Pakistan and China recently took their jointly developed CAC/PAC JF-17 Thunder, otherwise known as FC-1 Xiaolong in China, on a marketing tour in South Africa to push the fighter to African governments.

This third generation fighter is currently only in service with the Pakistan Air Force (PAF), having been a made exclusively for Pakistan by the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) and the Chengdu Aircraft Corporation (CAC) of China.

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China National Aero-Technology Import & Export Corporation (CATIC) exhibited the FC-1 Xiaolong during the 9th Africa Aerospace and Defense (AAD) 2016 Exhibition in Pretoria, South Africa, last week. Previous to this, the FC-1 participated in other international air shows.

These include the China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition; Dubai Air Show; Paris Air Show and Farnborough International Air Show.

The JF-17, which is the export version of the FC-1, can be used in air-to-air combat missions and also has strong ground attack capabilities. It's a light weight, third-generation fighter capable of all-weather missions

The project that led to the JF-17 (JF for Joint Fighter) began in 1998 when China and Pakistan signed an agreement for joint development and production of the fighter. The maiden flight of the No. 01 prototype fighter was successfully conducted on August 25, 2003. The first fighters were delivered to the PAF in March 2007.

JF-17 has prominent low-and-middle-altitude maneuvering combat capability at high subsonic speed, and a relatively good interception and supersonic operation ability. It has longer flight range, combat radius and flight time. It also has better short-distance take-off and landing, and higher weapon-loading characteristics, according to CATIC.

The fighter with its advanced aerodynamic shape is equipped with a large thrust and low oil consumption turbofan engine; an advanced digital fly-by-wire (FBW) flight control system and a comprehensive aviation electronic and weaponry suites.

Its multiple advanced functions include precise navigation, battlefield situation sensing, target detection and identification, combat and attack and electronic warfare. In the future, the fighter will possess an advanced data link and will be equipped with new guided weapons.

The JF-17 has a total of seven hardpoints with a total external load-carrying capacity of 4,600 kilograms. The fighter can carry advanced weapons such as over-the-horizon air-to-air missiles; infrared short-range dogfight missiles and multiple kinds of advanced precision-guided air-to-ground weapons.

TagsPakistan, china, CAC/PAC JF-17 Thunder, FC-1 Xiaolong, Pakistan Air Force, 9th Africa Aerospace and Defense, Pakistan Aeronautical Complex, Chengdu Aircraft Corporation