#头条创作挑战赛#
Text/Jun Jian
According to media reports, the Pakistan Air Force recently held a ceremony for the opening of new equipment, and the chief of staff of the Pakistani Air Force, Sidu, announced that the Pakistani army is ready to obtain China's FC-31 stealth fighter, and this fifth-generation aircraft will arm the Pakistan Air Force in the future.
(Media Coverage)
The news of the "official announcement" of the Pakistani Air Force quickly attracted attention, and the most anxious of them was naturally India in South Asia. As Pakistan's sworn enemy, India has been paying attention to Pakistan's military development all the time, especially the Pakistan Air Force, which often beats the Indian Air Force out of its psychological shadows, and is the object of New Delhi's attention. Now that it is known that the Pakistani Air Force is actually going to buy stealth fighters, India's mood can be imagined.
(Pakistani Air Force Chief of Staff Sidhu delivers a speech)
India's "Eurasian Times" has also been hyping up this matter recently, and even gave Modi a bad idea, suggesting that Modi could consider continuing to solve the fifth-generation aircraft problem by importing.
(FC-31)
In the opinion of "EurAsia Times", India's current LCA fighter can be regarded as a fourth-generation fighter, and if upgraded, it can strive to reach the level of "four and a half generations" in 2025. But this is still not enough, what can really be hoped for is the AMCA advanced medium fighter project, AMCA will develop two models, the partially stealthy Mk1 and the fully stealthy Mk2, but AMCA has not seen the shadow yet, at least until around the 30s of this century. Pakistan's direct introduction of China's FC-31 may cause India to lag behind in the development of fifth-generation aircraft.
(LCA Fighter)
Therefore, "EurAsia Times" believes that it is still necessary to consider the introduction of fifth-generation aircraft from other countries first. The main options include Russian-made fifth-generation aircraft, namely the Su-57 and Su-75. But in history, India and Russia have cooperated with the Su-57, and the result is not very pleasant, so the Indian media believes that the Su-57 is not reliable. It is true that Russia does not have enough Su-57s now, so where can there be so many Su-57s for India. Not to mention the Su-75, it will take a few years to see the shadow, and there is no advantage compared to AMCA.
(Su-75)
If it does not cooperate with Russia, India's option is basically only the United States, because India will definitely not be able to buy the FC-31, and China will not necessarily sell it. As for other sixth-generation aircraft projects, such as the British "Tempest", they have not yet been developed. The Eurasian Times concluded that India should consider going to the United States and introducing American F-35 fighter jets. The Indian media stressed that the purchase of F-35s is a temporary measure, and if 36 F-35s are purchased, they can "solve the urgent need". However, the Indian media also pointed out that if India wants to enter the "first echelon", it still cannot give up AMCA, and this project must succeed anyway.
(F-35 fighter)
Obviously, the Indian media also realized that it is not a problem to always import fighters, and India still has to get the fifth-generation aircraft out of it itself. But if India really buys the F-35 as proposed by the "Eurasian Times", then in the style of the United States, it must control India in the field of fifth-generation aircraft, so that India cannot build its own fifth-generation aircraft, otherwise the F-35 will really become a one-time transaction. Moreover, the United States will inevitably attach political conditions, such as asking India to choose between the United States and Russia.
(India's Russian-made fleet)
Even if India does what the United States wants, it will not be able to get the F-35 in a short time. Because although the production of F-35s is close to 1,000 aircraft, these production needs to be distributed to the United States and its allies. It is almost impossible for India to be plugged at this time. And if India chooses to wait in line, it doesn't know how many teenagers there will be.
(AMCA Advanced Medium Fighter)
In fact, even India is not reliable to count on itself, and there is a reason why Hindustan Aeronautics is called the "widow maker", which also determines that AMCA will not come so soon.
(Hindustan Airways)
So, India is now really in an awkward position. Pakistan's choice of FC-31 is a very wise choice. The maturity of China's J-35 carrier-based aircraft indicates that the FC-31 is also fully prepared. As long as the Pakistani Air Force has the J-10C and FC-31, it will be able to catch up with and surpass the Indian Air Force in terms of strength.