DARKY
SENIOR MEMBER
- Joined
- Apr 24, 2011
- Messages
- 2,007
- Reaction score
- 0
We are slowly agreeing = GOOD.
We have a Russian executive telling the press that “it does not make sense to refuse either China or Pakistan technologies they can get elsewhere.†If the RD-93 was not made available, someone else engine was, or the WS-13 you have been given higher urgency.
There's the main problem... the "someone else engine"... I am sure PAF would jump on the some one else engine... other than the new Chinese and the poor Russian(Not that Russian don't make good engine but the performance of Klimov powerplant has not been as good.)
May be in future when their production lines for RD-33 close they would transfer the tech. to China/Pakistan... however since the Navy there is opting Mig29K and those 300 Mig29 being upgraded to SMT standards such a thing is highly unlikely in near future... Or there can be dramatic change in Pakistan and Russia relationship... making it happen or otherwise.
It could send the “wrong message†but that is exactly what the Chinese are doing. China have been saying they want to offer customers options and choices. See the 3 engines available and on offer for the K-8. The radar choices and missile options on the F-7s. The two radars on offer for the FC-1. Even their APC and tanks are coming with German and Russian engines.
Chinese have been doing it as intermediate measure.
This has also affected the business as for their user's dependence on a 3rd Party for the supply of engines.
Running your engine on afterburner reduces life, but air forces do it when necessary. Cost/Benefit analysis. I agree it will reduce life, but the PAF, if over-clocking makes the JF-17 win battles, then they will over-clock it. It will fight and kill the enemy and come to back to base with a ruined engine but it has not only survived, but would have successfully defended the country. Engine life or spares availability becomes secondary. What engine life is there to conserve when you are a few seconds away from someone putting a missile into your exhaust?
Its a two edge sword... being on extreme... such high level of thrust would not only damage the engine.. but eat up fuel much quickly... and such flight regime using extreme AB mode won't last long... may be 5 minutes... besides damaging the engine, increase servicing time after each sortie.. decrease the sortie rate..etc..etc..
You can do this If you are inducting JF-17 as an interceptor... and not a combat plane.
Please check SIPRI data: SD-10 missiles and WMD-7 EO pods were delivered to the PAF. By the end of 2010, 25 x SD-10 and 22 x WMD-7s had been delivered. Please note that each JFT is coming with 4 x SD-10 and a WMD-7 of its own. i.e. they are not sharing. Note that guided weaponry (LS-6 and C-802) have been delivered too for the JF-17.
However no PAF JF-17 has been seen with them till now... even If they are hiding them Pakistan is a small country and 2 years a long time to hide a simple thing such as a BVR missile or a targeting pod.. They weren't seen even on recent bombing trials conducted by PAF.
JF-17 is a combat plane which needs sustained thrust and not sudden AB boost(which would hardly last a few minutes guzzling all the fuel) to intercept an incoming cruise missile or run away from a BVR missile.
Hope this clarifies.