Sukhoi Su - 30 Flanker - C The Sukhoi Su - 30 , designated by Flanker - C by the NATO , Is the most widely used fighter in the Flanker family today . This fighter , with characteristics of flights in any weather condition is a variant of Su - 27UB , and was put into operation in year 1996 . The versions of Su - 30MK and Su - 30MKI were the most commercially successful versions of the Flanker - C , the Su - 30 was responsible for introducing the use of datalink in the Russian aircraft . All Su - 30 ' s are made in the KnAAPO factory , except the Sukhoi Su - 30MK and the Sukhoi Su - 30MKI Flanker - H that are fabricated by the Irkutsk factory , that is considered the most advanced of the Sukhoi fighter factories [ http : / / www . areamilitar . net / DIRECTORIO / AER . aspx ? nn = 39 [ 1 ] . The Su - 30 also was the first aircraft to use the data - link system . History . Despite the original Su - 27 has a good range it was not a fighter air defense in the manner that the Soviet Air Defense Force required . So the interceptor SU - 27UB was selected to be used as a demonstrator of new technologies and the success of this demonstrator has ensured the development of a new version of the Flanker , Su - 27PU which was later renamed the Su - 30 . The Sukhoi proposed a variant of the export fighter , Su - 30MK , the letters " MK " means " Modernizirovannyi Kommercheskiy ( Modernized Marketing ) . The company first showed the Su - 30MK air show in Paris in 1993 . Maneuverability . The Family Su - 27 is known for its excellent maneuverability , especially those fighters with thrust vectoring and Canards , even with the large Su - 27 is seen as one of the best fighters for maneuver show . However , the level of training necessary to be able to run all possible maneuvers is extremely high , usually achieved only by the Russian test pilots , already highly trained in the Flanker family . This characteristic often inhibit the purchase of fighter planes by Air Forces around the world . Variants . SU - 30MK . The Sukhoi Su - 30MK is a modernized version of the Flanker - C , with capacity for air - ground missiles and up to eight tonnes of armaments . This version can download the latest Russian weapons as air - air missile R - 27 , R - 73 and R - 77 . Version MK - aoe has up to 3 , 000 km without refueling . Su - 30MKK . The Sukhoi Su - 30MKK Flanker - G is version created exclusively for export to China , its cost is estimated at 35 million dollars , this version is different from the version created for the India . Su - 30MKI . The Su - 30MKI is an Indian version of the Su - 30 , it has capacity for aerial refueling and can be converted for naval version . This is the most modern version of the Flanker - C , equipped TVC ( Thrust Vector ) Canards and was jointly developed with Russia , India and with companies from Israel and France . Su - 30MK2 . This version has the ability to use anti - ship weapons . In 2006 the Venezuela bought 24 units of this version of the Su - 30 . Other versions . The Su - 30 was produced in several other versions . They are : Specifcations . Armament . The Su - 27 PU had 8 hardpoints for its weapon load , whereas the Su - 30MK ' s combat load is mounted on 12 hardpoints : 2 wingtip AAM launch rails , 3 pylons under each wing , 1 pylon under each engine nacelle , and 2 pylons in tandem in the " arch " between the engines . All versions can carry up to 8 tonnes of external stores .