In February 2022, more of Pakistan’s marque defence programs have come to light, including the J-10CE and JF-17 Block-3. Moreover, the Pakistan Navy again confirmed that it will induct a new shallow-water attack submarine (SWATS) and continue its offshore patrol vessel (OPV) program.
Photos Emerge of Pakistan’s New Fighter Aircraft
The first photos of the Pakistan Air Force’s (PAF) forthcoming J-10CE and JF-17 Block-3 multirole fighters have emerged on social media. These two aircraft models are the focus of the PAF’s fighter modernization efforts through the 2020s. The aircraft will introduce a range of new capabilities to the PAF fleet, including active electronically scanned array (AESA) radars and high off-boresight air-to-air missiles (HOBS AAM).
In terms of the J-10CE, observers have spotted aircraft with the serial numbers 22-106, 22-103, 22-102, and 22-101. Given that these aircraft are sporting the PAF’s livery, it appears that Pakistan could receive a relatively large batch of fighters in the coming weeks, if not earlier.
So far the best images of a Pakistani Dragon: 🐉 J-10CP – even as it seems, they are still designated J-10C only 😉 – serial number 22-106!
(Image via Ali Akbar/SDF) pic.twitter.com/oDek60YMV3
— @Rupprecht_A (@RupprechtDeino) February 26, 2022
One clear image of the PAF J-10CE (22-106) confirms that Pakistan is also inducting an infrared search and track (IRST) capability. IRST is a ‘passive’ sensor that tracks targets based on their heat signatures. It offers fighter crews the option to build or retain situational awareness without relying on radar. This could be a useful capability if the pilot must switch off their radars (e.g. to negate the effects of enemy jamming).
IRST is a standard feature of the People’s Liberation Army Air Force’s (PLAAF) J-10C fighters. However, since the PAF retained IRST for its own fighters, it seems that it is interested in adding this capability. It will be interesting to see how the PAF tunes its doctrine to incorporate IRST and how the feature fares in the PAF’s usage. Interestingly, the PAF had floated the idea of using IRST in the JF-17 Block-3. It is possible that the J-10CE could serve as a pilot to analyze, operationalize, and train upon IRST. If successful, the PAF could potentially add IRST to the JF-17 Block-3 and JF-17B.
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