Sukhoi Su-7 (Fitter-A)

History

The Sukhoi Su-7 (NATO codename "Fitter-A") was a single-seat, single-engine jet aircraft in service with the Soviet Air Force (Frontal Aviation) in the 1960s. It was a nuclear-capable aircraft that became a successful ground attack aircraft (known for its ability to withstand extensive combat damage and still fly) and conducted extensive combat operations in the Middle East and South Asia.

Offered to the Warsaw Pact countries as well as trusted Third World allies, this model is rarely in service with the Air Force today. Despite the Su-7's speed, bombing accuracy, and battlefield robustness, the Su-7's engines proved extremely thirsty, limiting its tactical use to a meager combat radius of hundreds of miles.

At least ten major known variants of the aircraft were produced, including a two-seater trainer, and appeared in some 1,847 production examples between 1957 and 1972.

Development

The Su-7 entered service as early as 1953 (the last year of the Korean War) before the Sukhoi OKB company was re-established with a mission to find answers to the North American F-86 Sabre jet fighter. The American jet effectively "stealed" the Korean War from the North Korean-Chinese-Soviet bloc, equating it with a Soviet-built Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 "Fag" jet with a single-seat, single-engine swept wing fighter jet.

The Sukhoi swept-wing design soon followed the S-1 "Strela", a prototype introduced in the mid-1950s with a new Lyulka AL-7 series turbojet with a slender Aerodynamically designed hull. The aircraft features an open nose assembly that supplies fuel to the engines, and the air intake is controlled by a variable-position nose cone mounted on the air intake itself.

The first flight took place on September 7, 1955, and further testing allowed the aircraft to set an internal Soviet speed record of over Mach 2. Since the S-1 is designed for air-to-air combat, close-range weapons are key to its success and eventual survival. Sukhoi requested a designated 3 x 37mm Nudelman N-37 series artillery battery, and a retractable bottom shell for 32 x 57mm unguided rockets (the Americans used similar fighters, armed, although they machine gun supplements instead of cannons).

The S-1 was introduced to Westerners in 1956 at the Soviet Aviation Day showcase at Tushino Airport near Moscow.

A prototype of the S-2 appeared soon after, although this time it featured a new "board" tail assembly and general cosmetic improvements over the S-1. The S-1 was later killed in an accident on November 23, 1956 (its test pilot was killed).

Regardless, the program continued, culminating in a production-grade Su-7 base fighter in 1959.

Like most other jet fighters in the early and mid-Cold Wars, the Su-7 was designed as a dedicated ground attack variant. The pre-series model S-22 was developed for this purpose - based on the S-2 prototype - and brought with it an area-limited airframe and other improvements. The S-22 was designed to take advantage of the aircraft's inherent speed while also taking into account the low-altitude bombing role it would operate.

The first flight took place in March 1959, and soon the model appeared as the production Su-7B in 1961.

In typical NATO fashion, the unflattering designation "Fitter" was appended to the Soviet aircraft family. NATO maintained a "healthy" habit of assigning Soviet fighters the "F" designation (MiG-17 "Fresco") and bombers the "B" designation (Tu-85 "Bear").

While the Su-7 provided a lot of service to the Soviet Union, it was used by a group of trusted nations. These include Afghanistan, Algeria, Bangladesh, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Egypt, India, Iraq, North Korea, Poland, Syria, Vietnam and Yemen. Many of them no longer operate in any form, although those in North Korea are believed to still be active.

Deliveries to the Warsaw Pact and Third World countries are concentrated in Eastern Europe, Central Asia, South Asia, East Asia, and some entities in North Africa and the Middle East (including Iraq). India is such a major operator under the Indian Air Force, with a total fleet of about 160 aircraft.

Afghanistan is another major operator, employing around 120 in-house fitters.

Walking around

The Sukhoi Su-7's clean lines are in line with other Soviet Cold War jet fighter designs, which were almost all shot in a bare metal finish. Of particular note is the long, streamlined body on which all major systems are mounted. Like other early jet fighters, the Su-7 had an open nose that served as the intake for a single turbojet engine mounted in the center of the plane, and an adjustable nose cone controlled the incoming air.

The cockpit is located in the forward part of the fuselage and visibility forward, upward and sideways is generally to poor. The cockpit canopy and the bulging rear of the fuselage spine more or less obstruct rear visibility. The canopy has a two-part design with a special frame. The pilot received an ejection seat designed by Sukhoi.

The cylindrical fuselage is relatively featureless, terminating in a conventional fin with a large, vertically swept fin with a truncated tapered edge. The horizontal stabilizer is mounted on either side of the jet exhaust ring and is extremely swept. The aircraft's main wings are mid-mounted assemblies with truncated wingtips heavily swept back, with recognizable boundary layer fences behind the center span (similar to those on early MiG Fagot, Fresco and Farmer jet fighters).

The landing gear is fully retractable and consists of two single-wheel main landing gear struts, two single-wheel main landing gear struts recessed towards the centerline under each wing, and one single-wheel nose gear strut forward recessed during driving below the cabin floor.

Armed

Standard armament, apparently Soviet, consisted of a pair of powerful 30mm Nudel'man Rikhter NR-30 series cannons, one mounted on the leading edge of each wing root. Each gun receives approximately 70 rounds of ammunition.

Optional weapons can be spread across the six available hardpoints (limited to four in previous production models) and can be conventionally thrown bombs (FAB-250, FAB-500, FAB-750), nuclear bombs (8U69 5-kiloton), missile case (57mm rocket in UV-16-57U series case) and AA-2 "Atoll" short-range air-to-air missile (basically a replica of the American AIM-9 Sidewinder ). It should be noted that to counter the Su-7's short range, two external hardpoints are usually reserved for carrying the 600-gallon fuel tank.

Variants

The Su-7 was the first production Fitter fighter and the base model for the tactical air superiority role. It was developed from the S-2 prototype, 132 of which were produced from 1957 to 1960.

The Su-7B became a dedicated ground attack variant capable of high-speed performance in low-level roles. These were developed from pre-production S-22 aircraft, built between 1960 and 1962.

The Su-7BM became an upgraded assembler for the new AL-7F-1 family of turbojets. To encourage better range, these Su-7s received two additional brackets for external fuel tanks. Additional fuel was added to the wings (making them "wet" wings) and an entirely new fuel system was employed.

External "tubes" attached to the sides of the upper part of the fuselage were later used to help Western observers identify this new type of fitter. The Su-7BM has been approved to carry nuclear weapons in the form of conventional bombs. Production took place between 1963 and 1965.

Su-7UM became the designation for the two-seat trainer version of the Su-7BM. The export variant of the Su-7BM was designated Su-7BMK, and production of this variant ran from 1967 to 1971. The two-seat trainer of the Su-7BMK became the Su-7UMK.

The export Su-7BMK is equipped with a Lyulka AL-7F-1 turbojet engine that provides 21,164 pounds of thrust. Features include a top speed of 720 mph (Mach 0.95), a combat ceiling of 42,650 feet and a combat radius of 285 miles.

Armament remains the twin-barreled 30mm cannon with an ammunition load of up to 5,512 lbs.

The Su-7BKL (the Sukhoi name for the S-22KL) is a more powerful version of the Fitter series designed for "rough" field operations. Small skis (spanning their respective wheels) were mounted on either side of the main gear legs, while two brake chutes were installed to facilitate shorter landings. Shorter launches were addressed by implementing the SPRD-110 family of JATO (Jet Fuel Assisted Takeoff) rockets capable of delivering 13,300 pounds of thrust.

Production of the Su-7BKL began in 1965 and ended in 1972.

The Su-7BKL is equipped with a Lyulka Al-7F-1 afterburner turbojet. Standard thrust is rated at 14,980 lbf, while the afterburner boosts that performance to 22,150 lbf. Top speed is 715 mph (Mach 0.94) and the ferry has a range of 1,025 miles.

The service ceiling is listed at 57,740 feet with a climb rate of 31,500 feet per minute.

The Su-7U turned into a two-seat trainer with tandem seats for students and instructors. The installation of a second cockpit forced the removal of the internal fuel tanks, further reducing the aircraft's range. The prototype flew for the first time on October 25, 1965, and production continued from 1966 to 1972.

NATO codenamed the aircraft "Moujik" and the export version was designated Su-7UMK.

Su-7IG became the name used to denote an experimental airframe designed to test a new variable geometry ("swing wing") wing system that would eventually be used in the production of the similar-looking Su-17 model (the Su-7IG is essentially their prototype). Another test model became the 100LDU, an improved production Su-7U model with canards and fly-by-wire that later helped develop the upcoming Su-27 Flanker series.

Su-7 combat

A staple in the early and mid-Cold Wars, the Su-7 was planned to operate anywhere in a turbulent world. Egypt accepted this type of delivery for its air force and quickly used it against Israel in the Six Day War in 1967 and combat operations in subsequent years. The Six-Day War (June 5-10) was a joint military operation by Egypt, Jordan, and Syria (with the support of other Arab states) to eliminate Israel.

Of course, Israel fought back desperately to achieve a landslide victory.

In the 1971 Indo-Pakistani war, India used this aircraft against the Pakistani army. These are primarily used as attack aircraft, operating 24/7. In this conflict, the Su-7's resilience proved to be a major selling point for many Indian pilots, who returned safely to the air base, but the Pakistani anti-aircraft guns, artillery and missiles inflicted heavy damage to the airframe.

While these Su-7 purchases by the IAF always seem to receive mixed reviews from those involved, few doubt that the aircraft played a major role in replacing the aging French and British jets it had held steady before the conflict. effect. The Indian Su-7s operate in tandem with the Soviet-built Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 "Fishbed" fighter jets, which provided significant air cover.

Whole family

The Su-7's design was successful for the Air Force using it, but the design was not without its inherent limitations. Thus, the type was further developed in the similar "swing-wing" Su-17 Fitter, which eventually also led to the development of the Su-20 and Su-22.

These aircraft are described elsewhere on this page.

Specification

Basic

Production

Roles

Dimensions

Weight

Performance