Sukhoi Su-15 (Samolet P)

Interceptor Aircraft Prototype

Soviet Union | 1949

"The Sukhoi Su-15 interceptor prototype entry of 1949 failed to impress and was ultimately limited to just a single prototype."

Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 06/21/2018 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site; No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

The road to air superiority for both sides of the Cold War (1947-1991) was a never-ending battle of advancing technologies - weapons, jet engines, radar, etc... When one side generated a new faster, high-flying bomber, the other would release an all-new interceptor as its counter. The progress of jet-powered aircraft during the period was of considerable note and advanced with each passing year resulting in a plethora of forms - some successful, some not.

In March of 1947, Soviet authorities pushed through a new requirement calling for an all-weather, jet-powered single-seat interceptor. Sukhoi was given the charge of design, developing, and - ultimately -producing the new Air Force product which became the "Samolet P" - or "Su-15" (the Su-15 would late be resurrected in another Cold War aircraft development - the "Flagon" series detailed elsewhere on this site).

For the required speeds, the aircraft was to carry swept-back wing mainplanes and a pair of turbojet engines. Swept-back wings ensured the proper stability at higher speeds and a two-engine arrangement gave the desired performance - at the expense of fuel consumption. The mainplanes were mid-mounted along the sides of the fuselage. The engines became 2 x Klimov RD-45F turbojets developing 5,005lb thrust each (the RD-45 became the first mass-produced Soviet turbojet)

Within the Su-15 design, the engines would be arranged in tandem owing to their rather large dimensions. Both aspirated through the same split-air intake found at the nose while the forward engine unit exhausted under the belly of the aircraft at midships. The rear unit exhausted at the tail in the usual way. The ductwork required to feed the aft engine forced the cockpit to be set to portside. The radome intended to house the "Izumrud" ("Emerald") interception radar was fitted to the nose above the air intake which further added to the aircraft's rather deep fuselage appearance. The undercarriage was of a typical tricycle arrangement and fully retractable - the nose leg held under the cockpit floor and the main legs under each wing. Boundary layer fences - found on many of the Soviet jet-powered fighter designs of the period - were also present on the wing mainplanes.

Armament became 2 x 37mm Nudelman N-37 series autocannons with 110 projectiles afforded each system and this provided the interceptor with considerable killing capabilities against Western bombers.

The Su-15, in prototype form, achieved its first flight on January 11th, 1949 and a second example underwent construction. It was on the prototype's 39th flight that severe flutter was encountered which led to a loss of control, forcing the test pilot to eject. This aircraft crashed and proved a complete loss which led to insurmountable delays and questioning the project's fruitfulness moving forward. As such, the second prototype was not completed and the entire program ultimately terminated.

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Power & Performance
Those special qualities that separate one aircraft design from another. Performance specifications presented assume optimal operating conditions for the Sukhoi Su-15 (Samolet P) Interceptor Aircraft Prototype.

2 x Klimov RD-45F turbojet engines developing 5,000lb of thrust each.
Propulsion

612 mph
985 kph | 532 kts
Max Speed

49,213 ft
15,000 m | 9 miles
Service Ceiling

652 miles
1,050 km | 567 nm
Operational Range

6,562 ft/min
2,000 m/min
Rate-of-Climb

Structure
The nose-to-tail, wingtip-to-wingtip physical qualities of the Sukhoi Su-15 (Samolet P) Interceptor Aircraft Prototype.

1
(MANNED)
Crew

50.7 ft
15.44 m
O/A Length

42.2 ft
(12.87 m)
O/A Width

9.8 ft
(3.00 m)
O/A Height

16,336 lb
(7,410 kg)
Empty Weight

23,016 lb
(10,440 kg)
MTOW

Armament
Available supported armament and special-mission equipment featured in the design of the Sukhoi Su-15 (Samolet P) Interceptor Aircraft Prototype .

PROPOSED:
2 x 37mm Nudelman N-37 cannons

Variants
Notable series variants as part of the Sukhoi Su-15 (Samolet P) family line.

Su-15 - Base Project Designation; single example completed with second prototype partially constructed before project's end.

Operators
Global customers who have evaluated and/or operated the Sukhoi Su-15 (Samolet P). Nations are displayed by flag, each linked to their respective national aircraft listing.

Total Production: 1 Units
Contractor(s): Sukhoi OKB - Soviet Union

[ Soviet Union (cancelled) ]

1 / 1

Image from the Public Domain.

Going Further...
The Sukhoi Su-15 (Samolet P) Interceptor Aircraft Prototype appears in the following collections:

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