Kazakhstan is preparing for a major upgrade of its combat aircraft fleet and could receive its first fifth-generation fighters within the next two years. Military Watch Magazine reports that the Russian Su-57 is believed to have emerged as the choice after the country considered the Chinese J-35, the US F-35 and the Russian aircraft.

According to several sources in Russia and Kazakhstan, orders for Su-57 fifth-generation fighters have already been placed. Reports that several countries had ordered the new Russian aircraft first emerged in 2025. Kazakhstan currently operates fighters exclusively of Soviet and Russian origin.

Most sources, however, have not confirmed which fifth-generation model Kazakhstan intends to acquire. The global export market currently offers only three aircraft in this category: China’s J-35, the US F-35 and Russia’s Su-57.

MWM considers an F-35 sale unlikely for political reasons. The J-35, meanwhile, has long been viewed as the main challenger to Russian combat aircraft in Central Asia. China made its first major fighter deliveries in the broader region in the early 2020s, supplying JF-17 Block 3 aircraft to Azerbaijan and J-10Cs to Uzbekistan. In both cases, the new fighters were intended to replace Soviet-inherited MiG-29s.

Although a Su-57 purchase has not been confirmed, the Russian fighter is considered a likely option because of Kazakhstan’s close defense ties with Russia and its substantially greater combat potential compared with other Russian fighter aircraft.

Kazakhstan’s Air Defense Forces currently operate MiG-31 interceptors inherited from the Soviet Union. These aircraft were later upgraded in Russia to the MiG-31BM standard during the 2010s.

The country also received Soviet-built Su-27 fighters from Moscow in exchange for Tu-95MS strategic bombers that Kazakhstan had inherited after the collapse of the USSR. Astana subsequently purchased the Su-30SM, an advanced development of the Su-27 family, which now forms the backbone of its fighter fleet.

The Su-57 is expected to replace Kazakhstan’s Su-27s and could eventually succeed the MiG-31 as well, providing a major increase in the capabilities of the country’s Air Defense Forces.

If the acquisition goes ahead, Kazakhstan would become the second post-Soviet state after Russia to operate fifth-generation fighters. It would also likely become the second foreign customer for the Su-57 after Algeria.

MWM notes that the Su-57 falls behind the J-35 and F-35 in a number of respects, but also offers several advantages. These include lower maintenance requirements, significantly greater flight range, far more extensive combat testing and the ability to employ several unique missile types.