Pakistan to start inducting FC-31 fighters
Rear aspect of the Shenyang FC-31. (Janes/Kelvin Wong)
China is set to start supplying the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) with its Shenyang FC-31 ‘Gyrfalcon' multirole stealth fighter aircraft, a senior Pakistani government official has told Janes.
The FC-31 aircraft “will begin arriving within months”, the official said recently, while also confirming that PAF pilots are in China undergoing training to fly the aircraft. The official did not disclose any terms of the deal, including the date it was signed.
In May another Pakistan government official told Janes that the procured FC-31 will be equipped with China's PL-17 air-to-air missile (AAM), which has a range of about 400 km.
Pakistani officials have not confirmed the number of platforms to be supplied to the PAF, although Janes has previously reported that the PAF was in talks to acquire 30–40 aircraft.
The FC-31 is likely to become the first major Chinese military platform to be inducted by Pakistan following the end of its 7–10 May conflict with India.
For more information, please seeFeature: Pakistan's military faces three-front challenge .
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