Game:

Digital Combat Simulator World (2008)

Duration: 15:24

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4

I just did a test with the exact same settings between the Malaysian Su-30MKM, the Indian Su-30MKI, and the Russian Su-30SM, each with their respective best BVR missiles facing a lone F-16C Block 50 Viper with AIM-120C5 AMRAAM BVR missiles. The F-16C has no jammer. Each Flanker has a jammer onboard. Same stupid pilot (me).

The results? The notion that Malaysian Su-30MKM could outfight Singapore's F-15SG is a clear myth. It was outfought by an F-16C.
The Su-30MKI was on par with the F-16C resulting in mutual kills.
The Su-30SM outfought the F-16C by a large margin. The F-16C could not even fire one AIM-120C5 at the Su-30SM. Same exact settings for all three Su-30 variants. So, what Malaysia has is a really expensive and fancy Su-30 variant that lacks the necessary lethal reach in air combat to be effective. The same situation is shared with the Algerian Su-30MKA. The Indians have an expensive and fancy Su-30 variant that's just on par with the cheap F-16C Block 50 in BVR fight which means they wasted the potential of the Su-30 airframe and its associated upgrades that pertain to the MKI variant. Russia nails it by having the sophistication of its thrust vectoring Su-30SM variant coupled with the missile to reign in air dominance.

What Malaysia and India need is a BVR air-to-air missile that's at least on par with the R-77M missile for their respective Su-30 Flankers. Without having the provision for such missile for their respective Su-30 Flankers, the enemy would only need to SPAM F-16Cs with AIM-120C5s to defeat their respective foremost air superiority fighter aircraft.

0:00 Start, Malaysian Su-30MKM (R-27ET and R-77)
5:18 Indian Su-30MKI (R-77-1)
11:43 Russian Su-30SM (R-77M)

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