First of all I’d like to apologise to everybody regarding my recent hypothesis about the stealth properties of the Magnesium Boride (MgB) fan blade based on it’s superconducting structure. Having reviewed it- I now believe this to be a false supposition.
I went on a wild goose-chase after ‘New Scientist’ spouted on about “superconducting stealth skins” for aircraft and, in my exuberance, tried to ‘fit the picture to the frame’.

Although there are some intimations that superconducting materials have stealth properties, these are likely to require cryogenic temperatures for EM attenuation as rightly pointed out by Winterstars & Erkokite. Evidence to suggest otherwise is scant and inconclusive (and can be ruled out for the harsh environments of the engine):

http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpl/login.jsp?tp=&arnumber=232520&url=http%3A%2F%2Fieeexplore.ieee.org%2Fxpls%2Fabs_all.jsp%3Farnumber%3D232520
http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpl/articleDetails.jsp?arnumber=301710&contentType=Journals+%26+Magazines
http://iopscience.iop.org/0953-2048/14/8/311/
http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn19923-nanotube-yarns-let-smart-clothing-survive-the-laundry.html

Being a former subscriber to ‘New Scientist’, I should’ve been more wary of the outlandish claims they sometimes make- by their estimations we should all be driving inter-dimensional, time-travelling, flying cars by now.
Apologies to all once again.

Having said that, I do believe I’ve cracked it.

There are structures called multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs)/многостенные углеродные нанотрубки, that have excellent broadband EM absorption characteristics:

One of the more recently researched properties of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) is their wave absorption characteristics, specifically microwave absorption. Interest in this research is due to the current military push for radar absorbing materials (RAM) to better the stealth characteristics of aircraft and other military vehicles. There has been some research on filling MWNTs with metals, such as Fe, Ni, Co, etc., to increase the absorption effectiveness of MWNTs in the microwave regime. Thus far, this research has shown improvements in both maximum absorption and bandwidth of adequate absorption.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_nanotube#EM_Wave_absorption
http://www.intechopen.com/books/carbon-nanotubes-synthesis-characterization-applications/microwave-absorption-characteristics-of-carbon-nanotubes

Details of nanostrucure (and nanocomposite) research for stealth applications by the Institute of Theoretical & Applied Magnetics, Russia:

State contract No U0875/2268 within the frames of Presidential Program “Integration” is aimed at development and diagnostics of amorphous, nano-crystallized and nano-structured materials with unique high-frequency magnetic properties, 2001 – 2006*. The research is carried out in collaboration with the Faculty for Physics of the Moscow State University, the Moscow Institute for Electronic Engineering and the Moscow Institute for Physics and Technologies.

http://www.itae.ru/obsh_sved_e.htm

Summary of FGUP ‘Urals HII Composite Materials’ research into nanocomposite structures for aircraft engine applications, based on C-SiC**:

http://www.rusnanonet.ru/articles/45708/

Here is a report (from 2002) on the synthesis of regular Magnesium Boride (MgB) structure to MgB MWNT:

http://livescience.ru/content/view/831/227/

В ОАО «НПП «Мотор» создана рабочая лопатка первой ступени компрессора ГТД на основе магниевой матрицы, армированной борными и углеродными волокнами.

OAO “NPP” Motor ” have established a working fan-blade of the [engine] compressor’s first stage based on a magnesium matrix, reinforced boron (Mg-B) and carbon fibre composite.

So by all accounts this fan-blade is a Magnesium Boride MWNT carbon fibre composite structure.

*’NPP Motor’s’ R&D for the MgB fan blade was from 2006-12, they are contractors for the PAK-FA Stage 2 engine;
**MMPP Salyut have conducted extensive R&D of C-SiC composites’ engine applications since at least 2006.

Just because some senior figures in the RuAF are declaring that state trials will commence next year and series production in 2015, these are just sound bites for the lay public.

They’re planning ~9 EMD airframes, only with the last few of these (produced post 2015) will you start to see intimations of definitive production representative machines. The recently revealed timelines for the FGFA give good indications of PAK-FA development. Imho, you won’t see RuAF standard machines until around 2017 (and that’s an optimistic assessment), so that’s 5 years’ development time/refinement/de-bugging for radar, avionics, FCS, EW, source code, stealth materials & engine.

Just because a couple of machines arrive @ Lipetsk next year for state airframe performance trials, doesn’t mean it’s anywhere near operational capability- no matter how loudly the generals blow their trumpets.

http://tvzvezda.ru/schedule/specialprojects/content/201208131641-69vn.htm/201208281535-gllr.htm

The passing of a giant. A man whose personal attributes were exceeded only by his professional.

God speed, Commander.

Superconductors require cryogenic temperatures to work. You’re not going to get that in jet engine fan blades.

…and the opposite of [super] conductance is?……..resistance;

and

Superconducting materials have special radar absorbance properties by exploiting the inefficiency of high temperature superconductors above their Tc (critical temperatures).

…so by exploiting the ‘inefficiences’ resistance becomes?……….absorbance.

We’re not interested in the zero electrical resistance and ejection of the magnetic field (Meissner effect), we want the complete opposite, the superconductors atomic structure facilitates that especially @ high temperatures. Savvy?

Incidentally, there was a (recently published) patent application for the thermal shielding of a carbon-fibre ‘meta-composite’ fan blade.

Sorry, what are you referring at ?

I am interested too.

Superconducting materials have special radar absorbance properties by exploiting the inefficiency of high temperature superconductors above their Tc (critical temperatures). It has been shown that the RCS is reduced as the magnetic field increases -in turn increasing the surface resistance within the magnetic field. The effect is more pronounced as radiation resistance decreases and superconductors are particularly efficient at absorbing X-band (microwaves), exhibiting behaviour akin to radar absorbing lossy magnetic materials such as carbonyl & ferrite iron that respond to the magnetic field in a microwave.

To date, using superconducting materials for stealth applications have been focused on the aircraft’s antennas, in an attempt to address the problem of scattering and turning the absorbed radar waves to thermal energy.

Magnesium Boride/diboride (Mg-B) properties as a superconductor have only recently been discovered (2001), it has broken new ground for superconductivity based on the well known electron-phonon interaction and hence would be particularly efficient at radar absorbance.

OAO ‘NPP Motor’ in association with the Ufa State Technical Aviation University have established a working fan-blade of the [engine] compressor’s first stage based on a magnesium boride matrix (Mg-B) and reinforced carbon fibre composite. Note the carbon fibre composite is low reflective. This has been around 5 years in the works.

‘NPP Motor’ are a contractor for the PAK-FA Stage 2 engine.

I triple checked everything- it’s the real deal.

I really don’t understand why you bother with the tyre stuff when length, width and depth of the bays are known through our mythical polish friend.

Well maybe our “mythical” friend has much to learn from this forum and some of its contributors. I’m sure we could give him a lesson or two in OSINT.

No offence intended, PiBu.

But you said that space between the launchers is to big if they planed only 2 of them. I tried to explain that the clearance between them is entirely justified when you have to put larger missiles inside of it.

Yeah, I agree with your explanation. Now if we assume that the T-50’s tyre is a similar width to the FLANKER’s (0.350m) with folded winged MRAAMs being slightly less (~0.3m), then 3 abreast is a no brainer:

Edit: Actually, the T-50’s tyre is wider @ 0.365m, which makes for an even more comfortable fit.