As the rebel army is consolidating its gains against the Junta, the Myanmar Air Force has taken delivery of its six Su-30 SMEs from Russia. The delivery of the twin-seater, two-engine fighter jet comes as the Myanmar Air Force is facing problems with its Chinese-made JF-17 Thunder fighter jets.
The six Russian jets were acquired under a 2018 contract valued at US$ 400 million. The acquisition has been financed through a Russian loan, and the final two fighter jets were commissioned on December 15, 2024, at Meiktila Air Base in Mandalay.
Lieutenant General Alexander Fomin, Russia’s Deputy Defense Minister, informed the Russian news agency TASS that these Su-30 jets will serve as Myanmar’s primary aircraft for safeguarding territorial integrity and countering terror threats. The Su-30SMEs are stationed at Naypyidaw Air Base, enabling coverage of the entire country.
The Myanmar Junta is strengthening its air capabilities to deal with the rebels. On December 15 alone, the military commissioned six Russian-made Mi-17 helicopters, six Chinese-made FTC-2000G fighter jets, one K-8W fighter jet, and one Y-8 support aircraft.
According to Justice for Myanmar, which monitors the conflict in the country, the military is predominantly receiving aviation fuel from China and Russia, while the Junta has said that the raw materials it uses to produce military weapons come from 13 countries, including China, Russia, and India.
The Myanmar Air Force is currently focused on counter-insurgency operations and has been providing close air support to ground forces engaged in conflict with rebel forces. Since 2021, the Myanmar Air Force has been conducting airstrikes.
The air superiority has not been enough for the Junta to defend its territory against the ethnic rebel groups.
Myanmar’s junta is conducting regular airstrikes and artillery attacks on towns in northern Shan state that are firmly under rebel control. The Air Force has been using Y-12 aircraft to drop bombs at the rebel-held areas. After losing fighter jets and combat helicopters, the military is now also using transport helicopters “capable of carrying hundreds of bombs” in its attacks on rebel forces.
The junta will expand its use of air and artillery attacks even in 2025 as part of a bid to prevent further loss of territory. While anti-junta forces do not possess surface-to-air missiles and other sophisticated equipment, they are still capable of shooting down the junta’s low-flying aircraft with weapons such as .50 caliber machine guns.
The Su-30SME, a Russian twin-engine, two-seat variant of the Su-30, is designed for missions requiring extended range and substantial payload capacity. It has a maximum speed of Mach 2.0, a service ceiling of 17,300 meters, an operational range of approximately 3,000 kilometers, and 12 hardpoints for carrying various weapon configurations.
The Su-30SME, an export variant of the Russian Su-30SM fighter, was first presented internationally at the Singapore Airshow in 2018. It is equipped with Russian-made avionics, replacing foreign components found in other variants, such as the Su-30MKI.
The delivery of Russian fighters comes as Chinese JF-17 Thunder fighter jets in Myanmar are facing a host of technical issues. Besides, the junta has also accused Beijing – one of its few remaining international supporters – of backing the rebels, with junta chief Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing saying in August 2024 that the military lost Lashio because of China’s involvement.
Later, the Chinese embassy issued a statement suggesting that external forces were attempting to damage China-Myanmar relations.
Slipping Air Superiority
The Myanmar Air Force (MAF), even though not small by regional standards, has some 31 SU-29s and six recently delivered SU-30s from Russia. The seven JF-17 multi-role fighters are already grounded due to cracks in their airframes and other maintenance issues.
Myanmar has approximately 40 other jet fighters on paper, but these are old, Chinese-produced knock-off Russian jets from the 1990s. They are well beyond their service life.
The MAF is thought to have 20 Nanchang Q-5s, the Chinese version of the MiG-19, down from the 36 it imported from 1994-2001. It also has some 21 Chengdu J-7s, a Chinese-produced MiG-21. That’s down from some 60 that it had purchased from 1990-1999.
It is still not clear how many of these aircraft are airworthy.
Myanmar’s military has relied on its 18 Russian-built Yak-130 trainers for much of its combat operations. Since the February 2021 coup, Myanmar has taken delivery of some six Guizhou JL-9 jet trainers, referred to as FTC-2000G, which do not have a very impressive performance and safety record.
Developing Tactics To Counter Drone-Savvy Rebels
Drone strikes have been crucial to the insurgents’ success, including pushing junta troops out of large areas in Myanmar’s north, many of them near the border with China.
The rebel forces have been heavily using drones. Fighters smuggled drones built for filming or agricultural purposes — many of them made in China — into anti-junta camps where teams repurposed them to carry crude but effective “drop bombs.”
Now, the military is adopting the equipment and strategy of the anti-Junta fighters, using drones to drop mortars or guide artillery strikes and bombing runs by its Chinese and Russian-built air force.
The Washington Post collated more than 30 videos and photos of military drone operations from noncombatant aid groups, watchdog groups, and pro-military channels. Analysis of these videos and photos indicated that many of the attack drones used by the military are commercial drones manufactured by various foreign companies. The junta has also sought out specialized surveillance drones, in particular from Russia.
While the United States and European Union have embargoes on the sale of weapons to the Myanmar military, these have failed to stem the flow of arms worth millions of dollars from Russia and China as well as equipment categorized as “dual-use,” such as drones and drone parts.
Russia’s defense ministry has publicly confirmed that Myanmar has at least one type of Russian surveillance drone, the Orlan 10E, in its arsenal. But at least one more Russian drone developer, Albatross, has also been working with the Myanmar military, according to company emails that Ukrainian hackers leaked.
