Dharamshala, 24th February: According to The News, China will supply 25 J-10C fighter jets to Pakistan in the next weeks, bolstering the country’s military capability to defend its airspace. According to the Financial Times, the first batch of combat aircraft is being tested in Chengdu, China, where its maker, Chengdu Aerospace Corporation, is based.

“They will be transferred to Pakistan once Pakistan Air Force pilots and technicians complete an introduction to the aircraft,” a journalist working for a Chinese military publication told FT. According to the article, senior officials in Islamabad stated the jets would be delivered before the end of the month.

Images of a J-10C fighter plane with Pakistan Air Force (PAF) markings recently surfaced on social media and were widely shared by news sources. The photographs, which were first shared on social media last week, show two J-10CS jets performing test flights at an unidentified location, powered by China’s domestically manufactured WS-10B Taihang turbofan engines.

“If confirmed, this could be the first time China has exported the J-10 series fighter and also the first time it has exported the WS-10 series engine,” experts said. Chinese analysts have praised the recent defense cooperation between the two countries, stating that the action is significant for them in terms of improving Pakistan’s fighting capabilities, marketing China’s aviation equipment, and reacting to their regional security interests, according to The News.

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