AL-31FN for J-10

MOSCOW. July 9 (Interfax-AVN) – The Russian AL-31FN aircraft engine to propel Chinese F-10 fighters will be repaired at Chinese plants, Emmanuil Goldinsky, constructor general of the Moscow-based Salyut machine-building enterprise, told Interfax- Military News Agency on Tuesday. “China studies the possibilities of repairing the AL-31FN engines at its own plants,” Goldinsky said. He stressed that the engines are planned to fit the F-10 fighter, which is currently under development of the Chinese aircraft industry. A peculiarity of the latter consists in lower positioning of the power-units. Goldinsky said that the repairs are being provided for in the license contract. Under the agreement Russia will deliver 54 AL-31FN engines to China within two years while in future the Chinese demand for the engines is likely to amount to several thousands. According to several sources, the Chinese Air Force is planning to receive 300 F-10 fighters in the near decade. Goldinsky mentioned that at present the work on the AL-31FNs development for the Chinese single sitter has been completed, and the Salyut enterprise has taken up delivering them to China. Some of the Chinese aircraft are already propelled by these engines. The guaranteed service life of the AL-31FN engine is 500 flight hours, while the specified ones is 1,000 hours.

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Article probably meant mean time before overhauls, not actual life of the engine. 500 hour MBTO is less than most Western powerplants, but better than the MiG-29’s Klimovs at 300 flight hours, or MiG-21’s Tumanskies at 100 to 150 flight hours.

This is a major change in previous policy for not allowing the Chinese to even overhaul the engines of their SU-27s and SU-30MKKs (forcing the Chinese to use subterfuge to obtain technical documentation on such from Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, etc,.)

This is also probably under some kind of duress that the Russians may eventually lose the engine contract to a domestic source if they persist on such a policy.