On 30 December 2020, Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) rolled out 14 JF-17B twin-seat fighters for the Pakistan Air Force (PAF). These aircraft will join the eight JF-17Bs PAC rolled out in December 2019 – they are part of a wider PAF order of 26 aircraft. It seems that the JF-17B program is on-schedule as the PAF had intended to acquire 22 aircraft by the end of 2020. The remaining four are due in 2021.
The PAF ordered the JF-17B as an add-on to its original plan of 150 JF-17s. The PAF will primarily use the JF-17B as an operational conversion unit (OCU) asset to support pilot transition to the JF-17, which is now the PAF’s mainstay combat aircraft. The F-7P’s OCU squadron – i.e., No. 18 Sharp Shooters – will switch to the JF-17B and operate as the JF-17’s OCU unit from Minhas Air Base in Kamra.[1]
Like its other multirole OCU assets, the JF-17B will also be combat capable. However, it is unclear if JF-17B units will offer additional capabilities above the standard features of the Block-II.
The PAF also announced that PAC will also start the production of JF-17 Block-3s. The PAF reportedly did confirm that the COVID-19 pandemic “inflicted serious impacts” on PAC, but it still seems that the Block-3 project is running on schedule.[2] PAC is aiming to roll out 12 JF-17 Block-3s a year from 2021 to 2024.[3]
The JF-17 Block-3 first flew at the end of 2019. The PAF is positioning the Block-3 as its primary counter to the Indian Air Force’s (IAF) induction of Dassault Rafale fighters. In addition to equipping the Block-3 with an active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar, the PAF is also adding “air dominance” and “enhanced EW [electronic warfare] suite and BVR [beyond-visual-range) capability” to its messaging.
Besides selecting the Nanjing Research Institute of Electronics Technology (NRIET) KLJ-7A AESA radar, the PAF did not confirm the specific make or model of the subsystems it will add to the JF-17. However, there have been rumours of the PAF seeking the PL-15 from China, though Quwa was told by a PAF official back in 2018 that several Chinese air-to-air missiles were under consideration.
In general terms, the KLJ-7A reportedly offers a maximum range of 170 km against a fighter-sized aircraft – thus, the PAF will certainly seek a BVR air-to-air missile with a range of in-excess of 100 km. Besides the overall range of the missile, the PAF will likely look to emulate some of the key features of MBDA’s Meteor, which the IAF is using from its Rafale fighters. A key capability would be a long-range ‘no-escape zone.’
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