The Russian Air Force will now receive the first T-50 PAK-FA fifth-generation fighter in 2015, instead of 2013, as requested by Russian Premier Vladimir Putin.
Col. Gen. Alexander Zelin said he hoped that in 2013, the [Sukhoi] PAK FA prototype would be ready and fine-tuned, and the air force would start deliveries to military units in 2015, according to Ria Novosti.
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The air force will acquire the PAK FA fighters to replace the its aging MiG-29 Fulcrum and Su-27 Flanker.
The air force conducted the maiden flight of the aircraft on 29 January 2010, with a prototype known as T-50.
Following the 47-minute maiden flight, Putin said the first batch of fifth-generation fighters would go into service in 2013.
Designed by the Sukhoi design bureau, the T-50 is equipped with next-generation air-to-air, air-to-surface and air-to-ship missiles and two 30mm cannons.
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By GlobalDataThe Russian Air Force is designing the PAK FA, with advanced avionics, stealth capability, a ferry range of up to 5,500km and an endurance of 3.3 hours, to compete with US F-22 Raptor.
Russia, which has been developing the fifth-generation fighter since the 1990s, has hailed the PAK FA as a unique warplane that combines the capabilities of an air superiority fighter and attack aircraft.
