General characteristics
Crew: 1
Length: 19.02 m (62 ft 5 in)
Wingspan:
With wings spread: 13.68 m (44 ft 11 in)
With wings swept: 10.02 m (32 ft 10 in)
Height: 5.12 m (16 ft 10 in)
Wing area:
With wings spread: 38.5 m² (414 ft²)
With wings swept: 34.5 m² (370 ft²)
Empty weight: 12,160 kg (26,810 lb)
Loaded weight: 16,400 kg (36,155 lb)
Max. takeoff weight: 19,430 kg (42,835 lb)
Fuel capacity: 3,770 kg (8,310 lb)
Powerplant: 1 × Lyulka AL-21F-3 afterburning turbojet
Dry thrust: 76.4 kN (17,185 lbf)
Thrust with afterburner: 109.8 kN (24,675 lbf)

Performance
Maximum speed:
At sea level: Mach 1.13 (1,400 km/h; 870 mph)
At altitude: Mach 1.51 (1,860 km/h; 1,156 mph)
Combat range: 1,150 km (715 mi; 620 nmi) in hi-lo-hi attack with 2,000 kg (4,400 lb) warload
Ferry range: 2,300 km (1,430 mi; 1,240 nmi)
Service ceiling: 14,200 m (46,590 ft)
Rate of climb: 230 m/s (45,275 ft/min)
Wing loading: 443 kg/m² (90.77 lb/ft²)
Thrust/weight: 0.68
Maximum g-load: 7 g

Armament
Guns:
2 × 30 mm Nudelman-Rikhter NR-30 autocannons (80 rounds per gun, 160 rounds total)
UPK-23 or SPPU-22 gun pods for 2 × Gryazev-Shipunov GSh-23L autocannons
Hardpoints: 12 hardpoints with a capacity of up to 4,000 kg (8,800 lb) of stores and provisions to carry combinations of:
Missiles:
Air-to-air missiles:
K-13
R-60
R-73
Air-to-surface missiles:
Kh-23 Grom
Kh-25ML
Kh-29L/T/D
Anti-radiation missiles:
Kh-58
Kh-27PS
Kh-28
Bombs: drop bombs, laser-guided bombs, electro-optical bombs, napalm bombs, drag chute bombs and cluster bombs

The Sukhoi Su-17 is a Soviet variable-sweep wing fighter-bomber developed from the Sukhoi Su-7. It enjoyed a long career in Soviet, later Russian, service and was widely exported to Eastern Bloc, Arab air forces, Angola and Peru as the Su-20 and Su-22. It is the first variable-sweep wing of Russian/Soviet origin. The Su-17 set a number of world records. The Mach 2-capable Sukhoi Su-17 "Fitter" was a further development of the successful Su-7 "Fitter-A" fighter/fighter-bomber family line detailed elsewhere on this site. The aircraft incorporated a partial variable geometry wing ("swing wing") system and improved upon the former's take-off and landing attributes as well as performance at the low-level as required of it during ground attack runs. The swing-wing element added to the aircraft's stability at low-speeds and altitudes while improving overall range and ordnance loads by featuring large-area fixed wing "gloves". Beyond its new wing arrangement, the Su-17 also differed from its Su-7 origins in that it featured a newly-designed canopy and nose assembly as well as an identifiable raised fuselage spine, giving the new aircraft a more stout appearance than the pencil-thin Fitter-A. The type served the Soviet Union well and was heavily exported to Warsaw Pact nations and trusted Third World allies alike. The Su-17 was developed into the export Su-20 and Su-22 Fitter models of varying avionics, engines and weapons. In all, some 2,867 Su-17/Su-20/Su-22 Fitters were produced with almost half of these made available to Soviet export customers. Over a dozen nations took delivery of the type, making it a staple fighter-bomber throughout the Cold War. Some air forces continue to fly the aircraft - nearly forty years after it was introduced.

The Su-17 was used in a few "one-off" developmental projects as well, these becoming the Su-17M-28 and the Su-17MKG. The Su-17M-28 was used in the testing of the AS-9 "Kyle" anti-radiation missile whilst the Su-17MKG became the development platform for the testing of the AS-10 "Karen" and AS-14 "Kedge" air-to-surface missiles. Both aircraft platforms would lend themselves well into expanding the lethality of the Su-17 Fitter line as a whole, particularly in its ability to acquire and destroy ground-based targets with a good level of success.
Standard armament (Su-17M4) was a pair of 30mm Nudel'man-Rikhter NR-30 series cannons (80 rounds of ammunition to a gun). The Fitter was given twelve total hardpoints (in later production models) for which to affix a variety of air-to-air and air-to-ground stores (two underwing hardpoints were reserved for self-defense air-to-air missiles while four hardpoints were positioned along the underfuselage sides and three hardpoints were given to each underside wing glove area). In the air-to-ground role, the Fitter was cleared to carry AS-7 "Kerry", AS-10 "Karen", AS-11 "Kilter", AS-12 "Kegler" and the AS-14 "Kedge" air-to-surface missiles as well as conventional drop bombs, laser-guided/electro-optical bombs, napalm, drag chute bombs, cluster bombs, gun pods (GSh UPK-23 and the traversable GSh SPPU-22)) and rocket pods. The Fitter was cleared to carry the AA-2 "Atoll", AA-8 "Aphid" and AA-11 "Archer" air-to-air missiles (mainly in a self-defense role). External armament was limited to 8,820lbs.
The Su-17 was unofficially known as the "Martlet" (or "Strizh" in Russian).

Two Sukhoi Fitters of Libyan origin were shot down by US Navy Grumman F-14 Tomcats in the much publicized Gulf of Sidra incident (August 19th, 1981).

The USAF could lay claim to at least six Sukhoi Fitters during the 1991 Gulf War.