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Wow, that's the kind of info I wish I had access to, I quess some of that is out there if you only go digging deep enough, but at my end (for the time being) I'm afraid my info is limited mostly to what's on the shelf down at B&N.
While I do spend time in the vault studying the real juicy classified intel info that all active fighter drivers (regardless of service) have access to, I would never come close to discussing anything here (or anywhere else on the internet) that isn't available in open-source (unclassified commercial) materials. These days there's so much openness coming from the Former Soviet Republics that a lot of information that would have been sensitive intel info in the past is available right on the net, in reputable magazines, or in recent books (just look at all those guys who have paid 10 grand to go actually *fly* the things in Russia). Jane's has especially been able to exploit this lately. Such is the power of the dollar, I suppose.
That being said, there's also a lot of good info coming my way from guys who have actually been there; one guy who's actually flown the airplane and a couple of others who have actually flown against them. There have been at least two "exchanges" between the F-15E community and an Su-27 base in the Ukraine -- one where we took a couple jets to the Ukraine and another where a couple of FLANKERS came here to good ol' US soil at Seymour Johnson. That was before my time at SJ, so I didn't see or do any of it myself, but I've read all the debriefing reports as well as talking to the dudes who *were* there and *did* experience these things.
While neither of us were showing off the "really good stuff" to the other guys, actually getting hands-on experience goes a long way to cutting the propaganda BS that both sides are so good at producing.
Certain other things, such as the cost of operating ex-Soviet fighters over the long term and their relative unreliability, are well documented. FULCRUMs are in service all over the world, including "friendly" service with Germany, so it's no secret that it's tough to keep these things flying. It's also no secret that overall they're less reliable than their western-built counterparts. This is why Germany's planning on getting rid of it's MiG-29s in favor of the Eurofighter.
I'll admit also that the Russians have designed jets that are "rugged" and designed to operate from unimproved environments, and that's a definite benefit. US jets have not been designed to do this because the mission they were built for does not involve them taking off from impromptu or covert highway airstrips or dirt fields. Our doctrine is more "power projection" oriented, hence the emphasis on air refueling, etc.
So, again, all that being said, I'll repeat that the current 4th generation Russian fighters are formidible threats that cannot be ignored or discounted. In the hands of experienced pilots and flying the right tactics, they are at best equal to current front-line fighter units.
I just simply wanted to point out what I thought were a few inaccuracies, not personally insult anyone.
