The JL-10/L-15 looks like a great plane. The air to ground capability is something that a lot of other trainer aircraft have. It makes them more marketable for poor countries which cannot afford large fighter bombers. Countries which mostly use their airplanes for COIN operations.
For a true ground attack aircraft I think you would need a different airframe though. The JL-10 just does not protect the pilot enough. CAS pilots often need to visually inspect the ground at low altitude to increase weapons delivery accuracy (unlike what the current USAF says). This has been true ever since WWI airplanes strafed targets. Russia also has a large experience with CAS in fact during WW2 it was a significant amount of their airpower. The Su-25 Frogfoot is what the Russians still use. But it's also an obsolete platform by now. The best platform for CAS right now is probably the USAF A-10. As major continental armies it's something China and Russia have a deficit in right now I think.
For a true ground attack aircraft I think you would need a different airframe though. The JL-10 just does not protect the pilot enough. CAS pilots often need to visually inspect the ground at low altitude to increase weapons delivery accuracy (unlike what the current USAF says). This has been true ever since WWI airplanes strafed targets. Russia also has a large experience with CAS in fact during WW2 it was a significant amount of their airpower. The Su-25 Frogfoot is what the Russians still use. But it's also an obsolete platform by now. The best platform for CAS right now is probably the USAF A-10. As major continental armies it's something China and Russia have a deficit in right now I think.
