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Russia’s cutting-edge Checkmate fighter to be more cost efficient than US F-35

The new plane is a derivative of the Su-57 fifth-generation fighter

MOSCOW, November 12. /TASS/. Russia’s latest Checkmate fighter has comparable operational characteristics with the US F-35 aircraft but will be more cost efficient than the American fifth-generation combat plane, Head of the state tech corporation Rostec Sergey Chemezov told TASS in the run-up to the Dubai Airshow 2021 on Friday.

"Among single-engine fifth-generation and previous-generation aircraft, only the F-35 can boast comparable characteristics as the Checkmate’s main rival. However, our plane is more cost efficient compared to it," the Rostec chief said.

The Checkmate fighter will be attractive for foreign customers, in particular, for Middle East countries, Chemezov said.

Checkmate fighter

Russia’s state tech corporation Rostec unveiled the latest domestic single-engine fighter dubbed Checkmate at the MAKS-2021 international air show that ran in the suburban town of Zhukovsky outside Moscow on July 20-25. The new plane created by Rostec at its own initiative, is a derivative of the Su-57 fifth-generation fighter.

The new single-engine fighter is based on stealth technology and is outfitted with an inboard compartment for airborne air-to-air and air-to-surface armaments. The fighter will carry a payload of over 7 tonnes and will be capable of striking up to six targets at a time.

The Checkmate fighter will be capable of flying at Mach 1.8 (1.8 times the speed of sound) and will have an operating range of 3,000 km. The aircraft will be outfitted with a highly efficient powerplant. The new fighter is expected to take to the skies in 2023 and Rostec plans to launch the combat plane’s serial production starting in 2026.

Russia’s latest, cutting-edge fighter is expected to compete with America’s F-35A Lightning II and Sweden’s JAS-39 Gripen. The Checkmate incorporates the latest systems, including its open architecture configuration to meet the customer’s requirements and unique artificial intelligence technologies.

The Dubai Airshow 2021 will run in the United Arab Emirates on November 14-18.