Could Egypt’s Su-35 Acquisition Be a Path its First to Hypersonic Missiles? What the R-37M Can Offer

On March 18th a number of sources reported that the Egyptian Armed Forces were set to acquire a sizeable unit of Su-35 ‘4++ generation’ air superiority fighters, which would be delivered from 2020-2021. Over two dozen fighters would be provided alongside munitions, training and maintenance infrastructure under a $2 billion contract - forming the only unit of heavyweight fighters in the country’s fleet and the only one specialised in air superiority. The aircraft can operate at considerably higher speeds and altitudes, with higher weapons payloads and with heavier and more powerful sensors and more modern electronic warfare systems, than anything previously in the Egyptian fleet.

The Su-35 is set to provide the Egyptian Air Force with a number entirely new of high end capabilities, many of which it has sought for many years ever since it sought permission to acquire F-15C Eagle air superiority fighters from the United States. The fighters will be of a small minority in the Egyptian fleet capable of deploying modern standoff air to air missiles, with only the country’s two recently acquired MiG-29M squadrons currently deploying such missiles and its Rafales possibly set to integrate such missiles in future. Alongside standard munitions such as the R-77 and R-27ER, platforms with speeds between Mach 4 and Mach 5 and ranges of 110-130km, the Su-35 is also capable of deploying a hypersonic air to air missile with an extreme range. The R-37 is one of just two modern hypersonic air to air missiles in service anywhere in the world, alongside the Taiwanese Sky Sword II, and the R-37M variant is reportedly compatible with the Su-35 and Su-57 airframes. The missile will provide Egypt with by far its longest ranged anti aircraft capability, and has a 400km range and a speed of Mach 6.

Paired with the Su-35’s powerful Irbis-E radar, the R-37 can be used to neutralise high value enemy support aircraft such as AWACS and tankers at extreme ranges. The missile may also prove useful against enemy fighter jets at shorter ranges, and its considerable speed significantly decreases the time for targeted aircraft to respond. None of Egypt’s neighbours or potential adversaries currently deploy a missile with comparable capabilities to the R-37M, which would complement the already formidable capabilities of the Su-35 to provide the state with a considerable advantage in potential air engagements. The missile will also complement the advanced S-300V4 long range surface to air missile batteries Egypt purchased in 2013, which are compatible with the 40N6E hypersonic anti aircraft missiles which also have a 400km range. Egypt is not known to have acquired the 40N6E for its S-300 batteries as of yet. While Egypt has come under considerable pressure from the Western Bloc to terminate its plans to purchase the Su-35, the United States’ refusal to provide similarly capable fighters for four decades and the lack of comparable alternatives provides Cairo with a strong incentive to follow through on its plans to acquire the jets.