A render of the SU-48
The SU-48 is the Red Star Alliance's newest jet fighter, one evolution past previous swept wing design experiments. In the SU-48, the Russians got it right.
It carries a powerful array of missiles - air-to-air and air-to-surface - to engage a wide variety of targets. It has the mandatory, last-ditch 20mm Gatling cannon for close-quarters fire and strafing, as well as a Domovoi Universal Missile Decoy Launcher.
However, of interest is its old-fashioned external hardpoint weapon mounts which carry its fearsome array of missiles. These mounts reduce the overall range of the aircraft (it increases drag), but not having to open a weapon bay makes it faster than the F/A-40 to launch a snapshot missile during close-in dogfighting. All-in-all, because of its lesser stealth capabilities, (as measured by the F/A-40) some call it more of a 'budget' aircraft. However Russian designers strove for a design that would win a split-second dogfight standoff vs. evading radar to get deep into enemy territory.
In all tests to date, all evidence points toward that F/A-40 having a counterpart to be concerned with.
-- Field Guide text entry
Overview[]
The SU-48 is the Red Star Alliance's main fighter aircraft; it fills both a fighter and the air superiority role.
The Western Coalition's counterpart to the SU-48 is the F/A-40 Stalker, which performs nearly identical to its Eastern adversary.
Statistics[]
The Field Guide places the SU-48 with the following ratings:
- Armor: 1 of 5
- Vehicle Speed: 5 of 5
- Acceleration: 5 of 5
- Crew Capacity: One
- Main Armament: 3 of 5
- Damage: 3 of 5
- Rate of Fire: 3 of 5
Gallery[]
