24 China J-10s Sold To Iran, Big Challenge To US F-16

Russian news agency Novosti reported that Iran has signed a deal with China to purchase 24 J-10 fighter jets between 2008 and 2010. The jets were developed based on the technology of Israel's Lavi fighter jet, whose technology was sold to China against the wishes of the US.

Novosti stated that the J-10 has a range of 2,940 kilometers, bringing it within range of Israel. Iran's current MiG-29 jets have a range of 2,100 kilometers.

A Russian military expert, quoted by the agency, said that Iran plans to use the new aircraft as part of its defense of the Bushehr nuclear facility in the face of a possible attack.

The Israeli Lavi fighter jet was developed in the 1980s but the project was canceled following pressure from America, which feared that the new jet would compete with its F-16 in international markets. The US subsequently sold F-16s to Israel at reduced costs.

China began developing the J-10 in 2004 and currently has 89 aircraft in active service. Novosti added that no response was given by the Prime Minister's office.

On October 25, 2007, China denied reports published in Russian and Israeli media stating it agreed to sell its home-designed J-10 fighter plane to Iran.

"It's not true, it is an irresponsible report," Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao told the International Herald Tribune. "China has not had talks with Iran on J-10 jets."

RIA Novosti first ran the story Tuesday, claiming it was a done deal. China purportedly agreed to sell two squadrons -- 24 fighters -- to the openly belligerent Islamic state. Russian news reports say the planes would be delivered next year, in a contract valued at $1 billion.

The J-10, also referred to as F-10, incorporates technology and components Israel provided to China, based on the now-defunct Lavi project, is a collaboration between Israel Aircraft Industries and US firms to develop an advanced multi-role aircraft, that was cancelled in the mid-1980s.

Experts tell The Jewish Bugle the J-10, considered roughly equivalent to the stalwart F-16, poses little risk of superiority over the advanced aircraft of the Israeli Air Force, but then again, that's not the immediate concern.

The sale of such high-profile arms to Iran would signify a deepening relationship between the two countries, already economic partners due to Iran's status as an important oil supplier to China. That's a relationship Israel, and the US, would rather see experience a falling-out.

Analysts believe that "China will sell Iran the F-10" deliberately is the false news and plugging proactive in blocking foreign arms dealers in the F-10 export plan ahead. Western media played up its "attack force" and foreign arms dealers’ worry that it is the F-10 to bring out; their impact will dominate the world arms market.

The F-10 is a high-performance fighter, longer than for the air and ground attack at the same times both capacities. F-10 shoulder with the aircraft are American F-16, Russia's MiG-29 and France's "gust" fighters, and so on. Comparatively, the F-10's ability to maneuver a better aerial combat is the outstanding advantage.

In the implementation of national air defense, air combat fighting, the army, navy and air attacks, and other joint task can have attained the performance.

International arms dealers generally believe that, although China has no intention to export F-10's, but does not rule out future possibilities.

Technologically and materials wise, F-10 is fully domestic, exports will not be subject to external restrictions. Comparatively, the F-10 has the price advantage over the US advanced warplanes.

It is estimated that from 2006 to 2015, global scale of the fighters and trainer aircraft for the more than 3,800-output, the total value of more than 1500 billion dollars.

Asia, Europe or Latin America and some countries may not be willing to consider cost-effective to choose the F-10 rather than the US or Russia's fighters.

Professionals’ estimates that if the F-10 exports for China to liberalize, the US F-16 market share cake will be at least hundreds of warplanes orders be lost. US will disrupt the operation of the arms trade through the international network.

Those high-performance China fighters may play a more independent role in the international community, rather than the baton around the US.

Concurrently, the reduce costs by producing large number of fighters through exports permit China to explore the experiences like US military operations in the overseas. Out of the above concerns, the F-10 by far is the sensitive issue.

Evidently, the export of F-10 fighters will cause the US to create public opinion as a pressure release, such as "China to the state sponsors of terrorism and human rights record is poor national export of advanced weapons", thereby exercising strict control over the export-related goods and technology, is very to sophistical some countries to jointly implement certain sanctions on China to achieve the interests of US.