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The Su-24 emerged from an early 1960s specification for a new attack bomber to replace the Ilyushin Il-28 and Yakovlev Yak-28. The specification, issued in 1964, called for an all-weather aircraft capable of supersonicAny speed over the speed of sound, which is approximately 343 m/s or 761 mph or 1,225 km/h at sea level, is said to be supersonic . Many modern fighter aircraft are supersonic. The Concorde was a supersonic passenger aircraft, but, since its final retirem speed at low level, with a very high standard of navigational and bombing accuracy. Furthermore, Soviet Frontial Aviation commanders were well aware that their existing combat aircraft suffered a tactically crippling combination of long take-off distance and short range. As a result the specification demanded excellent short-field performance.
Sukhoi, like rival Mikoyan-GurevichMikoyan Mikoyan-Gurevich or MiG ( Russian: , or ) is a Russian military aircraft manufacturer. It was formerly a Soviet design bureau, and was founded by Artem Mikoyan and Mikhail Gurevich as "Mikoyan-Gurevich. Upon Mikoyan's death, Gurevich's name was dr (which was more or less simultaneously developing an air combat fighterFighter has at least two meanings: A fighter plane is a warplane designed to destroy other warplanes in combat. A fighter is one of the basic classes in the RPG Dungeons & Dragons. Fighters are warriors who specialize in the use of weapons. that was to become the MiG-23), initially considered the possibility of lift jet s to reduce take-off distance. Their first prototype, the T-6-1, had a delta wingThe delta-wing is a wing planform in the form of a triangle. Its use in the so called "tailless delta", i. without the horizontal tailplane, was pioneered especially by Alexander Lippisch in Germany and Boris Ivanovich Cheranovsky in the USSR prior to WWI with lift engines in the fuselage, similar to the T-58VD 'Flagon-B'The Sukhoi Su-15 ( NATO reporting name Flagon was a twin engined interceptor aircraft developed by the Soviet Union in the 1960s to replace the Sukhoi Su-11. History Recognizing the limitations of the earlier Su-9 and Su-11, the Sukhoi OKB quickly began t, but this proved to have disastrously poor handling. A modified version, the T-6-2, had no lift jets, but down turned wingtips and slotted flapThe word Flap can refer to several things. Flapping is a repetitive up-and-down motion most commonly associated with a bird's wing. A flap (aircraft) is a hinged surface on the trailing edge of an airplane wing. Flap in (archaic) computer science jargon,s; it bore a strong resemblance to the British BAC TSR.2. While the T-6-2 proved more workable, its low wing loading gave it a punishing low-level ride.A better solution was variable geometry, also being applied to the roughly contemporary Sukhoi Su-17 and Mikoyan-Gurevich 23-11. The second Sukhoi prototype was fitted with a variable wing, redesignated T-6-2IG. This first flew in 1970, and proved to be successful enough to merit production, initially under a cover designation of Su-15M (this designation, mistranslated by Western analysts, led the aircraft to be incorrectly identified as Su-19).
The production Su-24 ( NATO reporting name 'Fencer-A') entered service in 1974. It was not clearly photographed by NATO intelligence until a regiment was deployed to East Germany five years later, and the apparent capability of the 'Fencer' led to considerable panic among Western analysts, similar to that surrounding the MiG-25 'Foxbat.'
The Su-24 evolved through several early variations, each earning separate NATO reporting names (although all were apparently designated the same in Soviet service). Development of a substantially upgraded version, the Su-24M (NATO reporting name 'Fencer-D'), began as the original aircraft was entering service. The Su-24M finally entered service in 1983. Two specialized versions, the Su-24MR ('Fencer-E') reconnaissance variant and the Su-24MP ('Fencer-F') ELINT gatherer, were developed from the Su-24M. An export version of the Su-24M, the Su-24MK, has been sold to several foreign customers. It flies in the air forces of Azerbaijan, Belarus, Iran, Kazakhstan, Libya, Russia, Syria, and Ukraine. Some 24-25 were sold to Iraq, but the 18 survivors flew to Iran to escape destruction in the 1991 Gulf War.
About 1,200 Su-24s were produced, substantial numbers of which remain in service. Roughly 577 are currently operational with CIS forces. Although a formidable warplane in its day (albeit not quite as much as initially believed by the West), the 'Fencer' is likely to be replaced by the Su-27IB/Su-32FN/Su-34 or other more advanced aircraft as Russian finances permit.