SOURCE: PRAVIN DHAUSKAR / FOR MY TAKE / IDRW.ORG
Chinese designed , Pakistan assembled JF-17 fighter jet was declared has a rightful successor to the legendary Soviet-era Mig-21 and was quoted as the best and most affordable 4th Generation light-class fighter jet which will eventually replace much older Chinese copy of Mig-21 (F-7) and Soviet-supplied Mig-21s in air force around the world . But reported Second crash of JF-17 into the Arabian sea killing the pilot and total silence by both Chinese and Pakistani military over the crash has dented huge claims made by both Pakistan and China on offering a modern fighter at an affordable price tag which eventually might hurt its export potential further . Many Western and Indian Defence Analyst for long had argued that Sino-Pakistani so-called Jointly developed JF-17 combat jet was rushed into production without mandatory airworthiness clearance or testing way before it was certified and was granted certification like Initial Operational Clearance (IOC) to replace ageing French Mirage-III/IVs of Pakistani Air Force and there is also no confirmation if the jet which was inducted nearly 7 years ago in PAF has cleared Final Operational Clearance (FOC) either . JF-17 suffered first crash in 2011, just a year after induction in PAF killing it senior most Pilot Squadron Leader Muhammad Hussain who for long was associated with the JF-17 program and was seen in numerous overseas air shows were JF-17 was showcased by China and Pakistan to prospective customers . Recent crash saw another senior most pilot Squadron Leader Rizwan who too was long associated with the JF-17 program and was also seen in numerous overseas air shows . In Both crashes, Pilots killed were not Junior ranked Flying officers but were Senior most Pilots with years of flying experience and interestingly both dead pilots were long associated with the JF-17 program and have been intensively flying the JF-17 jet for long and clocked hundred of hours in numerous JF-17s from Prototype stages. In the first crash , Bird hit leading to engine failure was blamed for JF-17 facing mid-air technical issue, which forced the pilot to successfully eject from the ill-fated aircraft but Pilot crashed to his death when his parachute failed to open . In Second crash reported over the Sea, Pilot seems to have suffered Spatial Disorientation and Illusions while carrying out night flight over the Sea and such situation could have been attributed to lack of proper weather information provided to the pilot or improper data provided by onboard navigation instruments in the aircraft or due to Pilots lack of familiarity in flying at night over Sea might be a factor in the crash . Night flying over the sea is described has the most difficult task associated with flying a combat jet and many cases of Disorientation and Illusions have been recorded the world over . Serviceability of Klimov RD-33 turbofan jet engine which powers JF-17 for long has been questioned by many Defence Analyst Since service and spare support to Russian developed RD-33 turbofan jet is routed through China and Russians do not deal with Pakistanis directly . First crash of JF-17 which was blamed on flameout of Russian Klimov RD-33 turbofan jet engines was never thoroughly investigated since on record while speaking to Russian media Klimov Company Chairman back then had confirmed that Russians never got to examine the crash site nor the ill-fated engine of the crashed aircraft to determine exact cause of the crash and weather engine was to be blamed in particularly. While China and Pakistan might want to keep information regarding the recent crash of JF-17 out of media spotlight but many other spate of accidents reported by Pakistani Internet chatter already has questioned the reliability of JF-17 has a reliable modern fighter jet .
Disclaimer : Articles published under ” MY TAKE ” are articles written by Guest Writers and Opinions expressed within this article are the personal opinions of the author. IDRW.ORG is not responsible for the accuracy, completeness, suitability, or validity of any information on this article. All information is provided on an as-is basis.
The information, facts or opinions appearing in the article do not reflect the views of IDRW.ORG and IDRW.ORG does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same. article is for information purposes only and not intended to constitute professional advice . Article by PRAVIN DHAUSKAR , cannot be republished Partially or Full without consent from Writer or idrw.org Note: If you have personal opinion and want to contribute for” MY TAKE ”on Defence matters kindly email us at
idrw.org@gmail.com
idrw.org . Read more at India No 1 Defence News Website , Kindly don't paste our work in other websites
http://idrw.org/whats-ailing-sino-pakistan-developed-jf-17-fighter-jet/ .
