Re: J-10 database: prototypes, pre-serial & serial machines ...
tphuang said:
I'm not sure about the French part. Chinese people tend to stress ties between themselves and French, because they do like French fighters. In contrast, Chinese people tend to look down on Russian product and try to distance themselves from Russian environment. On the flip side, the Russians tend to overestimate their involvement. The answer is probably in the middle. Either way, I will try to translate the article. It does talk a lot about failed Chinese fighter projects. It seems like Chinese emphasized a lot on speed in the past fighters. Either way, a good opportunity to learn a little bit about past projects (hopefully it doesn't deceive me too much).
I still have doubts about the article, seems a bit like fan created to me.
A. Maybe the French participation in the M2000 electronics or radar is there, because the rumored KLJ-3 specs are similar to the RDY, lots of multiple targeting ability but short in air to ground capability.
However, China did have considerable exposure to the F-16. In Reagan's time, China was considered a serious F-16 customer. Furthermore, the J-8II was being seriously upgraded under the Peace Pearl project, which would have added an APG-66 radar, same radar from the F-16. China would have better exposure to the APG-66 than the RDY or RDM radars, in fact, I would say the information was pretty good. At least two J-8IIs were in the United States as testbeds for the upgrade when Tianamen happened. Furthermore, there is both the Israeli and Pakistani connections to that part. On top of that, there is also the US-Grumman involvement in the original Super 7 project.
B. Let us assume that the French provided info to China with regards to the M2000. But I didn't think it was the eighties, the potential US buy was more serious to China at that time. The motivating point would have been to quell Beijing's protest over the French sale of Mirages to Taiwan, but that would only come in the early nineties.
C. Israel certainly has its own radar developments to offer to China. The fact that they wanted to sell the EL-M 2032 to China isn't speculation, its authentic. ELTA wasn't even shy on this---they placed page sized ads on Chinese magazines complete with a Beijing address, telephone and fax number. The J-10 wasn't the only interest, but upgrading planes like the J-7 an the J-8II as well. Any French effort to market their radars was trivial, if nonexistant in comparison. In fact the only European country that ever shipped radars to China post Tianamen was the US biggest ally, Great Britain, who shipped Skywatcher radars for the Y-8s and the Skyranger and Super Skyranger radars for the export F-7s. It is said that the Super Skyranger had commonalities with the Blue Vixen radars used on the Harrier jets and the Foxhound/Foxhunter radars of the Tornado. Let us add that Italy's Grifo had its eye on the Chinese J-7 market as well, its appetite wetted with the Grifo 7 sale to Pakistan's J-7. French radar wasn't even in consideration till lately by Pakistan on the Thales RC-400 (somewhat like a lighter weight derivative of the RDY).
