Since China has emerged as a new major stakeholder in the World, therefore, demands perfection & advancement in its technology to counter & compete adversaries. In this context Chinese Air Force People Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) huge bulk of 3rd & 3.5th generation fighters were to be replaced by state of the art 4.5+ Generation machines. PLAAF already has J-20 “Mighty Dragon” the 5th Generation platform speaks of its capabilities & advancement. As mentioned earlier PLAAF had to replace obsolete fleet, they needed a proper 4.5+ Generation fighter. China is already producing Flanker family’s indigenous versions such as J-11, J-15 & J-16 based on Su-27/Su-30 are not ideal for the replacement, because of these two reasons which are as follows:
1. Flanker derived indigenous platform are all heavy weight and twin-engine platform which are too costly to maintain (Operational Cost).
2. Their heavy weight and bulky designs may compromise their RCS, operational availability & maintenance costs.
J-10C a Best Solution for PLAAF
J-10C is best solution because of its compact size, cost, maintenance & above all the capability which this beast provides.J-10C outclasses its older versions the J-10A & J-10B. J-10C differs from predecessor variants in few but key areas which are as follows:
DSI & Composite Material
J-10C now has Divert less Supersonic Intakes (DSI) which was also installed on J-10B units. Hence with DSI it reduces the Aircraft Radar Cross Section (RCS). Along with DSI, the use of Radar Absorbent Material further reduces RCS and perhaps according to some online sources J-10C has RCS below 1.
Avionics
J-10C is equipped with ingeniously build AESA Radar. Its AESA radar has 1200+ T/R modules enabling it resistant against radar jamming. Such a good number of T/R modules means more powerful radar & detection capability up to 200 Km. It further gives big boost in BVR capability by making J-10C able to guide PL-15 dual-pulse rocket BVR missile having range of 200 Km.
J-10C is Equipped with state of the art IRST & EOTS (Electro Optical Targeting System) but unfortunately no one can find exact information about Chinese weapons. Since it has IRST & EOTS, yet it can passively locate & engage target without exposing Radar signature gives J-10C a massive edge against any adversary.
WS-10B TVC Engine
Recently J-10C was equipped with WS-10B TVC engine, with WS-10B it is performing impressively giving more boost in maneuvering and T/W ratio which now stands at impressive 1:16. This engine has also lowered the Chinese dependency on Russian Al-31FN engines.
Weaponry
AESA Radar, use of Composite Material & TVC engine, J-10C has impressive versatility of weaponry making it true Multirole platform.
Notably it can carry PL-15 with formidable range and PL-10 TVC WVR Missile ~+90- degree all aspect attack capability.
Also, For SEAD role it can carry YJ-9 Anti-Radiation missile, for Anti-Ship role it can carry C-803, C-802 & Hyper-sonic CM-400 missiles. It can also carry huge variety of Guided and unguided munitions for Ground attack roles, with aid of IRST & EOTS (Electro Optical Targeting System)
Important Note: ” Pakistan Air Force aka PAF evaluated J-10A & rejected it in past but J-10C is completely new machine with massive capabilities”.
*RCS= Radar Cross Section.
*AESA= Active Electronically Scanned Array.
*IRST= Infrared Search and Track.
*TVC= Thrust Vector Control.
*WVR= Within Visual Range.
*BVR= Beyond Visual Range.
*SEAD= Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses.
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