While browsing the net the other day, I came across this beauty- The Sukhoi Su-47, nicknamed the ‘Berkut’ (Golden Eagle). It is a forward swept wing advanced prototype from Russia. Sukhoi designed and developed the Su-47 in the late 1990’s and started flying it as a demonstrator at airshows earlier this decade. (Photo credits: Dale Volkov-http://www.airwar.ru)

I don’t know what it is really that caught my eye about the Su-47, as I’ve seen forward swept wing prototypes before; Most notably the Grumman X-29 shown at left (photo courtesy of NASA); of which two were built in the 1980’s and tested for a decade. In fact, the X-29 was the first forward swept wing aircraft to fly in level supersonic flight, by the way.

I guess I just always found the forward swept wing design concept fascinating, with a kind of ‘counter-culture’ influence that once manifested, created something that we all kind of just looked at in a dumbfounded gaze. I hadn’t given the X-29 any thought though in years and so when I saw Sukhoi’s variation of the concept, I found myself being lured back into that same gaze again!

There are plenty of websites out there with great info on the Su-47, most notably below. Interesting though, a quick sweep of Sukhoi’s website yields absolutely nothing.

More Info on the Su-47

• Sukhoi Su-47 Berkut
  Googlepages quick aviation links page with a considerable amount of info.
• AirForce-Technology.Com
  Another very comprehensive collection of good facts
• Wikipedia
  Article on the Su-47

Su-47 Quick Specs

• Length: 22.6 m (74 feet 2 inches)
• Wingspan: 15.16 m to 16.7 m (49 feet 9 inches to 54 feet 9 inches)
• Height: 6.3 m (20 feet 8 inches)
• Max takeoff weight: 77,162 lbs (35,000 kg)
• Maximum speed: Mach 2.1 (2,550 km/h, 1,550 mph)
• Range: 3,300 km (2,050 miles)
• Service ceiling: 18,000 m (59,050 feet)
• Rate of climb: 230 m/s (45,300 feet/minute)

It’s worth mentioning that the word Berkut has been used to name an aircraft before. Also in the mid 1990’s, a variation on Burt Rutan’s Long EZ design hit the market as a kit and you can check that out here. For the sake of this post though I won’t get into that ‘Berkut’ except to say that at the time I feel in love with it and wanted one, so perhaps I’ll do a blog post in the future on it.

That’s all for now!
~Capt’n Chris

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