Entered Service: 1989
Retired: N/A
Cost: $37.5 million*
Another Moscow creation is the Su-30, developed by the Sukhoi Aviation Corporation. This multi-role fighter can fly in all weather, and it is designed for air-to-surface and air-to-air deep interdiction missions. The Su-30 was originally an internal development project until the Russian Defense Ministry caught on in 1996.
The RDF insisted that AFLT make Su-30 planes for military use. In addition to serving the Soviet Union (and later the Russian Air Force), the Su-30 is in use with the Algerian Air Force, Vietnam People’s Air Force, and the Venezuelan Airforce. Its variants include the MK1, MKK, and MKM Su-30s.