but complete new airplane as far as R&D goes.

Only in the sense that the F 16 E is a complete new airplane or MIG 35 is a complete new airplane.

Yeah, been visible for a while now & now clearly out in the open.

The IN should stick to just two types – the MiG-29K and the LCA MK2 till they can get a 5th gen type ready, wherein the FGFA – navalized or a JSF could do.

Whats the point of getting an entirely new type midway?

Keep upgrading the MiG-29 …say with newer radar, avionics and new weapons in the next iteration and it will remain current. Add some more fuel perhaps (that always helps for naval platforms).

May be they ‘should’ but are they going to ? If so why have they sent out the RFI ?

@Quadbike.

give me a good reason to be friend you.

Its up to you actually I add people who I think are knowledgeable as my friends here. It does not matter whether I agree with them on politics or not. 😉

I wouldn’t go that far. Several decades ago the Chinese military industry was laughable. No reason India can’t make large gains.

I was saying at the moment and with their respective financial outlay I cannot see it happening. Indigenous projects in India are given laughable outlays and then idiots complain when it goes over budget.

In previous post you said new fcs avionics, now you say it is a carbon copy, what is it? make up your mind.

I am confused, how is it a carbon copy if it has new structure and engines and avionics?

The most important part of a fighter is its Airframe, the one that is the hardest to design, and the one that differentiates one fighter from the other.

China has illegally copied the Su 33 air-frame, hence it has made a carbon copy.

Do you see Lamborghini stealing a Ferrari design sticking one of their V 12s and internals in and calling it a Lambo ?

The guy who founded BYDs started in Auto business by buying mercedez/toyota/lexus/bmw off the show floors in autodealerships and give them to his 20 something engineers to disassemble so they learn how to build a car. His young engineers used stare at those shiny new cars they could never be able to afford, and couldn;t bring themselves to destroy them. so he would take the keys and scracth those car up. so his young engineers could bring themselves to taking the cars apart.

now he has a passenger car business that is ready to take-in his batteries.

so, why am I telling the story in an Britian based aviation forum populated by Indian and Russian aviation enthusiasts?

the point is, its like comparing apples to oranges.
IN is a good customer only interested to getting a new shiny car. ” look at those new features, it has 18 inch rims, boss stereo speakers, 450HP V8 engine AND a new rear facing camera! beat that!”

PLA is a bad customers who like the guy in interested in the car making business. of course. their cars would suck and be scratched up, and be laughed at because they are knock offs! but, they are in for the long game. they are into the game of copying so that one day they may be able to MAKE their own.

But none of these guys who ripped apart Mercs/Beemers made exact copies, ripping apart a Merc & using its tech in your new car is ‘OK’. Not if its a carbon copy.

That first shot is awesome 🙂

These MIG 29s along with the new Su 35s have great build quality as well.

Oh I think it’s quite obvious that the Chinese are admitting that the J-15 is a Su27K/Su-33 “rip-off”. What seems to be the problem is that Indians and some Russians are incapable of admitting that the rip-off is still superior to the Mig-29K. :diablo:

How is it superior ? the larger take off weight is offset by STOBAR operations, the larger radar aperture size offset by the larger RCS, the newer 29Ks include visible RCS reduction measures for example. There is also an 1064 TRM AESA radar developed for the MIG 35 that can replace the current Zhuk M. Oh and it has Top Owl HMDS & HOBS missiles. And can use almost all Russian A2G,Anti ship and anti air munitions.

😎