The Sukhoi Su-27 (NATO reporting name: Flanker; nicknamed "Sushka" in USSR) is a twin-engine supermaneuverable fighter aircraft designed by Sukhoi. It was intended as a direct competitor for the large United States fourth-generation fighters such as the Grumman F-14 Tomcat and F-15 Eagle, with 3,530-kilometre (1,910 nmi) range, heavy aircraft ordnance, sophisticated avionics and high maneuverability. The Su-27 was designed for air superiority missions, and subsequent variants are able to perform almost all aerial warfare operations. It was designed with the Mikoyan MiG-29 as its complement.

The Su-27 entered service with the Soviet Air Forces in 1985. The primary role was long range air defence against American SAC B-1B and B-52G/H bombers, protecting the Soviet coast from aircraft carriers and flying long range fighter escort for Soviet heavy bombers such as the Tu-95 "Bear", Tu-22M "Backfire" and Tu-160 "Blackjack".

There are several related developments of the Su-27 design. The Su-30 is a two-seat, dual-role fighter for all-weather, air-to-air and air-to-surface deep interdiction missions. The Su-33 'Flanker-D' is a naval fleet defense interceptor for use on aircraft carriers. Further versions include the side-by-side two-seat Su-34 'Fullback' strike/fighter-bomber variant, and the Su-35 'Flanker-E' improved air superiority and multi-role fighter. The Shenyang J-11 is a Chinese license-built version of the Su-27.

Pictured here is a 1:72 scale replica of a Chinese PLAAF Sukhoi Su-27K "Flanker-B" multirole fighter. Pre-order! Ship Date: August 2026.

Dimensions:
Wingspan: 8-inches
Length: 12-inches

Release Date: ?

Historical Account: "Siberian Tiger" - If one were to list the three factors responsible for the Chinese People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) emerging at the end of the last century as a modern military organization, the answers would come in descending order in terms of their impact: "Russia, Russia, and Russia."

The PLAAF's first purchase of 24 Sukhoi Su-27SK/UBK export models in the early 1990s represented the first step in its acquisition of real air power. The next major development came with the agreement in 1996 for the Komsomolsk-on-Amur aviation plant that produced the first off-the-shelf models to establish a production line at Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) in China's Liaoning Province. The original contract called license assembly of 200 of the export model of the Su-27 -- designated J-11 by the PLAAF -- at the facility.

But, by the end of 2004 and around 100 aircraft into the production run, SAC decided to truncate the contract after the engineering team at the Shenyang plant had succeeded in reverse-engineering and copying the Su-27SK design, now called J-11B in this configuration.

The Chinese playbook has allowed the country to develop some of its own versions of copies of the baseline Su-27 design-- as well as copies of the Su-30MK-series that the PLAAF and the Chinese navy purchased later. Apart from the FC-31/J-35 design, SAC has largely been involved in developing multiple derivatives of the different Sukhoi fighter configurations originally designed in Russia.