Which Countries Have The Most Sukhoi Fighter Jets In Their Military?

Russia has long been capable of producing a massive fleet of combat-capable aircraft, though most people likely think of its MiG family of fighter jets in this capacity. While the Russian Aircraft Corporation, which manufactures the MiG, makes its fair share of jets that are sold all over the world, it's not the only company doing so in the Russian Federation. The JSC Sukhoi Company has been around since before World War II; its family of fighter jets is just as ubiquitous as the MiG, and renowned for their capabilities. 

These days, the latest Sukhoi fighter is the Su-57 Felon, a stealth multirole fifth-generation fighter jet meant to replace older stocks of MiG-29s and Su-27s. While Russia maintains its own massive military fleet of Sukhoi fighters, the country also produces them for export. Because of this, there are large numbers of them flying in countries worldwide. 

Russia is the nation with the most Sukhoi fighter jets in its military, more than 1,000 jets of different models. After Russia, there are nine nations with at least 50 flying their skies, while another 25 fly fewer than 50.

The Russian Federation flies the most Sukhoi fighters, which isn't surprising, since it's their country of origin. According to World Air Forces 2024, which tracks military aircraft currently in service around the world, Russia has 1,082 Sukhoi fighters, which includes 49 for training, with another 110 on order. China is second with 399 Sukhoi fighters of different models.

The third nation with the most Sukhoi fighters is India, which flies 266. After India, the numbers drop considerably, with Algeria taking the fourth spot with 105. After Algeria, Vietnam flies 79 aircraft while Kazakhstan has 69. Ukraine has 65 in its inventory, or it did when World Air Forces compiled its numbers. Military Watch Magazine reported on Sept. 15 that Ukraine had lost some of the last of its Su-27 fighters, suggesting that World Air Forces' numbers are no longer accurate.

The bottom three nations with at least 50 Sukhoi fighters in their inventories are Belarus with 61, Syria with 57, and North Korea with 56. Together, these 10 nations operate 2,239 Sukhoi fighters. That's significant because there are only 2,628 Sukhoi aircraft tracked by World Air Forces. That places 85.2% of all active Sukhoi fighter jets in the hands of only 10 nations. 

Of course, not every Sukhoi fighter is as capable as every other. Many of the Sukhois flying around the world are older models, of which there are many.

Breaking down which countries have the most Sukhoi fighters is cumbersome due to the different models in operation. While there have been many generations of Sukhoi fighters, only a handful remain active. These include the Su-22 Fitter D, Su-24 Fencer, Su-25 Frogfoot, Su-27 Flanker, Su-30 Flanker C, Su-33 Flanker D, Su-34 Fullback, Su-35 Flanker E, and the recently-developed Su-57 Felon. Each brings something to the table, and like most military hardware in the West, Sukhoi's fighters have seen updates and upgrades over the years.

The Su-30 is the most-used fighter across the nations that fly Sukhoi fighters, taking up 10.8% of the fleet. The Su-30 is a multirole fourth-generation fighter capable of supporting various mission requirements. The West's comparable aircraft is the F-15E Strike Eagle. Most of the Su-30s in operation today are in India — all of India's 266 Sukhoi fighters are Su-30s, and it has 12 more on order. Russia also flies a large force of Su-30s, though they're mixed with Su-27s and Su-35s in the breakdown.

The second most prominent aircraft currently in operation around the world is the Su-24, making up 10.7% of the total force. The Su-24 is considerably older, introduced in the early 1970s. Su-24s are primarily used as bombers, though they have air-to-air strike capabilities and also function as interdictors. Sukhoi continues to upgrade its family of fighters, so more models probably will debut well into the future, including the Su-75 Checkmate, which entered development in 2021.

While only 10 nations fly just over 85% of the Sukhoi fighter jets currently in operation around the world, there are still many left to 25 other countries. After North Korea's 56 Sukhoi aircraft are Angola and Uzbekistan, which both operate 38. Next are both Iran and Poland, with 32 in their air forces. Iraq has 30 Sukhoi fighters, followed by Turkmenistan's 25, Yemen's 23, Venezuela's 21, and Ethiopia's 21. 

After Ethiopia, the numbers decrease significantly, leaving Malaysia with 18 aircraft. Armenia comes in next with 17, followed by Indonesia and Sudan with 16 and 15 Sukhoi fighters, respectively. Azerbaijan has 12, then Chad with nine, Peru has eight, and Bulgaria maintains seven. The Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda both possess six Sukhoi fighter aircraft, while Equatorial Guinea has four. Libya currently flies three Sukhoi fighters, leaving Eritrea, Ivory Coast, Myanmar, and Niger all operating two fighters. Those 25 nations together fly the remaining 389 Sukhoi fighter jets currently in operation. 

Russia doesn't sell its weapon systems and aircraft so much these days. Because of the war in Ukraine, its resources are strained, and the sanctions prohibit Russia from doing business with most of its former clients, so fewer Sukhoi fighters are leaving the country. But whenever things settle down, it's likely Russia will continue to export its Sukhoi fighters to whichever nation is willing to spend its cash to acquire them.