Plaaf

[neo29]

starting a new thread on plaaf ... indias current and future threat

i was just looking through their inventory of the infamous plaaf's 2000 ac's airforce and i noticed something. around 850 ac's are of the mig 21's variants/copy . the iaf is already desperate to retire the mig 21s around 250 ac's which we have.

china does not seem to be in hurry in replace them though they are surely working and producing their j10 and jf17 with pak. but obv in 2 years time those 850 ac's will be worthless. not to mention another 150 bombers which fall in 3rd genaration.

except russia who just gave them mig 21s and su 30 design no one else in the world has helped them in aerospace and probably will not with US watching.
so the plaaf with such huge quantity of 3rd gen phase out ac's , is it still the among the best ??? i personally feel in 5 6 years time we can match up to the plaaf provided we choose the best in mmrca and procure another 100 ac's.

 

[Armand2REP]

No doubt PLAAF is largely outdated. Their inability to field domestic engines is slowing them up in new procurement. They thought they had a winner with WS-10 but it turned out to be a dud. They buy what they must from Russia but no more than that. If and when WS-10A is all it is supposed to be, you will see them churn out far more fighters than the slow production rate today. I think their production rate of J-10 is about 20 per year. Production of J-11B is stalled without the engines. FC-1 hasn't even been ordered domestically. I think a good PLAAF attack orbat would include 1,600 multi-role J-10, 400 MR J-11, and another 400 L-15s interchangable in a CAS role. That is one AF I would not want to tangle with. As it is now, they are stuck waiting on Russian components of which they need to get off desperately.