Hi may be the Q is it feasible to upgrade blk1 & 2 or specifically blk1 coz I think the money on bringing those at par with blk3 may be to invest to have another blk 3 or something related with blk 4 just a thought
Your input please
Thank you
There won't be a "Block IV" specifically, and while further new built Block III airframes after the first 50 can't be discounted, the PAF would clearly like to have more than just 50 AESA equipped fighters. There's no indication yet whether we could be able to upgrade our Vipers with AESA, that all depends on politics. That then leaves the only solution to upgrade Block I and II aircraft. In fact, upgrading the earlier blocks would make the most financial and technical sense, because there has already been considerable sunken cost investment made in terms of allowing the overhaul and rebuild of the JF-17s, similar to what we're doing with the Mirages. Given that the JF-17s will be with the PAF for the next 25-30 years or so, the PAF has always said that the JF-17s will undergo successive "MLU" type upgrades, adding additional capability to the aircraft. Of course, this is all contingent on funding, as with anything.
If that were the case then why go thru all the trouble of creating a new fighter block inside out? To go thru making new prototypes and going thru extensive testing to stabilize the product? Why go thru all that trouble? May have just gone thru continuing with Block-II production with the new goodies ... requiring much less testing and stabilizing?
So yes, Block I and II can be upgraded with AESA and stuff, but maybe not the same level of AESA and stuff as Block-III perhaps?
No. Have a look at every major fighter development programme, and you will see a similar approach. Did General Dynamic/Lockheed Martin jump straight to the Block-50/52 after the Block-15? All major fighter development programmes have successive iterations of more advanced aircraft, which require prototype testing, qualification, and validation stages to integrate new avionics, weapons, radar, sensors, and other capabilities. That then allows earlier production versions to be upgraded to the latest production standard. Again, take a look at the Viper, we have upgrade early Block-15 OCU models to Block-50 standard, that's a huge upgrade in terms of capability, avionics, radar, and weapons. The V standard takes that even further and incorporates an AESA, which if available to the PAF, I'm sure they would upgrade their A/B models to. The same can be done with the JF-17, take earlier block versions and add capability. Again, take a look at another example, what the South Africans and Israelis have done with the Mirage family, a second generation fighter and upgrading to such an extent (wings, front fuselage, engine, avionics, radar, weapons) that it essentially becomes a completely new third generation fighter aircraft, or what the PAF have done with the ROSE mirages. When it come to upgrading, there is a considerable amount we can do.