Hobby Master HA6301 | Su-34 Fullback Fighter Bomber Red 03, Russian Air Force, Syria, January 2015

General Background:

The Sukhoi Su-34 “Fullback” is an all-weather supersonic medium-range fighter-bomber/strike aircraft developed for the Russian Air Force and Navy with the intent to replace the Su-24M “Fencer” and Tu-22MS long-range bomber. The Fullback is based on the Su-27 “Flanker” and has an armored cockpit that is occupied by two-crew seated side-by-side. The aircraft’s main role is deployment against ground and/or naval targets. As of April 2018 there have been 122 aircraft manufactured including 7 prototypes. The export designation of the Su-34 is Su-32.

The Aircraft:

In September 2015 six Su-34 aircraft arrived at Syria’s Bassel Al-Assad international Airport at Latakia. Russia began aerial attacks on September 30 in the Homs region against the Islamic State. In October Su-34s used concrete-piercing bombs to destroy underground bunkers containing explosives and ammunition. The Su-34 targets were located using the GLONASS satellite system. In November 8 more Su-34s arrived in Syria. While in Syria the Su-34 maintained a 70% availability rate and gave the Russian Air Force an opportunity to sharpen their skills. Su-34 Red 03 was given serial RF-95803.

General characteristics for Su-34 “Fullback”
Country of Origin – Russia
Manufacturer – Sukhoi Aircraft Company
Number Produced As Of April 2018 - 122 For Russia
Role - all-weather supersonic medium-range fighter-bomber/strike aircraft
Crew – 2 Seated Side-By-Side
Dimensions
Length – 23.34 m (72 ft 2 ins) Wingspan – 14.7 m 99948 ft 3 ins) Height – 6.09 m (19 ft 5 ins) Wing area – 62.04 m² (667.8 ft²)
Weights
Empty – 22,500 kg (49,608 lbs) Loaded – 39,000 kg (85,980 lbs) Maximum Take Off – 45,100 kg (99,425 lbs)
Performance
Powerplants – 2 X Saturn AL-31FMI Turbofans Internal Fuel – 12,100 kg (15,400 l / 31,970 U.S. gallons Maximum Speed @ Altitude – Mach 1.8+ (1,931 km/h / 1,200 mph) @ Sea Level – Mach 1.2 (1,400km/h / 870 mph) Service Ceiling – 15,000 m (49,200 ft) Range @ Low Altitude – 1,100 km (680 mi / 590 nmi)
Armament
Guns- 1 X 30 mm Gryazev-Shipunov GSh-301 Auto-Cannon w/ 180 Rounds Hardpoints – 12 Wing And Fuselage With Capacity Of 8,000 – 12,000 kg (17,600 – 26,500 lbs) To Carry Combinations Of Rockets B-8 Rocket Pods For 20 X S-8KOM/OM/BM B-13 Rocket Pods For 5 X S-13T/OF O-25 Rocket Pods For 1 X S-25OFM-PU S-80FP Missiles Air-To-Air 2 × R-27R/ER/T/ET 2 × R-73 2 × R-77 Air-To-Surface Kh-29L/T/D Kh-38MAE/MKE/MLE/MTE Kh-25ML/MT Kh-59ME/MK/MK2 Kh-58 Anti-ship Kh-31A/AD Kh-35U P-800 Oniks Kh-41 Anti-radiation Kh-25MP Kh-58 Kh-31P/PD Cruise Kh-36 Kh-65S/SE Kh-SD Bombs KAB-500KR TV-guided KAB-500L laser-guided KAB-500OD guided KAB-500S-E satellite-guided KAB-1500KR TV-guided KAB-1500L laser-guided OFAB-250-270 OFAB-100-120 FAB-500T general-purpose 2 × BETAB-500SHP P-50T ODAB-500PM RBK-500 cluster SPBE-D