JF-17 Thunder Multirole Fighter [Thread 5]

[Salman Ahmad]

The Pakistan Air Force (PAF) has successfully completed ground tests on mid-air refuelling probes fitted to its Chengdu Aerospace Corporation/Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) JF-17 Thunder fighter aircraft and expects to carry out the first mid-air refuelling by the end of the summer, the service's chief has told IHS Jane's .

Air Chief Marshall Tahir Rafique Butt said in a 6 June interview at the PAF's headquarters in Islamabad that the addition of the refuelling capability to the JF-17 will improve prospects for international sales of the aircraft, which is jointly produced by China and Pakistan. "The ground tests have been very successful.


Confirmed Advancement On Block 2.
The enhancements will effect the data link and electronic warfare capabilities. An air-to-air refueling capability will be added, as will be new guided weapons

 

[Salman Ahmad]

There will be no stealth version. Stealth aircraft are built from ground-upwards, not other way around. The supposed "diamond" shaped nose has more drawbacks than benefits. Simple cost benefit analysis. They can achieve equivalent marginal stealth with reducing other sharp edges and sprinkling it with RAM.

yeah you are ri8 not a completely stealth version but a partially stealth as we know jf 17 got the minimum RCS in PAF fleet what the are trying to reach more is to reduce it more like Ram coating or using lil composite in some major areas and there are some more ways to achieve it.

 

[Jungibaaz]

what about the stealth capabilities of two seater. Will it be equivalent to block-1?

JF-17 has no stealth capability nor will it have any in the foreseeable future.
It may be so that in future upgrades measures could be taken to reduce it's signature. However, even that will cost a considerable amount of money not only flyaway cost but also maintenance costs.

Besides, what little good would minor reductions be when you stick weapons and fuel tanks on the JF-17?

 

[Hyperion]

Composites don't give you stealth, texture and shape does. You have to balance aerodynamic requirements with that of power and shape. Can't have it all. Ones who can, rule the sky.

yeah you are ri8 not a completely stealth version but a partially stealth as we know jf 17 got the minimum RCS in PAF fleet what the are trying to reach more is to reduce it more like Ram coating or using lil composite in some major areas and there are some more ways to achieve it.

 

[Marwat Khan Lodhi]

This chineese jet is also used on FATA or not.

 

[SQ8]

There will be no stealth version. Stealth aircraft are built from ground-upwards, not other way around. The supposed "diamond" shaped nose has more drawbacks than benefits. Simple cost benefit analysis. They can achieve equivalent marginal stealth with reducing other sharp edges and sprinkling it with RAM.

Already been tested and simply found to be not cost effective. The RCS is already low enough that hanging a weapon off it exceeds that value. Even with a diamond nose and all that hoopla.. the external weapon will create its own RCS spike that will end up increasing the RCS. So for spending X you will end up with y gain. Simply because those weapons are external and they spike up the return.

 

[Armstrong]

Already been tested and simply found to be not cost effective. The RCS is already low enough that hanging a weapon off it exceeds that value. Even with a diamond nose and all that hoopla.. the external weapon will create its own RCS spike that will end up increasing the RCS. So for spending X you will end up with y gain. Simply because those weapons are external and they spike up the return.

Can't weapons be coated with RCS reducing paint for 'special missions' of course ?

Hain @Hyperion ?

 

[Hyperion]

Yeah, that's what I have been wondering from day one. All weapons are external, wtf are they going to do about that. Have a perfect RCS with an empty plane: no weapons and just internal gun? WTH.

Already been tested and simply found to be not cost effective. The RCS is already low enough that hanging a weapon off it exceeds that value. Even with a diamond nose and all that hoopla.. the external weapon will create its own RCS spike that will end up increasing the RCS. So for spending X you will end up with y gain. Simply because those weapons are external and they spike up the return.

 

[Armstrong]

This chineese jet is also used on FATA or not.

Yes its been dropping Afghans from the sky as 'dumb' bombs !

 

[Marwat Khan Lodhi]

Yes its been dropping Afghans from the sky as 'dumb' bombs !

stop trolling. My question is serious. They are used in operations or not? If yes then how was its performance compared to F-16?

 

[Armstrong]

stop trolling. My question is serious. They are used in operations or not? If yes then how was its performance compared to F-16?

Learn to know it for what it is a joint Sino-Pak effort not a Chinese plane thats been bombing FATA & I'd not reply in kind !

If posts of some of our members (senior ones) are to be believed than yes it has been used there ! Whether that is true or not is something which is anyone's guess.

 

[Hyperion]

Yara, weapons also have leading-edges in addition to the "external" contact points, no matter how much RAM (such as paints and tapes) you use, you'll be back to square one. The only thing that is stealth on a third/fourth generation jets is the internal-gun, that too, if it's housing mechanism is designed in such a way that it's not open to incoming waves.

I'm not a microwave engineer and my understanding of wave theory sucks, better ask someone from electrical engineering background. I'm trying to explain all from mechanical engineers point of view.

Can't weapons be coated with RCS reducing paint for 'special missions' of course ?

Hain @Hyperion ?

 

[SQ8]

Can't weapons be coated with RCS reducing paint for 'special missions' of course ?

Hain @Hyperion ?

To what extent? that would require investment, redesign.. and make the weapon overly expensive.

Yeah, that's what I have been wondering from day one. All weapons are external, wtf are they going to do about that. Have a perfect RCS with an empty plane: no weapons and just internal gun? WTH.

One solution would be to try something like what the Silent Eagle has done, however even for that.. there is only a certain limit you can reduce your RCS due to the singular vertical stabilizer.

 

[Marwat Khan Lodhi]

Learn to know it for what it is a joint Sino-Pak effort not a Chinese plane thats been bombing FATA & I'd not reply in kind !

If posts of some of our members (senior ones) are to be believed than yes it has been used there ! Whether that is true or not is something which is anyone's guess.

Marra i dont know much about these jets, in news it was reported that the jf-17 are getting developed in china and techology would be handed over to pakistan. I asked because chineese maal is usually of low quality.

 

[Hyperion]

Here a nice beginners guide to stealth. Start from page 14 I guess.

Stealth Warplanes - Doug Richardson - Google Books