter class procured by the country, and was reportedly selected to provide high levels of interoperability with Russian Aerospace Forces and Russian Navy units, which deploy the aircraft in significant numbers both on the mainland and in Kaliningrad. Chief of Staff and First Deputy Chief of Aviation Operations for the Belarusian Air Force Colonel Andrey Rachkov highlighted that the Su-30SM2 provides a major leap in combat capability over the country’s prior fighter aircraft, with close to triple detection range of earlier Su-30, and new avionics and enhanced navigation systems allowing operations independent of satellite guidance. The aircraft broadens Belarus’s strike options with a range of advanced precision-guided munitions that are not compatible with its older Soviet-built MiG-29 and Su-27 fighters.

Belarus previously ordered twelve Su-30SM fighters under a $600 million contract, before the terms of the contact were altered for the more capable Su-30SM2 variant to be procured. The Su-30SM2 variant integrates the AL-41F-1S engine, which powers the Su-35 air superiority fighter, and has a power level and fuel efficiency more comparable to early fifth generation engines such as the American F119 powering the F-22 fighter. The engines provide the Su-30SM2 with by far the longest range of any fighter fielded by a European country, as well as by far the highest levels of manoeuvrability due to their three dimensional thrust vectoring capabilities. This pairs well with the fighter’s already highly manoeuvrable airframe design. The Su-30SM’s sheer size also allows it to integrate a much larger radar than other fighters deployed on the continent, with its size being approximately triple that of the AN/APG-81 carried by NATO’s primary fighter class the F-35A.

The Belarusian Air Force previously received a batch of four Su-30SM2 fighters in May 2024, with its first four fighters built to the more basic Su-30SM standard expected to also be modernised to the SM2 standard. Procurement of the Su-30 allows the Belarusian Air Force to phase out approximately one third of its fleet of MiG-29 fighters inherited from the Soviet Union, with the fate of remaining units operating MiG-29s being uncertain. To allow for a greater portion of the Su-30 fleet to be allocated frontline duties, the Belarusian Air Force has been confirmed to have brought a single Su-27 into service from storage, namely a Su-27UB twin seater, which has been extensively modernised to serve as a trainer to prepare pilots to operate the Su-30SM2. Multiple reports indicate that Belarus plans to procure a Russian lightweight fifth generation fighter to serve as part of a high-low combination alongside the Su-30, with such an aircraft currently being developed under the S-75 Checkmate program.