Sukhoi Su-9 (1946)

Sukhoi · Soviet Union · first flew 1946 · fighter

The Sukhoi Su-9 (Samolyot K) was an early twin-jet fighter built in the Soviet Union shortly after the Second World War. It was cancelled because it was slower than competing Soviet aircraft.

Recognition (WEFT)

W — Wings	Low-mounted, straight
E — Engines	2 × turbojet, wing-mounted
F — Fuselage	Bubble canopy and tricycle undercarriage retracting into the fuselage
T — Tail	Conventional

WEFT is AircraftIQ's four-point recognition method — how it works.

Spot it by:

Low-mounted straight wing
An RD-10 turbojet hung under each wing in a streamlined nacelle
Bubble canopy and tricycle undercarriage retracting into the fuselage

Look for an oval-section fuselage with a bubble canopy and a straight low wing carrying an engine nacelle under each side. The nose housed one 37 mm and two 23 mm cannon.

Specifications

The Sukhoi Su-9 (1946) has a length of 10.546 m (35 ft).
It has a wingspan of 11.2 m (37 ft).
Its maximum speed is 885 km/h (550 mph).
Typical crew: 1.

Figures are for the representative variant described above; marks differ. See how AircraftIQ sources figures.

History

Design began in 1944 around two Lyulka TR-1 turbojets, but the engines were not ready, so it was redesigned for the RD-10, a Soviet copy of the Junkers Jumo 004B. It was probably influenced by the captured Messerschmitt Me 262. The first prototype made its first flight on 13 November 1946.

Variants

A version with different engines and a revised wing became the Su-11 (Samolyot KL), which was also not produced. The Su-13 (Samolyot KT) was a proposed re-engining with Soviet copies of the Rolls-Royce Derwent, and was not accepted.

Where you'll see it

The Su-9 never entered service. The pilots found it easy to fly, but it had high control forces at speed and insufficient directional stability.

Related aircraft

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