Russian Su-35s on standby in Syria

Russia has sent its most potent warplane – the Su-35 “Flanker-E” – to support airstrikes in Syria. The multirole fighter jet is considered to be more than a match for most current generation Western aircraft

SUKHOI SU-35 “FLANKER-E”

Radar: Capable of detecting targets at distance of 400km, and can track 30 airborne targets simultaneously

Powerplant: Two Saturn 117S turbofans, with 3D thrust vectoring for extreme manoeuvrability

Armament: 1 x 30mm cannon,12 hardpoints for up to 8,000kg of external weapons and stores

Speed Mach 2.25 (2,410km/h)

Combat radius 1,650km

Climb rate 280m/sec

Thrust-to-weight ratio 1.30

F-16 Fighting Falcon

Most numerous Western fighter

Speed Mach 2.0 (2,120km/h)

Combat radius 550km

Climb rate 254m/sec

Thrust-to-weight ratio 1.06

Armament 1 x 20mm cannon, 7,700kg payload

F-22 Raptor

Steath characteristics arguably give F-22 slight edge over Su-35

Speed Mach 2.25 (2,390km/h)

Combat radius 760km

Climb rate 350m/sec

Thrust-to-weight ratio 1.18

Armament 1 x 20mm cannon, 8,620kg payload (external)

Sources: U.S. Air Force, wire agencies