Sukhoi Su-15 Guide, Meaning , Facts, Information and Description
The Sukhoi Su-15 (NATO reporting name Flagon) is a twin engined interceptor developed by the Soviet Union in the 1960s to replace the Sukhoi Su-11.
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2 Description 3 Variants 4 Specifications (Su-15TM 'Flagon-F') 5 Related Content |
The Su-15's first flight was 30 May 1962, with the aircraft entering service in 1967.
As one of the Soviet V PVO's principal interceptors, the Su-15 was involved in a number of incidents with foreign aircraft. One such attack was in 1978, when a Korean Airlines airliner was attacked over Murmansk by a PVO Su-15. Although the civilian aircraft survived the missile hit, it subsequently crashed, killing two passengers. In 1981 a Baku, Azerbaijan-based Su-15 rammed an Iranian Canadair CL-44, apparently as a deliberate attack. More notorious was the Korean Air Flight 7 incident in 1983, when a Korean Boeing 747 was shot down by a Su-15TM based on Sakhalin, killing all 246 passengers and 23 crew. Other incidents involving reconaissance and surveillance aircraft may have occurred, but gone unrecorded.
Although it was produced in large numbers, the Su-15, like other highly sensitive Soviet aircraft, was never exported to the Warsaw Pact. Many now belong to the Georgian and Ukrainian air forces following the collapse of the Soviet Union, although few, if any, remain serviceable.
In Russia, the Su-15 was gradually phased out in favour of more advanced interceptors in the early 1990s, including the Su-27 'Flanker' and MiG-31 'Foxhound.'
Although many components of the Su-15 were similar or identical to the previous Su-9 and Su-11 (NATO reporting name 'Fishpot'), including Sukhoi's characteristic rear-fuselage airbrakes, the Su-15 abandoned the shock-cone nose intake for side-mounted intakes feeding two powerful turbojet engines, initially the Tumanskii R-11. The change allowed room in the nose for a powerful search radar. The early Su-15F (known as 'Flagon-A' by NATO) had pure delta wings like its predecessor, but these were replaced on the Su-15MF ('Flagon-D') by a new 'kinked' delta planform of increased span, with small wing fence above each outer pylon. This was accompanied by a new tail with greater anhedral.
Like the original Lockheed F-104 Starfighter, the 'Flagon' had exceptional speed and rate of climb. The Su-15 was a "hot ship" in every respect. Take-off and landing speeds were very high, and while the controls were responsive and precise, the aircraft was extremely unforgiving of pilot error. It was intended as a stand-off interceptor, not an agile fighter, and did not suffer fools gladly.
Despite its powerful radar, the 'Flagon,' like most Soviet interceptors before the late 1980s, was heavily dependent on ground control interception (GCI), with aircraft vectored onto targets by ground radar stations.
Primary armament of the Su-15 were the R-8 (later R-98) air-to-air missile (AA-3 'Anab'). Early models carried two missiles, but 'Flagon-D' and later versions could carry four. Like most Soviet missiles, the R-98 was made in both infrared and semi-active radar homing versions, and standard practice was to carry the weapons in pairs to give the greatest chance of a successful hit. Later 'Flagon-F' models often carried two R-98s and one or two pairs of short-range R-60 (AA-8 'Aphid') missiles. The R-23R (AA-7 'Apex') medium-range missile, shared with the MiG-23, was also an option in place of the R-98. Late-model 'Flagons' also sometimes carried a pair of UPK-23-250 23mm gun pods on the fuselage pylons, each containing a two-barrel GSh-23L cannon (similar to that used by the MiG-21 and MiG-23).
The first Su-15F and Su-15MF models were superceded in 1970 by the Su-15T ('Flagon-E'), which added a new radar, the Taifun, additional internal fuel, and stronger landing gear for higher takeoff weights. It also added two side-by-side fuselage pylons for drop tanks or gun pods. The new radar proved to be an almost total disaster, and in 1973 the Su-15T gave way to the Su-15TM, with a new ogival nose radome to accomodate the heavily revised Taifun-M radar.
Other Su-15 models included:
Designation sequence:
Su-10 -
Su-11 -
Su-15 -
Su-17 -
Su-20 -
Su-21 -
Su-22 -
Su-24 -
Su-25 -
Su-26 -
Su-27
See also: List of military aircraft of the Soviet Union and the CIS
This is an Article on Sukhoi Su-15. Page Contains Information, Facts Details or Explanation Guide About Sukhoi Su-15 History
Description
Variants
Some reports indicate that later marks, with the kinked wing planform, were designated Su-21, but other sources claim that designation was incorrect.Specifications (Su-15TM 'Flagon-F')
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