I think PAF leadership has gone bonkers. Why?
Which other indigenous plane have they designed and successfully inducted before?
Before jumping to 5th generation fighter, why don't they start with a brand new design of Mushaq, then K8, then newer bigger version of Thunder? Once they achieve this only then they can/should take up the 5th Gen project. Starting with smaller plane (less investment, less risk) will help them asses their own capabilities and helping setup/attract private businesses.
Azm "should" be an existing design, partnered with a 3rd country with a greater content of local systems and more local manufacturing. As to what it will be, no one knows,
You are right, Pakistan has no experience in designing aeroplanes, only a few small drones to date. India has demonstrated that when you follow a reverse order in your development path, you end up with a jet that also only ever fly’s backwards.
Had they gone in the order below, they would have ended up with a far better product in the Tejas than what they have currently.
HTT40 -> HJT-36 -> Tejas
The path that India chose was born out of arrogance and perceived brahmin superiority, once that has proven to be quite incorrect!!!!
Pakistan has gradually built up their capabilities via Mushtaq, K8 and now JF17 ( the correct order), this has ONLY been in the manufacturing space, not in design.
I think Azm will be the next link in the chain, but only in the manufacturing space. Pakistan as a country lacks the depth of intellecutal talent to have the correct level of talent pool to conduct a R&D project of this nature. Had Pakistan invested in better schools, more colleges and universities with a focus on science and engineering and broadened that to a much wider portion of her population, then they could had the skills to design something like the Mushtaq about now.. but they didn't....
Is PAF as arrogant on their perceived capabilities as the Indians.. possibily...