Su-33 discussion thread
If a thread had already been made regarding the Su-33, the please delete this one or move it.
Since the Chinese Navy is considering Su-33 as its first carrier aircraft, I think it would be good to have a discussion on the capabilities of the Su-33, and how suitable it is to the requirements of the PLAN. I also think it is more appropriate to put the thread here in the Navy section instead of the Air Force section.
It is a large fighter, so its range and weapons load should be decent. However, taking off from a carrier with ski jump instead of catapult may hamper its range and the amount of weapons it can carry. Since it is based on the highly maneuverable Su-27, its agility should be good enough to satisfy the Chinese Navy’s requirements. Since the PLA is already familiar with Su-27, operating and maintaining Su-33 should be relatively easy.
It’s radar/electronics are inferior to the 3rd generation Western and Chinese aircrafts (this becomes obvious if you compare the cockpit of Su-33 to those of F-15 and J-10). Some say that the electronics on the Su-33 is about as advanced as Western electronics from the early 1980’s. Which means the later variants of F-14 would have better electronics than Su-33, and F-14 have already become obsolete by modern western standards.
Su-33 is significantly heavier than Su-27, yet the engines are the same those on the Su-27, the result is an aircraft with relatively low thrust to weight ratio. According to data provided on Wikipedia, Su-33 has thrust to weight ratio of 0.83, while F-4 has 0.89, F-14 has 0.91, F-18E/F has 0.93, J-10 has 0.98, Su-27 has 1.09, F-15 has 1.12, Rafale has 1.13. Lower thrust to weight ratio usually leads to decreased maneuverability and decreased climb rate.
I think unless fitted with highly improved electronics, Su-33 would be only marginally acceptable for PLAN’s requirements. A navy version of J-10 would be a much more capable aircraft than Su-33, at least superior to the current version of Su-33 in service on the Admiral Kuznetsov. The J-10 is smaller so more can be fitted onto a carrier deck. Another alternative is to develop the naval version of J-11B, which would have similar performance to Su-33 but with better radar/electronics and with multi-role capability.
