Good compare to who ? US ?
Whenever something is 'good', there is usually a par implied. You say the PLAAF is 'good' ? Fine, then what/where is that par ? Certainly not against US, because your pilots would be not good enough. No 'suggestion' here, buddy. Just harsh reality.
really, reality based on what. Your bias? This is especially apparent in the next few paragraphs.
Before we beat the Iraqis, we defeated the best we have -- ourselves. Over and over again. We created the best aircrafts in the world, which helped produced the best pilots in the world, and we did not rest there. We drew upon the experiences of the best pilots in history who flew the best fighters of their eras, from WW I to Vietnam, and see if/how their tactics are applicable to modern technologies and the new combat techniques that new technologies inevitably spawns. So not only does the PLAAF lacks actual combat experience, its parent institution, the PLA have a history of low opinions of other experiences that prevented the entire Chinese military structure from exercising the most important item in improvement -- self criticism.
Yes...The PLA got humiliated, in front of the Politburo no less, because of its generals' prediction for Desert Storm, and that prompted the Chinese military reformation that we see today, a reformation that have American signatures all over, from individual army troopers to high tech pilots, but it will take at least one more generation of continuous reformation and self examinations before the PLA finally rid itself of the 'old guards' and be a truly professional military. That is a cultural generation, which is about 70 yrs, not a physical generation which is about 35 yrs. Is it true that in China, military vehicles can ignore traffic laws and abused other road using people ? In the US, the local sheriff can arrest the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff if the general ever ordered his driver to do anything halfway remotely the same as what the Chinese generals usually do. Given how your PLA generals behaves, is it any wonder your pilots are equally reckless ?
How many times do I have to say this, desert storm is a wake up call, but it happened because of the timing. 1991, we don't even have any fourth gen fighter, how are we suppose to make any accurate calls. I can ask you to make predictions on how popular the apps I develop is going to be, but you would make more or less the same mistake. Because you have no experience in that field. But if you did, you can more accurately make this call.
Today most of what you have we have either in development, or in service, some are inferior, others are the same more or less, we can make a better call today. As I will say later, we do also study other wars, especially American wars.
Self criticism is something that exists in droves in the PLA. Just recently, during one of our exercises, the newly created test "blue" army, completely humiliated the best brigades in all of China. All of those men were o n their way to being generals.
The time for hiding your head in the sand is over.
BTW, the blue arm is created based on experience, our officers gained training in the West, exchanges with other militarizes, and advise from foreign officers as well as a study of all modern military history.
The days of random fire is over, precision strike is the name of the game. Bit late to the party, but better late than never.Also as I said, we only been spending an ok amount recently.
Right now, Chinese restaurants are facing severe trouble, because the days of using money from the country is over. People using their cell phones take pics and post them online, immediately, someone from the Chinese anti corruption committe wiill be at your door within days.
So you tell me if people do what you say they do.
Also the Head of the military from previous term just got arrested, so.......
Yeah...I know of the Golden Shower awards for Chinese pilots. Put any of them into Red Flag and he will virtually 'die' within seconds from merge.
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Is this suppose to be a joke, the first part, you know you are more insulting your own profession than Chinese, for you are taking the profession very lightly.
You are just like most American military men, completely underestimating everyone. Practicing one's skill is quite easy actually, what's hard is to have the whole infrastructure needed to also serve the force.
But the PLA has just recently developed and continue to expand upon, a new training and preparation method for peace time.
Why don't you just say our pilots bump their heads together and die from shock or something, cause what you are suggesting is not that far from the truth.
If what you said is true then our pilot that shadowed you should have hit your plane and crashed, cause you know, we suck.