Right after russia demonstrated its Su-57 fighter at the Aero India 2025 air show on February 10–14, the Kremlin decided to send this aircraft to iran, as evidenced by satellite imagery of the Bandar Abbas airbase in the south of the country, published by American website TWZ. The image captures a Su-57 and an Il-76 airlift located next to two iranian P-3 Orion patrol aircraft, purchased by the iranian military before the 1979 revolution.
There are also a number of videos filmed from the ground in which the Su-57 performs what unambiguously looks like demonstration flights. The latest satellite photo of the russian jets at the airbase dates February 21, they are no longer present in the image from February 24. Thus, the russian aviation and specialists stayed for over a week in iran which is quite a while.
This might be a long time to spend advertising the capabilities of the Su-57 to a potential client but quite logical to implement a full flight program so that the iranian military could check the capabilities of the fighter. Such procedures are common for the final stages of preparation for a purchase.
A few sources state another reason for the delay of the russian aircraft in the country: problems with the engine. Supposedly, during the second flight, the Su-57 made an emergency landing immediately after takeoff, and therefore russians had to wait until a new engine was delivered to iran and the replacement was complete.
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In any case, the iranian trip of the russian delegation was a planned event. Moreover, given that the Aero India 2025 air show was held in Bangalore, the airbase in Bandar Abbas would be an expected stopping point in the middle of a long 5,200-km route back to Akhtubinsk.
On the other hand, if Moscow planned to showcase its Su-57, then it would be more reasonable to land in Tehran for a public demonstration to the iranian top leadership. Or vice versa, at an airfield remote from populated areas, provided the parties preferred to keep it a secret.
Earlier, Tehran officially admitted a procurement of russian Su-35 fighters, regularly seen in iran since April 2023. Furthermore, they also bought the license to its local manufacturing, raising doubts that iran would be interested in buying Su-57 as well.
Still, it is worth noting that the Su-57 already has its first abroad operator with an export contract recently confirmed: it was purchased by Algeria.
Source » defence-ua