I think the Mig-29's greatest weakness was its range. Looking back at it I think Lin Hu made a brilliant choice recommending the Su-27.
J-10 and J-11 do not have the same engine anymore, after J-11B switched to WS-10A Taihang after lot 00, the first 24 that went to 1 Ftr Div.
With the pictures of the WS10A powered J10A, I don't think it will be too long before the J11B and J10A/B are all operating with the same engine again, so the economies in logistics and procurement still stands.
Yes J10B, sorry, slip of the figure. But considering there does not appear to be any external differences of the rear fuselage of the J10A and J10B, and more importantly, between AL31FN powered J10Bs and WS10A powered ones, I am confident that it would not be an issue in retro-fitting existing J10As with WS10A engines once the AL31's flying hours have been exhausted and WS10A production ramps up enough.
Tphuang recently described in China Air and Naval Power why the China decided to buy SU-27 and not MIG-29, basically for the reason you mention.
I think the Mig-29's greatest weakness was its range. Looking back at it I think Lin Hu made a brilliant choice recommending the Su-27.
Out of curiosity how do you see the WS10A comparing to the AL31FN. I don’t want to spread disinformation, so what I'm saying is just from what I have read in different publications. I have read that the WS10A has slightly less power than the AL321FN. Should that be of concern to the thrust to weight ration and overall performance of the J-10B? Or is that a reasonable reduction in power for using a national engine?
Since SU-27 is much more advanced and Mig-29 being just a spin-off of SU-27, so why buy the worse one.