For a long time Soviet aircraft carriers had had only planes of vertical taking-off and landing JAK-38 and its modifications. This plane was quite good for its class but it could not compete with "usual" planes, starting from aircraft carriers with the help of a steam catapult. For example, American fighter - bomber F-14 Tomcat. To overcome backlog in this area, since the middle of 70-s the Department of Design-technology Bureau by P.O.Suhoi carried out works on a theme of the ship plane on base SU-27,(its name was also T-10). But works had been suspended because of moving of terms on airplane carrier of the project 1153. This work again was resumed only in the beginning of the 80-s.
First display of SU-33 to the public took place on August, 18, 1991 during the celebration of Aviation Day in Zhukovsky. On August, 31, 1998 according to the decree of the President of the Russian Federation deck fighter of DDB of P.O.Suhoi SU-33 was added to the Navy aviation armory.
SU-33 is capable to provide operations of other kinds of aircraft of the Navy: ship, sea missile-carrying, antisubmarine, radar-tracking patrol and so on. It also can destroy antisubmarine planes of the opponent in areas of expansion of fighting actions of submarines, reconnaissance aircraft and planes of distant radar-tracking detection, unmanned flying devices of deck and coastal basing; to conduct air technical investigation and to carry out setting sea mines.
SU-33 is equipped with a control system of arms with advanced pulse-Doppler board radar-tracking system (BRTS), providing search and support of the air purposes on a background of the land or water. Support during passing up to 10 purposes and simultaneous launch of rockets on the several purposes are provided. As well as SU-27 the deck fighter has an optoelectronic locator (heat direction finder and a laser range finder), completed with a helmet system of target destination (the optical head of a locator for improvement of the review of the pilot is displaced to the right).
On board there is a defensive system of radio-electronic investigation the "Birch" informing the pilot about an irradiation of the plane by radars of the opponent. For setting of active interferences equipment RAB in the containers located on the tips of a wing can be used.
The special system of navigation provides flight above the sea and land in any geographical conditions, an exact coming of the plane to the ship and the automated landing to the deck of an aircraft carrier.
SU-33 is the most powerful and long-range fighter of ship basing in the world. Its tactical radius is more than 1000 kms; bombing loading - 6.5 tons. On a distance of 250 kilometers from the aircraft carrier it is capable of loitering in the given zone, carrying out a task of air defense and anti-missile more than two hours.
Code designation of the NATO - Flanker-D.
