Direct proof of use
The Su-57 is documented in the 2014 Russia-Ukraine War as a Russian Aerospace Forces aircraft used in a limited, mostly standoff role. The clearest photographed conflict-linked incident came on June 8, 2024, when Ukraine's Defence Intelligence Directorate said an Su-57 was struck at Akhtubinsk airfield in Astrakhan Oblast, 589 kilometres from the contact line, and published before-and-after satellite imagery of the parked aircraft.
RUSI assessed the Akhtubinsk incident as a Ukrainian strike against a Russian Su-57 at the 929th VP Chkalova State Flight Test Centre and described the aircraft's role in the conflict as extremely minor. TWZ reported that the UK Ministry of Defence had stated Su-57s had been used in Ukraine since at least June 2022, while public reporting associated their employment with standoff missile launches rather than routine operations inside heavily contested Ukrainian airspace.
Sources: Su-57 Is Hit for the First Time, Damaged Su-57 Emphasises the Vulnerability of Russian Airbases Near Ukraine, Su-57 Felon Struck Deep Inside Russia
Timeline
Public Ukraine-war references place the Su-57's use after the February 2022 full-scale invasion, with UK intelligence later identifying Akhtubinsk-based aircraft as likely involved in operations against Ukraine. The most concrete dated event is the June 8, 2024 Akhtubinsk strike, which Ukraine supported with satellite imagery and which multiple defense outlets treated as the first publicly documented Ukrainian strike on the type.
Sources: Su-57 Felon Struck Deep Inside Russia, Guardian Ukraine War Briefing June 2024, Su-57 Is Hit for the First Time
Narrative
The Su-57's Ukraine-war employment is best described as cautious fielding by Russia rather than broad air-superiority use over Ukrainian territory. Reporting and analysis point to standoff missions, with the aircraft remaining in Russian-controlled airspace or at Russian bases while Russia avoided exposing its small fifth-generation fleet to Ukrainian air defenses.
The Akhtubinsk incident also shows the difference between deployment and direct tactical effect. Ukraine's strike targeted the aircraft on the ground deep inside Russia, while RUSI judged the Su-57's direct effect on the war to be almost nonexistent because of the fleet's small size and slow development. The same analysis treated the strike as part of Ukraine's wider campaign to pressure Russian airbases that support the air war against Ukraine.
Sources: Damaged Su-57 Emphasises the Vulnerability of Russian Airbases Near Ukraine, Guardian Ukraine War Briefing June 2024, Su-57 Felon Struck Deep Inside Russia
