Russia Courts India with Su-75 Checkmate Amid MiG-29 Replacement Push

In a bid to replace India's aging MiG-29 fleet, Russia has intensified its efforts to attract India's interest in its Su-75 Checkmate light fighter jet. The single-engine, lightweight stealth fighter, unveiled in 2021, is being positioned as the ideal successor to the MiG-29s, which India and several other nations are looking to replace.

Russia is particularly focused on India, a long-standing partner with a pressing need to upgrade its fighter jet fleet. A 2021 promotional video for the Checkmate, featuring pilots from potential buyer countries, including India, underscored Russia's strategic marketing approach.

Despite Russia's aggressive sales pitch, India has yet to commit to the Su-75. Several factors might be influencing India's cautious stance. The absence of a functional prototype is a key concern. While Russia claims a 2025 maiden flight for the redesigned Su-75, India may prefer a fighter jet with a proven track record.

Moreover, India is actively pursuing its own indigenous solution, the Tejas MkII, specifically designed to replace its MiG-29, Mirage-2000, and Jaguar fleets. This program aims to fulfill India's requirement for nearly 200 new fighter jets, potentially offering greater long-term benefits in terms of self-reliance and technology transfer.

Russia's renewed push to involve India likely stems from the lack of confirmed international buyers for the Checkmate program. High-profile marketing tactics, such as featuring pilots from potential buyer nations in promotional videos, highlight Russia's eagerness to secure partnerships.

Russia is offering the Checkmate at an attractive price point of $30-35 million per unit, with a cost per flight hour projected to be significantly lower than the Lockheed Martin F-35. The Su-75 boasts impressive specifications, with a designed maximum speed of Mach 1.8, a range of 2,800 km, and a maximum takeoff weight of 26,000 kg.

However, India's commitment to its indigenous defense programs, including the Tejas MkII and the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA), might influence its decision on the Su-75. With the Tejas MkII expected to replace a significant portion of its fighter fleet by 2035, and the AMCA slated to replace older Su-30MKI squadrons from 2040 onwards, India may prioritize self-reliance and domestic technological development.

While Russia's Su-75 Checkmate offers an attractive proposition on paper, India's decision will likely hinge on a careful evaluation of its operational capabilities, cost-effectiveness, and alignment with its long-term strategic objectives.

 

[PKPRS]

A big no.

Yes for 4th gen Rafale with 3rd gen engine.

 

[PKPRS]

Not worth especially when India has decided to source fighter jets internally.
Allot more funds , involve more pvt players for faster development. Importing of weapons should be restricted .

are we we ready to wait till 2050-60 for a 5th gen jet when both our enemies Pakistan and China will be flying 5th gen jets in 3 years from now.

 

[PKPRS]

The Checkmate is still in design phase and Russia lacks the money to develop it on its own. Say India invests today, it will take around 10 years to fully develop and certify the aircraft, another 5 years before it can be inducted in significant mumbers. And that's an optimistic view.
Also given the current sanctions, its doubtful if Russia can develop top quality avionics and sensors.

No Checkmate is a single engine version of SU-57 that is already in production, inducted in Russian Air-force and is battle tested in Ukraine and Syria.

 

[PKPRS]

Checkmate is best avoided

And wait for 30 years until our 5th gen jet becomes available when both our enemies fly hundreds of 5th jen jets in 3 years from now.

 

[PKPRS]

China can’t attack India because of the nuclear weapons we have. We have now activated a defence along the entire LAC now along the similar lines of the LOC with defensive weapons, radars, bunkers, drones, troop number increases etc.

We can’t assume blindly.

 

[PKPRS]

If the price is right we should instead join force to make a JV partnership to dodge future sanctions 😺🔥🔥🔥
this would help us against china

We can work on a deal to make both Su-75 and SU-57.

 

[PKPRS]

YES. UAE was interested before, Next, we can approach Brazil also for coalition co-productions of Su75.

Indonesia, Vietnam.

 

[Anonymus]

Highly unlikely.The actual price will be three or four times that.

still cheaper than rafale..

 

[Anonymus]

Remember INS Vikramaditya?

its Indian indian navy fault to acquired 30 year old used aircraft carrier buy the new ones and then complain

 

[abhinav srivastava]

Tejas MK2 is already better than Rafale, now it is time to make AMCA better than J-20 and FC-31, if we make SU-75, we will gain experience working on a 5th gen jet, that would be really helpful when to make AMCA.

If we makeSU-75 then the numbers should be huge. Larger their number, lesser number of AMCA will be produced. We need to shore up numbers for next 10-15 years till the time Tejas MK2 and AMCA are produced in large numbers.

 

[Double Tap]

den wot abt western sanctings???

they cannot sanction everyone , none will left

 

[Rajesh]

Cancel useless tedbf program then.....

Navy will only operate dual engine jets and if tedbf is cancelled then imagine what the French will do(suck the last drop of blood leaving the corpse alone) with the no of jets we require assuming rafale marine is the one they will be looking into.

 

[Double Tap]

Yes for 4th gen Rafale with 3rd gen engine.

and 250 million Euros per jet

 

[PKPRS]

If we makeSU-75 then the numbers should be huge. Larger their number, lesser number of AMCA will be produced. We need to shore up numbers for next 10-15 years till the time Tejas MK2 and AMCA are produced in large numbers.

No, Su-75 is single engine jet Vs AMCA twin engine, neither will affect the other, even having 2-3 squadrons of SU-57 until AMCA becomes available is a good idea.

 

[PKPRS]

There is NO any SU75 flying now dude.....

SU-75 is SU-57 with single engine.

 

[PKPRS]

Whatever jet we buy should be made in india with tot so that we don't have to depend on the OEM for weapons integration,upgrades and spare parts. Whether it is from Russia America or France all will loot us whenever they get a chance so better stay prepared. Can't find su 75's place unless we cancell our mk2 program and goes for a jv with Russia with all tot/ip along with the new engine( al51)or else no use going for one more type of aircraft when iaf is trying to reduce the no of types in its arsenal. If they offer the engine with a deal which we can't resist then it can also be beneficial for su-30 upgrades and lesser dependence for an engine from outside.

May be we can make more Tejas Mk1A fitted with GE-414 engine and skip Tjas MK2 altogether and instead make SU-75.

 

[Anant]

still cheaper than rafale..

Unlike the Rafale, the Su-75 doesn't actually exist. Oh, and chances are Russia will want any potential customer(s) to fund the project. So, you do that, and your per unit cost quite possibly doubles yet again, with little guarantee of success.

 

[Anant]

It will be rolled out next year and produced.

Yeah, not happening. Unless Russia has managed to get secretive funding, the Su-75 only exists as a set of designs and a wooden mockup. There is a long way before it becomes an actual prototype, let alone ready for production.

 

[Anant]

Even if it costs $120Mln 30x4, it is still worth for a 5th gen jet with a stealth IR suppressing engine.

And what makes you think that this engine (which is still under development) will be IR-suppressing?

 

[Anant]

Yes for a jet with stealth engine, Malaysia ordered 17 SU-57 yesterday, the single engine Izdeliye-30 that will go into SU-75 is (108KN Dry, 177 kN with after Burner) powerful than the total output of twin engine Rafale (50Kn dry, 75 with after burner, 150KN Total).

"Malaysia ordered 17 Su-57 yesterday". Funny that every single news source reports that they proposed the procurement of 17 Su-57s for a single squadron of 16 aircraft. That is tantamount to saying that the IAF ordered Rafales the day MMRCA was proposed.

Oh, and believe you me that once the Malaysians realise they'll be thrown under CAATSA and other such wonderful things, they'll retract and go for F-16s or KF-21s or something.

 

[PKPRS]

"Malaysia ordered 17 Su-57 yesterday". Funny that every single news source reports that they proposed the procurement of 17 Su-57s for a single squadron of 16 aircraft. That is tantamount to saying that the IAF ordered Rafales the day MMRCA was proposed.

Oh, and believe you me that once the Malaysians realise they'll be thrown under CAATSA and other such wonderful things, they'll retract and go for F-16s or KF-21s or something.

"they'll be thrown under CAATSA and other such wonderful things", they won't care much, google and find the proof your self before commenting. "Malaysia, according to local media outlet Twentytwo13, is adding the Su-57 to the Royal Malaysian Air Force's [RMAF] fleet by 2035"

 

[Anant]

Introductory price but it might go to $40~50m IMHO 😺, but that's still cheaper than Tejas mk1a if its prototype perform well

Nope, the price will initially go up to well over 100-150 million USD in early production, and since Russia expects any customers to also fund the aircraft's development. The price might approach 50-60 million USD if Russia manages to sell low four-digit numbers of the Su-75, once you reach those economies of scale.

 

[Anant]

It is a great ship that secures India’s western shore, what is wrong with that, you need Vikramaditya to secure French Islands or the mainland France instead.

Vikramaditya is a good ship, no doubt. However, her acquisition is an entire saga by itself, and is one where both parties (Russia and India) end up looking bad.

 

[PKPRS]

And what makes you think that this engine (which is still under development) will be IR-suppressing?

And what makes you think this engine is not ready, it was already developed and tested and fitted in SU-57E variant, Russia inducted 29 SU-57's E variant just recently Feb-March 2024.

 

[Anant]

No Checkmate is a single engine version of SU-57 that is already in production, inducted in Russian Air-force and is battle tested in Ukraine and Syria.

The Su-57 has been tested in Ukraine and Syria, but that testing has been more along the lines of "Can it fly and shoot? Are we sure it doesn't crash?".

Oh, and the Su-75 is not a single-engined version of the Su-57. Aircraft design doesn't work that way.

 

[Anant]

And what makes you think this engine is not ready, it was already developed and tested and fitted in SU-57E variant, Russia inducted 29 SU-57's E variant just recently Feb-March 2024.

Nope. The AL-51 engine is planned for the Su-57M, which has been on hiatus / very slow progress since 2022. The Su-57Es that Russia uses have the AL-41F1 engine.

 

[Sandeep]

Both of the countries have a no-first-use policy for nuclear weapons and even if China comes in 200 kms into India, India would still not dare to use nuclear weapons and vice-versa in case of India going into China. Nuclear weapons are a last resort weapon and are useless even if the war between India and China last for a few months and in those few months our cities would be destroyed and our army would have already lost and we would still choose surrender over a nuclear war and that surrender would still be our best option unless we go suicidal.

At present in a full fledged war IA can barely last for a month and that is it and we will absolutely loose in 3 months at most, not because our troops are badly trained or can't fight but because China's industrial strength is many times stronger than us and they can out produce us out of the conflict just like Americans did to Germany. Jaishankar in an interview said to the effect that China is five times our economy and we can't afford a conflict with them and that meant its industrial strength not just the spending power. All the preparedness you mentioned is to buy time for troops from our hinterland to come to the frontline, they are meant to slow down a determined advance from Chinese troops and are not meant to grind it to a halt, today's wars are the most unfair to ground troops, rocket artilleries are accurate and can be fired from 100 kms away, gun artilleries can be fired from 30 kms away and accurately forget about an assortment of missiles which China will certainly have more than us, they have bombers which gives them the right to blackmail us into not going too deep in their territory for an air raid because they can come and bomb the cants of Lucknow, Ambala, Kolkata and Delhi, etc which most definitely will cause collateral damage which our politicians can't afford. Our planning today is hinged on the assumption that in case of a war we will go and beg around the world for weapons and use their industrial strength to counter China's just like Ukraine, the only difference would be that we will be paying a premium instead of free weapons.

Indian system is incompetent don't give them the benefit of the doubt.

You are looking at this from the wrong perspective. India knows it can hold China back and has the capabilities which was shown in the skirmish in Ladakh and that was when our troops were ambushed but still managed to kill over 35 troops.

Nuclear weapons are our shield and India will absolutely use nuclear weapons if there is a strong attempt by China to invade. Just because we have a no first use policy doesn’t mean that we can’t use them as in war you can’t take chances regardless of the policy which looks good on paper. India knows that the world isn’t going to save them as it was obvious when the skirmish in Ladakh broke out because of the heavy reliance on China who supplies their economy. That’s why we have fortified the entire LAC, deployed ready to fire ballistic missile mated with the nuclear warhead, more troops, special forces, more ITBP, artillery, MBRL, jets, helicopters, ATGM, tanks, IFV, APC etc. We have started and completed many infrastructural projects ranging from roads, tunnels, bases, air bases, communications, network, key bridges, bunkers, command and control systems, ammunition storageetc. So much has been done and in a short amount of time which proves that we can take action and build large projects very quickly.

Chinas economy is larger because of the continued support and imports from the west as supply chains but just because their economy is bigger it doesn’t mean that we will lose. India does have the industrial capacity to fight a heavy intense war for a month and that can also be increased or expanded in a short amount of time. Also any attacking force against a well entrenched force will face heavy loses ranging in thousands. Also Chinese weapons, technology and capabilities aren’t as good as they say with most finding defects, technology faults, inaccurate and not performing as good as they say means even they lack the will to fight a war and ruin their economy and relationships with other countries.

 

[Anant]

"they'll be thrown under CAATSA and other such wonderful things", they won't care much, google and find the proof your self before commenting. "Malaysia, according to local media outlet Twentytwo13, is adding the Su-57 to the Royal Malaysian Air Force's [RMAF] fleet by 2035"

Malaysia will very much care about CAATSA, unlike India. Oh, and sites like Bulgarian Military are generally very speculative. I'd recommend you find additional, trustworthy sources to back that up. Heck, even Eurasian Times is a far better source than Bulgarian Military is. Just today, they (Bulgarian Military) released an article saying that the Tejas Mk 2 trumps the Su-75, so if you want to lend that credence, do so in both articles.

The RMAF is merely proposing the Su-57 as a new aircraft. Moreover, this new aircraft is planned to replace the F-18D and Hawk 208s rather than the Su-30MKMs. Get better sources next time rather than random news articles from local portals.

 

[Sandeep]

We can’t assume blindly.

Of course we don’t. We are manufacturing and building up our own indigenous military and it has the capability to defend against China.

 

[PKPRS]

Of course we don’t. We are manufacturing and building up our own indigenous military and it has the capability to defend against China.

What Chinese will using their advance weapons to scare us and slice our land little by little, until we have powerful weapons to scare them we can't do much.