China's J-10/FB-7/F-8IIM

A little information on China’s current advanced aircraft.

First off, the J-10. Everyone knows the Israeli’s transferred Lavi technology to the Chinese and then proceeded to lie about it. The Lavi admittedly was a great aircraft, but too expensive for the Israeli’s to keep developing. Better to be given weapons…er…foreign aid from the USA. China’s J-10 is a more refined design than the Lavi, as it is not the typical Chinese carbon copy or reverse engineered aircraft. This will be the first serious fighter to come out of China. It will have decent enough avionics, contrary to popular belief. Russian advanced radars are being considered, modified versions of those originally intended for the MiG-29M, which would have also been a very capable aircraft. If provided with decent weapons, for instance the R-77M/R-74, they will be able to handle anything Taiwan will throw at them. The aircraft is comparable to an F-16 in terms of agility, due to its Israeli modified F-16 design, and should have decent enough power and range thanks to the engine, a development of the Su-27’s powerplant. All in all, an aircraft that we should finally worry about if China decides to mass produce 500 or more of them. There is also talks of a developed version for the PLANAF, possibly with two engines, for use from the carriers under development.

Next is the FB-7. Admittedly an older style design, and not up to par with the current attack aircraft in the world, but very formidable if you look at its purpose. The aircraft will not be adopted by the PLAAF, as Su-30MKK’s will fill the purpose better, but has been adopted by the PLANAF for use in the anti-shipping role. Ok, it can’t dogfight for a damn, but ships don’t magically become airborne. It has good enough range and weapons fit to perform its role in the PLANAF very effectively.

Then there’s the F-8IIM. Great concept, bad execution. Better to wait for more Su-27s/Su-30’s. This is an aircraft that IS designed for air combat, but again lacks anything resembling decent performance in that aspect. The -M modifications do a lot to help its BVR performance, but it still can’t turn. At best, it comes close to an F-4F-ICE capability in terms of weapons fit and aircraft abilities in the AA arena.

Ratings-
J-10-A- overall. Certainly the best Chinese aircraft yet developed. Not on par with a modern, stealthy design like the F-22, but could come close to the Rafale or Eurofighter in terms of ability on paper as far as AA is concerned. Not an equal, but could come close, certainly better than the Mirage 2000-5 pr IDF in Taiwan.

FB-7-B in anti-shipping, C- in air-to-ground, D in air combat. A good fit for the PLANAF, but not for the PLAAF, as evidenced by their recent Su-30MKK purchases. Although don’t rule out a Chinese Su-32FN purchase in the future to supplement/replace the FB-7. Could get export orders from countries like Libya or Iran who would value its AS capability.

F-8IIM-B- BVR, D+ WVR. Its saving grace is the R-73/HMS combination, but thats about all it has going for it. More Su-27/Su-30’s please.