Twin Engine Jet anyone?
Over the decades PAF has become essentially a single engine Multi role fighter Air force. either through necessity, doctrine or limitation of funds ... PAF has written off the twin engine jets.
there are compelling arguments and counter arguments both for and against the twin vs. single engine jets. while the enthusiasts try to come to terms with or try to understand the PAF doctrine both during war and peace...
a certain news about the potential interest in buying or joining the Chinese J-31 program suggested that PAF was finally going to break its self imposed ban on twin engine jets. on the side lines PAF officials were also known to have evaluated the European twin engine jets like Typhoon and Rafales but such events never went beyond evaluations.
and then there were news about the Su-35 when kept coming up repeatedly.
so lets see if PAFreally has decided to break a fast on twin engine jets then what kind or type of twin engine jet it is likely to go for? it will be most likely a multirole fighter , maybe a missile / bomb truck or a spear head net to the latest PAF F-16s
for the sake of starting a discussion I have listed few jets above.
- J-11 ? why not, specially when we are allowing ourselves to talk about Su-35s. it will be a good missile truck and if Russia approves then it might make its way into PAF.
- SU-35? well there is no harm in dreaming. if the unthinkable happens it will increase PAF potency many folds. and will form the top tier of the PAF fighter jets.
- J-31? maybe likely for the future but most is unknown about it and it might remain on PAF likely shortlist for future.
- F-A 18? again why not? if F-16 block 52 are cleared by USA and PAF, time and again goes to US because it cant get enough of the F-16s then why not another American multirole twin engine jet? if not the latest Super hornet class then maybe the earlier blocks? maybe least likely but no harm in making a guest appearance.
I could have mentioned a likely twin engine J-10 (naval version) but I am not sure if it is even developed or ditched in favour of existing Chinese J-11s or J-16s.
ok guys get on with it and contribute your ideas.
@MastanKhan @batmannow @Khafee got you a thread now
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Special Addition JH 7B
Although originally I dismissed it based on the capabilities of its original blocks and vintage avionics but all could be changed when the supplier is you joint partner of JF-17 program.
I should have added this in the original post due to its relevance. it is a good candidate with 4-4.5 generation avionics and upgrades for 2020+ usage. the supplier is reliable and there is room and freedom for customization and improvement and best of all it might provide best value for money.
View attachment 283995
Above are the specs from the public access data.
J31 seems to be a good choice as the platform is a 5 th gen fighter.
On the j31 there are some questions that I am slightly confused on.
Engine: The J31's use the same Klimov RD 93 engines as of now on the test bed which may or may not be replaced by a chinese variant. Compare the J31 ranges with the Mig 35/ Mig29 OVT and Mig 29 K which uses the most recent variant of the RD33 series - RD33 MK, similar 17.5 Ton loaded/Gross weight, the ferry range of the Mig 35 is 3100Km with 3 Ext Drop tanks, whereas the J31 is being advertised as a 4000 Km Ferry range.Given that both aircrafts are of similar empty weight around 11-11.5 tons and have a 17.5 ton loaded weight, there is a good chance that both carry similar internal fuel, thus the combat range of the J31 in stealth configuration might not be1200 Km as advertised, rather around 500-600 Kms similar to that of a F16. That would put the idea of deep strike into a pickle.
Airframe: AVIC says that a lot of additive mfg was used in the test bed, and hence could not be dis-assembled during the transportation for testing. As the production models are out to 2019, if any of the RP techniques make it into the production model it will be a nightmare of maintenance and fitment. In addition the airframe was reported to bleed a lot of energy in it's first appearance, hopefully by the production variant those issues might be resolved.
I wonder why was the j20 kept out of the equation that wold pretty much fit the wishlist of most pakistani enthusiasts, Twin Engine, bigger frame, more ordinance, better range ability to hit every corner of India.
lastly, Cost of the project:
With the proposed platforms, the plan I am assuming is to add another platform to existing platform, so where the JF17 was brought in to be used as a consolidated platform for replacing Mirage III/V, A5, F7 and F7PG, this will be adding another platform to existing inventory and fundamentally changing the defense of Pakistani airspace as prime requirement to a offensive doctrine where it mandates the platforms to perform air interdiction in enemy territory, in that case the other platforms like the Jf17 and F16 (except the BLK 50+ with CFT's) are seriously short legged to support such functions. In other words you might need a multi role fighter that will have have both A/s as well as Strike configuration in a strike package. So you are looking at about 100 units of a Multi Role long range strike fighter, preferably stealth, So in my opinion the only platforms that fit the requirements are either the j20 or the T50.
Irrespective of which unit you pick, you are looking at a min of 60 mil Cap + another 25 mil PLM costs excluding the munitions package. so with 10 units inducted over next 10 years to give you a 100 units you are still looking at about 650 million cap price every year,
lets assume that the Defence budget of pakistan is around 10 Billion dollar at the time of buying these platforms
10 billion / fiscal year
Op ex allocation : 62% - 6.2 Billion
Capex Total: 3.8 Billion
Air Force Capex: 30% : 1.14 Billion Dollars
As of now, your Defence budget is 7.6 billion, Capex is 2.8 and PAF allocation is 30% 866 Million Dollars. I.E, PAF needs around 866 million for it;s current acquisitions, or atleast that is what they planned in their AOP for 2015-16.
Given your acquisitions will remain similar as of now, with a 10 billion defence budget, you will need 1.14 billion capex, with JF17 production, F16 MLU, other weapons systems, and new platform, might not suffice in that 1.14 billion mark. In other words maintaining similar allocations, to put another 650 mil in PAF capex you would need Airforce capex at 1.79 Billion, that in result puts your total cap budget at 5.97, and you Pakistan defence allocation at 15.7 Billion dollars.
As you currently stand about at 7.6 billion, you will most likely need to double your Defence budget to get where you want, at an induction rate of 10 aircrafts/year
...i laughed really hard after reading this post 
