By: Nivedita Phalke
Recently, the United States President Donald Trump wants to ramp up weapon sales to India especially the F-35 Jets. Trump wants to sell these fighter jets to India they’re made by US defense major lockhead Martin’s F35, is a fifth-generation jet something which India needs. Now, New Delhi is spoiled for choice here because the Russians have also thrown their hat in the ring. Russia makes the Sukhoi Su-57 jet it has offered to make it in India for the Indian Air Force.
From February 10-15th, 2025, week both Jets were showcased at Air India Show 2025 and this has never happened before anywhere in the world, the F35 and the s57 at the same event. so New Delhi has a choice to make the offensive F35 or the defensive s57 which one is better? Who will give us a sweeter deal and which jet is more suited to India’s needs?
The Russian Su-57 felon and Lockheed Martin’s F35 lightning both are advanced fifth generation fighter aircraft made by rival countries participated in the same space which India’s defense Ministry has described as historic and this moment comes at a crucial time when India is seeking to bridge its fifth-generation fighter gap. It may not be long before that happens during his high-profile meeting with prime minister Narendra Modi US president Donald Trump has extended an offer to India to purchase the F35.
Trump plans to ramp up weapon sales to India this year and this includes the US made F-35 Jets if the deal comes through India would join a small club of nations including Israel Japan and NATO states which are allowed to buy these aircraft from the US but Washington is not alone in wanting India to buy its fifth gen fighter jets so is Russia while India is a long-standing customer of the US defense industry its top supplier has historically been Russia.
New Delhi depends on Moscow for nearly 60% of its defense equipment the war in Ukraine has added doubts about future supplies but Moscow is looking to boost its defense ties with New Delhi a few days ago Russia offered to make its Su-57 in India for the Indian Air Force.
Which fifth generation Fighters is better suited for India?
The F-35 is a single engine stealth multi-roll fighter aircraft while, the Su-57 is a twin engine stealth multi-roll fighter aircraft. the F35 has a top speed of Mach 1.6 the Su 57 has a top speed of Mach 2. Both the Jets are designed to perform a variety of missions including air-to-air combat and air to ground strikes.
The F35 has a combat range of about 1,500 km while the Su 57 has a combat range of about 1,900 km but when it comes to stealth the F35 has more advanced capabilities it’s equipped with sophisticated avionics and sensor systems simply put the F35 has offensive strengths while the s57 is defensive now.
the cost of F35 fighter is one of the most expensive fighter jets in history each unit costs between US $ 80-110 million while the Russian Sukhoi jet is much cheaper its estimated cost per unit Falls between US $35-40 million that’s less than half the price of an F35
India would need to look beyond just the capabilities or the cost, all the S-57s have been produced in smaller numbers they haven’t actively participated in combat operations meanwhile, the F-35 is part of many Air Forces more than a thousand aircraft are in active service. the jet is combat proven plus India is also focusing on developing its own fifth generation Fighter (the AMCA) aircraft a single seat twin engine fifth generation stealth multi-roll combat aircraft which has become a focus.
Is India ready for air supremacy?
On Februrary 6, 2025 (Thursday), an Indian Air Force mirage-2000 fighter plane jet crashed in Madhya Pradesh, while the pilots ejected safely in time and escaped with minor injuries but what led to this crash?
The Air Force says a systems malfunction they have ordered an investigation into the crash. We know that mirages are part of an aging Indian Fleet they were manufactured by French company Dassault aviation. India bought 24 retired mirages from France not to fly them but to use them for spare parts and we are considering similar deals with Greece and Qatar. the hope is to somehow extend the lifespan of the mirages the goal was to retire them by 2030 but now they’re expected to fly into the 2040s and why is that?
The major reason is replacements which are not ready as IAF are already phasing out old Soviet Jets so they cannot retire the mirage yet the numbers won’t allow it. IAF has a sanctioned Squadron strength of 42 but only 29.5 up and running and each Squadron has around 18 fighter jets. that’s one big challenge for India’s Air Force to expand our Fleet of jets even the IAF Chief flagged it recently he lamented the delay in India’s homegrown fighter jet program. So, quantity is one problem but so is quality.
On the other side, China already has a fifth-generation fighter jet recently they debuted a sixth-generation jet as well, a futuristic stealth plane. India’s other rival, Pakistan is expanding its fleet. Reports say they will buy fifth gen planes from China.
From Stealth to Nuts & Bolts: F-35 Lighting vs Su-57 Felon
Both of these two aircrafts were designed with very different goals in mind shaped by different economic and military priorities. In reality the Su 57 works best for Russia while the F35 is more aligned with US defense needs.
The US has a defense strategy based on offensive operations, basically striking first and doing it at long range Russia on the other hand focuses more on defensive strategies mainly because of its vast borders and the need to protect its own territory from numerous adversaries.
The Su-57 is built for short range air defense and intercepting intruders in contested airspace especially near Russia’s borders it’s designed to stop enemy fighters and air strikes from breaching Russian defenses on the flip side the F35 is all about penetrating heavily defended airspace targeting enemy air defense systems and striking from long distances think of the F-35 as the US’s offensive tool while the s57 serves as Russia’s defense Shield
Who’s got the better height?
In terms of stealth both planes are stealthy but they handle it differently, the F35 as ultra-low radar cross-section of just 0.15sm making it nearly invisible to the radar it’s got all aspect stealth meaning no matter where a radar is positioned be it front-back or side it’s tough to spot. The su-57 do stealthy has a larger RCS between 0.1 and 0.5 squ/Mtr. it shines when flying head from the front it can sneak up an enemy including the F35 but if it flies into contested airspace from any other angle it’s easier to detect so the F35 has the edge in staying hidden in a wider range of situations
The Su-57s radar Suite is pretty impressive it’s got five Radars including three x-band ASR Radars and two l-band Radars.
The L-band Radars are particularly effective against stealth Fighters like F35 which are optimized to dodge x-band Radars but combining all of its radar systems the s57 can track an F35 from such farther away than one radar alone could that said the F35 isn’t entirely defenseless. it’s designed to disrupt and neutralize enemy air defenses so it could likely penetrate Russia’s multi-defense systems but if the Su-57 is in the mix, it might have better chance of intercepting an F35 in Russia’s airspace
The F35 is made for offense it can get deep into contested airspace undetected locate and identify enemy targets and pass that information to other Fighters it also has limited ground attack capabilities though it’s not as focused on that as it is on striking targets from distance
the s57 on the other hand was designed more for defensive roles it can intercept incoming threats like the F-35 and engage ground Targets in Friendly airspace but lately Russia has been upgrade trading the s57 with long range stealthy missiles giving it a bit of offensive capability as well however the F35 still holds the advantage.
So, who will win the race?
At the end it all boils down to what the IAF values more if they need more cost-effective solution, that can defend the skies and take on offensive operations from inside their own airspace the Su 57 might be the better-fit. but if India leans towards offensive capabilities the ability to strike first and the political alignment with the United States, the F35 could be worth the investment, either way it’s a tough choice each fighter brings something important to the table.
Special thanks to Jai Verma for guiding me throughout the research. His domain knowledge and technical expertise in defence technologies played crucial part in enriching the write-up.
