Russian Su-57 Undoubtedly Superior to USA's F-16 in Combat Action

F-16 fighters will lose to Russian Su-57 in air combat over Ukraine

24.03.2025 14:22

World

In an aerial battle over Ukraine, the US-made F-16 fighter jet would be outmatched by Russia’s Su-57, according to French aviation expert Cyrille de Lattre, as reported by TASS.

Fifth generation fighter Su-57

"When it comes to air combat between the F-16 and Russian fighter jets, we shouldn't be deceived: against the Su-57, with its superior maneuverability, these aircraft stand no chance of winning a fight against Russia’s latest-generation jets," the expert stated.

He also believes that the the insignificant number of combat aircraft that Ukraine has received from the West will not show great influence on the course of the conflict.

"In any case, they will be shot down one by one, just as has happened to the F-16s so far," he added.

Ukraine Receives Additional F-16 Fighters

Ukraine has received additional F-16 fighter jets from international partners, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced in a video statement on the presidential office’s YouTube channel.

"Additional F-16s have arrived in Ukraine—this is good news," Zelensky said on March 20.

During a briefing following his conversation with US President Donald Trump, Zelensky confirmed the delivery of a new batch of F-16s but did not disclose either the exact number or the country that supplied them. He emphasized that all the jets arrived in Ukraine in operational condition.

Details

The Sukhoi Su-57 (Russian: Сухой Су-57; NATO reporting name: Felon) is a twin-engine stealth multirole fighter aircraft developed by Sukhoi. It is the product of the PAK FA (Russian: ПАК ФА, prospective aeronautical complex of front-line aviation) programme, which was initiated in 1999 as a more modern and affordable alternative to the MFI (Mikoyan Project 1.44/1.42). Sukhoi's internal designation for the aircraft is T-50. The Su-57 is the first aircraft in Russian military service designed with stealth technology and is intended to be the basis for a family of stealth combat aircraft. A multirole fighter capable of aerial combat as well as ground and maritime strike, the Su-57 incorporates stealth, supermaneuverability, supercruise, integrated avionics and large payload capacity. The aircraft is expected to succeed the MiG-29 and Su-27 in the Russian military service and has also been marketed for export. The first prototype aircraft flew in 2010, but the program experienced a protracted development due to various structural and technical issues that emerged during trials, including the destruction of the first production aircraft in a crash before its delivery.

The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is an American single-engine supersonic multirole fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics for the United States Air Force (USAF). Designed as an air superiority day fighter, it evolved into a successful all-weather multirole aircraft with over 4,600 built since 1976. Although no longer purchased by the U.S. Air Force, improved versions are being built for export. In 1993, General Dynamics sold its aircraft manufacturing business to the Lockheed Corporation, which became part of Lockheed Martin after a 1995 merger with Martin Marietta. The F-16's key features include a frameless bubble canopy for enhanced cockpit visibility, a side-mounted control stick to ease control while maneuvering, an ejection seat reclined 30 degrees from vertical to reduce the effect of g-forces on the pilot, and the first use of a relaxed static stability/fly-by-wire flight control system that helps to make it an agile aircraft. The fighter has a single turbofan engine, an internal M61 Vulcan cannon and 11 hardpoints. Although officially named "Fighting Falcon", the aircraft is commonly known by the nickname "Viper" among its crews and pilots.

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