plawolf
Lieutenant General
Re: JF-17/FC-1 Fighter Aircraft thread
The JF17 still uses a Russian engine, and I think the PLA has had just about enough of Russian parts and would choose to avoid them wherever possible.
The PLA may still buy the JF17, but it will have to be after the WS13 is ready first.
But TBH, there is little the JF17 brings to the table that the PLAAF really desperately needs. Sure its better than a J7, but if the J7 is more than good enough for the roles the PLA has for them, what is the point in replacing them? JF17s are cheap but still cost money, and while China has a lot of money, that is no reason to be wasting it.
For the future when the J7s need to be retired, the JL9 and/or L15 can easily take on its air policing duties for low threat areas.
Just getting 100 JF17s to tick a box to make the plane more sellable is a bad idea. Those planes need logistics to support them, and that cost will be higher per plane since there are so few of them. How many JF17s do you think China needs to sell to break even with the costs of buying and operating those 100 JF17s?
Such a move will cost China a lot more money then any export sales is likely to generate. Thus the PLA should only but the JF17 if it truly needs them, and no as a export boosting publicity stunt.
The JF17 is already attracting a lot of international interest, and since the PAF uses it, it is already in a far better position than the Tigershark.
If China and Pakistan really want to export the JF17, they should prioritize development of the twin seater, so they can really show foreign test pilots and/or air force big wigs what this thing can do and feels like when they are behind the controls.
The JF17 still uses a Russian engine, and I think the PLA has had just about enough of Russian parts and would choose to avoid them wherever possible.
The PLA may still buy the JF17, but it will have to be after the WS13 is ready first.
But TBH, there is little the JF17 brings to the table that the PLAAF really desperately needs. Sure its better than a J7, but if the J7 is more than good enough for the roles the PLA has for them, what is the point in replacing them? JF17s are cheap but still cost money, and while China has a lot of money, that is no reason to be wasting it.
For the future when the J7s need to be retired, the JL9 and/or L15 can easily take on its air policing duties for low threat areas.
Just getting 100 JF17s to tick a box to make the plane more sellable is a bad idea. Those planes need logistics to support them, and that cost will be higher per plane since there are so few of them. How many JF17s do you think China needs to sell to break even with the costs of buying and operating those 100 JF17s?
Such a move will cost China a lot more money then any export sales is likely to generate. Thus the PLA should only but the JF17 if it truly needs them, and no as a export boosting publicity stunt.
The JF17 is already attracting a lot of international interest, and since the PAF uses it, it is already in a far better position than the Tigershark.
If China and Pakistan really want to export the JF17, they should prioritize development of the twin seater, so they can really show foreign test pilots and/or air force big wigs what this thing can do and feels like when they are behind the controls.
