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Information:

The Sukhoi Su-9 (ASCC reporting name: Fishpot) is a single-engine, all-weather, missile-armed interceptor aircraft developed by the Soviet Union

The Su-9 emerged from aerodynamic studies by TsAGI, the Soviet aerodynamic center, during the Korean War, which devised several optimum aerodynamic configurations for jet fighters. The design first flew in 1956 as the T-405 prototype. The Su-9 was developed at the same time as the Su-7 "Fitter", and the West first saw both at the Tushino Aviation Day on June 24, 1956, where the Su-9 was dubbed Fitter-B. It entered service in 1959.

The total production of the Su-9 was about 1,100 aircraft. It is believed that at least some Su-9s were upgraded to Su-11 "Fishpot-C" form. None were exported to any of the USSR's client states nor to the Warsaw Pact nations. The remaining Su-9s and later Su-11s were retired during the 1970s. Some were retained as test vehicles or converted to remote-piloted vehicles for use as unmanned aerial vehicles. It was replaced by the upgraded Su-11 and the much-superior Su-15 "Flagon" and MiG-25 "Foxbat".

The combat record of the "Fishpot" is poorly documented. It is possible that it was involved in the interception (or even shoot-down) of reconnaissance missions, but no information has been publicly declassified.

Being an interceptor, the Su-9 was used in routine patrols and interdictions over the Soviet Frontiers. The most widely known involved in the interception of Francis Gary Powers' U-2 on Soviet territory on May 1, 1960. The Su-9 was unarmed and was directed to ram the U-2. One ramming attempt was made, but the Su-9 missed the U-2 due to the significant difference in the speed of the two planes. Due to the Su-9's lack of fuel, the pilot elected to break away from the U-2 and continue with the original flight plan. Its pilot, Captain Igor Mentyukov, later claimed that his slipstream caused the U-2 to break apart. He discounts the official version that the U-2 was shot down by an SA-2 missile, explaining that Powers could not have survived such a hit.

On September 4, 1959 a modified Su-9 (designated T-431 by the bureau) piloted by Vladimir Sergeievitch Ilyushin set a new world record for absolute height, at 28,852 m (94,658 ft). In November of the same year, Ilyushin set several new sustained speed/altitude records in the same aircraft. This record was later broken on December 6, 1959, by Commander Lawrence E. Flint Jr., who performed a zoom climb to a world record of 98,557 feet (30,040 meters) while piloting an F4H-1 Phantom.[1][unreliable source?]

Bobrovka became the Soviet Union's primary storage facility for the Su-9 as it was phased out, and by 1981 at least 243 Su-9 aircraft were observed parked at Bobrovka.[2]