History of Russian AESA Radars

June 12, 2025

History of Russian AESA Radars

History of Russian AESA Radars

Here's some articles

https://bulgarianmilitary.com/2022/10/01/russia-lags-behind-india-makes-aesa-radar-for-its-sukhoi-su-30s/

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&opi=89978449&url=https://technologicaltrendz.quora.com/Why-cant-Russia-make-an-AESA-radar-What-are-they-missing&ved=2ahUKEwi9u57nkeyNAxVmQkEAHURWKBUQjjh6BAgvEAE&sqi=2&usg=AOvVaw2WPWkKI4V8RwPPNQuInhGx

https://www.quora.com/Why-did-Russia-have-troubles-developing-its-first-AESA-radar-while-South-Korea-and-Turkey-are-developing-theirs-fast

https://www.google.com/search?q=why+russia+cant+build+aesa+radar&oq=why+Russia+cant+build+aesa+&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUqCQgCECEYChigATIGCAAQRRg5MgkIARAhGAoYoAEyCQgCECEYChigATIJCAMQIRgKGKABMgcIBBAhGI8CMgcIBRAhGI8CMgcIBhAhGI8C0gEJMTI0MzBqMGo5qAIOsAIB8QUwcxteYvsvQg&client=ms-android-samsung-ss&sourceid=chrome-mobile&ie=UTF-8

https://www.globaldefensecorp.com/2020/07/13/why-russia-cant-make-an-aesa-radar/

So apparently Russia has struggled to build even rudimentary AESA radars.

Russia has been using AESA since the 60s and in mass use since the 80s and built their first fighter Jet AESA in early 2000s and first navy AESA in 2010s.

AESA Generations

1st Generation / analogue electronics with basic vacuum tube phase shifters

5N15 made in 60s

Old Type AESA

2nd Generation / utilised individual stick transmitter receiving modules weighing a few hundred grams with digital electronics with NiZn or SiGe technology phase shift elements utilising travelling wave tubes

Zoopark-1 and Nebo-SV made in 80s

3rd Generation / fully digital with GaAs planar monolithic individual stick transmitter receiving modules with ceramic materials to reduce weight to below 200g with phase sifters utilising digital beam forming.

FGA-29 and Podlet-K1 made in 2000s

4th Generation / micro-electrome- chanical systems phase shifters with GaN stick T/R modules that weight under 10g.

In very limited use by USA, China, France and Russia with L402 and Krasukha-4 being produced systems that utilise GaN modules

Along with next gen photonic radars.

https://infobrics.org/post/43499

https://www.deagel.com/Components/ROPAA/a003809

https://tass.com/defense/1012445

Hybrid PESA Radars

These employ technology known as RF-MEMS also known as radio frequency micro electromechanical systems. These utilise individual sub arrays with combined receiver and transmitters to allow limited individual beam steering. Modern (Post 80s) phased array radars that utilise GaAs, GaN, CuZn, SiGe etc. antenna arrays also employ digital beam forming and have higher frequency agility.

This offers many of the benefits of AESA without added costs such as

High frequency agility.

This allows high jam resistance and more sophisticated LPIR

Limited beam shaping.

This allows waveform adaptation and allows higher resolution radar imaging.

Low side lobes

This allows tracking beyond scan limits and greatly reduces ground clutter giving much better LDSD abilities.

Digital beam forming (Later editions)

This allows far higher accuracy in target tracking.

You should be asking "why doesn't every country utilise these" because whilst they are much cheaper compared to actual AESA, their jam resistance, beam forming and beam shaping, and less so its frequency agility, are nowhere near as capable as actual AESA radars.

Hence why radars like N035 Irbis-E are seen as hybrid PESA not normal older PESAs like N007 Zaslon that use ferrite TWTs with aluminium antenna R/E modules and are just one whole array.

Full list of Russian hybrid PESA radars.

S-400

96L6 Cheese Board

92N6 Gravestone

76N6 Clam Shell

S-300PM, S-300PM1 and S-300PM2

30N6E2 Tombstone

64N6E2 Big Bird

S-300VM and S-300V4

9S15M2 Obzor-3

9S19M Imbir

S-500 and S-350

50N6A

Buk-M1-2, Buk-M2 and Buk-M3

9S18M1-1 Tube Arm

Su-35S and Su-30SM2

N035 Irbis-E

Pantsir

1L36

MiG 1.44

N014 Faraon-M

Gremyashchiy, Gorshkov, Grigoriovich and Steregushchiy

5P-27 Furke-4

AESA Radars

1st Generation

5N15 P VT 60s

5N65 P VT 60s

Daryal P VT 70s

70M6 P VT 70s

2nd Generation

1L219 NiZn / Zoopark-1 P 80s

L-005S Sorbitsya-S P NiZn / Su-27, MiG-31M and MiG-29M 80s

L-175V Khibiny P NiZn / MiG-31M, Su-27M, Su-30 and Su-32

1L119 NiZn 80s

Nebo-SV

5P-26M Pozitiv-M P NiZn 90s

Gepard, Buyan and Karakurt

Don-2N P NiZn 90s

1L119U NiZn 90s

Nebo-SVU P

Gamma D P NiZn 00s

Voronezh P NiZn 00s

BKO-28 Platan / NiZn

Mi-28A, Mi-28N, Ka-50 and Ka-52

3rd Generation

Resonance-N GaAs 00s

Epaulet-A GaAs 00s

Predel-E P GaAs 00s

Podlet-K1 P GGaAs 00s

Volga P GaAs

N036KL P GaAs / Su-30SM2 and Su-35S

N036L P GaAs/ Su57

N036 Byelka P GaAs / Su57

N036B P GaAs / Su-57

RLM-M GaAs

Nebo-M

RLM-D GaAs

Nebo-M

RLM-S GaAs

Nebo-M

FGA-01 GaAs

FGA-35 P GaAs / MiG-35

FGA-29 GaAs

PAK-FA AESA GaAs

FHA03E GaAs P / Ka-27M

AFAR Plannar GaAs

MBRLS-MF2 GaAs P / S-70 UCAV

Kopyo-DL P GaAs / Su-34M

29B6 P GaAs

Afghanit PPM P GaAs / T-14 Armata

Nebo-U P GaAs

Vega Premier GaAs / A-100 (Pos GaN)

5P-20 Furke-4 P GaAs / Gorshkov and Grigoriovich

L-175VU Khibiny-U GaAs / Su-30SM and Su-34

SAP-14 GaAs / Su-34

Krasukha-2 P GaAs

Sanoket P GaAs / 2S38 Derivitsya-PVO

5N96-TE P GaAs / S-350

Rezonans-N / S-400 and S-350 P GaAs

FGA-35 GaAs

FGA-50 GaAs

9B-1103M2 / R-77M P GaAs

9B-1103M1 / R-97 P GaAs

9B-1348M / K-270 and early or export R-77Ms GaAs

9M96 P ? GaAs / S-400 and S-350

40N6 P ? GaAs / S-500

1RS2-3 P GaAs / Pantsir-S1M-SV

4626 Morfey GaAs

RBB-3 Pika-M P GaAs / UKR-RL Pod for Su-34M

VN-101 Zaslon P GaAs / Mi-171Sh Storm

Irbis P ? GaAs

BRLS-130R GaAs / Yak-130M

V006 Rezets P GaAs / Ka-52M and Mi-24PN-1M

RLS-X-MF Zaslon GaAs

Steregushchiy and Gremyashchiy

MR-760 Fregat-M2M GaAs

Gremyashchiy and Steregushchiy

5P-10 Puma GaAs

Gremyashchiy, Gorshkov, Grigoriovich and Steregushchiy

2S35 GaAs ?

L-370 Vitebsk GaAs

Su-25SM3, Ka-52, Mi-28NM, Mi-24VM, Mi-35P, Mi-28NM, Mi-24PN-1M and Mi-8AMTSh-VN

4th Generation

Krasukha-4 P GaN / 00s

L-700 Tarantul P GaN / Su-34M 10s

L-265 Khibiny-M P GaN / Su-35S and Su-30SM2 10s

UKR-RT SAP-14PM P GaN / Su-34M

L-402 Himalayas P GaN / Su-57 10s

77T6 P GaN / S-500

76T6 P GaN / S-500

Yastreb-AV P GaN

Nebo-T P GaN

L-187A Rychag-AV

Mi-8MTPR-1

L-418 Monobloc

Ka-52M

Over 70 AESA radars were made from old Gen to current gen with over 40 put into production. But yes rusSia cAnT bUiLd aEsA rAdArs.

Currently 5x russian production fighters use AESA radars, these are MiG-35D, Su-30SM2, Su-34M, Su-35S and Su-57 and eventually the Su-75 and Yak-130M, with Ka-27M, Ka-52M, Tu-214R and A-100 all utilising AESA radars as well.

Sources

https://www.niip.ru/upload/iblock/4c8/4c89c11ae741be234a5f900b3fb41e86.pdf

http://www.aviapedia.com/forum/field-trials/t-phazotron-zhuk-ae-aesa-radar-654.html

http://www.defense-update.com/features/du-1-07/aesaradar_zhuk_AE.htm

http://www.defense-aerospace.com/articles-view/release/3/158167/more-on-sukhoi-t_50%E2%80%99s-himalayas-ew-system.html

https://niiet.ru/wp-content/uploads/%D0%9F%D0%9F9139%D0%901.pdf

https://web.archive.org/web/20140428131143/http://ria.ru/defense_safety/20140424/1005305871.html

https://www.airrecognition.com/index.php/news/airshow/air-show-2017/maks-2017-news-coverage-report/3641-kret-spotlights-new-khibiny-m-ew-system-at-maks-2017.html

https://armstrade.org/includes/periodics/news/2021/0312/095561974/detail.shtml

https://structure.mil.ru/structure/okruga/west/news/more.htm?id=12173927@egNews

https://ruavia.su/su-34-frontline-bombers-are-equipped-with-a-new-stratospheric-strike-and-reconnaissance-system/

https://thaimilitaryandasianregion.wordpress.com/2016/09/26/russia-presents-new-pika-m-reconnaissance-radar-for-su-34/