update on J-10 MRF...
J-10 Multirole Fighter Aircraft
Last updated: 7 February 2008
Variants
J-10
J-10S
Information
J-10 History
J-10 Design
J-10 Weapons
J-10 Powerplant
J-10 Deployment
J-10 Pictures
J-10 in the News
J-10 Fighter to be Fitted with a Chinese-Made Engine (17 Apr 07)
J-10 Fighter Officially Declassified (29 Dec 06)
Russia Signed AL-31 Engine Deal with China (31 July 05)
The Chengdu J-10 (Jianji-10, or Jian-10), China’s first indigenous third-generation fighter aircraft, flew for the first time on 22 March 1998. The Chinese state media first announced the J-10 in November 2006, two years after the aircraft entered operational service with the People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF). The J-10 is a single-engine, all-weather multirole fighter aircraft with ‘beyond-visual-range’ air-to-air combat and surface attack capabilities. The aircraft is built in one-seater J-10 fighter and two-seater J-10S fighter-trainer configurations.
The development of the J-10 has been carried out by the Chengdu Aircraft Design Institute (also known as 611 Institute) of the Aviation Industries of China I (AVIC I). The aircraft is manufactured the Chengdu Aircraft Industry Corporation (CAC) of AVIC I at its production facilities located in the suburb of Chengdu City.
The initial batch of 80~100 examples were delivered to the PLAAF between 2004 and 2006, while it was estimated that a total of 300 aircraft may be required by the PLAAF and PLA Navy. A number of countries including Pakistan, Iran, and Thailand have also shown strong interest in the aircraft.
Some reports suggested that Pakistan will receive the first export version of the J-10, up to 36 aircraft, by around 2010.
The J-10S fighter-trainer is identical to the single-seater variant in performance and avionic configuration, but has its forward fuselage stretched to accommodate a second pilot seat. Two pilots sit in tandem in the two-seat cockpit with one single large bubble canopy. An enlarged dorsal spine accommodates additional avionic for the second pilot. The aircraft can be used for pilot training or as a standard fighter. A Chinese report suggested that the aircraft could also be modified for the airborne command & control aircraft role, with the rear-seat pilot being the commander of a small four-plane formation.
The J-10 programme had been kept under tight security and high secrecy by the Chinese authority. The development is believed to have benefited from Israeli and Russian technologies, though the two countries were not directly involved in the design work. The J-10’s aerodynamic layout was heavily influenced by the cancelled Israeli Aircraft Industries (IAI) Lavi fighter, and Israel also supplied the software of Lavi’s “fly-by-wire” control. Russia supplied the AL-31F turbofan engine as the J-10’s powerplant, and may also offered avionics technology to be used on the J-10’s fire-control radar.
The J-10 was originally developed as an air-superiority fighter to counter the Soviet Union’s emerging fourth-generation fighters, the Mikoyan MiG-29 and Sukhoi Su-27. However, changes in security environment and operational requirements has shifted the development towards a multirole fighter aircraft. Instead of purely for air defence mission, the aircraft was asked to take on the air-to-surface attack role too. This transformation was partially due to financial consideration, but more importantly it reflects the PLAAF’s ambition to build an air power with both defensive and offensive capabilities.
The J-10 marks the highest achievement of the Chinese aviation industry in the 1990s. The programme featured a large amount of new technologies, including composite materials, computerised flight-control (“fly-by-wire”
system, advanced radar and cockpit electronics, computer-aided design and manufacturing (CAD/CAM), etc. In the J-10 programme, China not only obtained a third-generation fighter aircraft, but also gained considerable knowledge and experience in modern fighter technologies. Through the J-10 programme, the Chengdu Aircraft Design Institute and Chengdu Aircraft Industry Corporation have involved into China’s second aerospace research and development centre, capable of carrying out fighter aircraft design, development, and manufacturing independently.
Despite the huge publicity the J-10 has enjoyed on the Chinese media, no official data has been provided regarding the actual capabilities and performance of the aircraft. Without basic data such as the aircraft’s dimension and weight, one can only make estimates based on information available from open sources. The real performance of the aircraft, however, remains a state secret.
UK-based Air Force Monthly magazine published in its January 2007 issue some estimated data of the J-10: Length: 15.50m; Wingspan: 9.7m; Wing area: 39m2; Empty weight: 8,300kg; Maximum take-off weight: 18,000kg; Air-to-air combat weight: 13,200kg; Maximum speed: Mach 2.2 (high-level) or Mach 1.2 (sea-level); Internal fuel: 4,500kg.
The Jane’s All the World’s Aircraft made some similar estimates: Length: 16.50m; Wingspan: 9.36m; wing area: 34.6m2; Empty weight: 8,300kg; Maximum range: 2,300km (internal fuel only) or 2,900km (with drop tanks); Service ceiling: 19,000m.
Based on the above estimates, it can be concluded that the J-10 is about the same size as a Lockheed Martin F-16. With its canard configuration and slightly larger wing, the J-10 probably has slightly better manoeuvrability than the F-16. The aircraft also features some major characteristics of Western third-generation fighters such as the F-16 and the Boeing F/A-18, including the computerised “fly-by-wire” (FBW) flight control; the use of high-thrust afterburning turbofan jet engine that ensures a near 1:1 thrust-to-weight ratio for high performance 8~9g combat manoeuvring; and the ability to employ advanced radar and weapons.
The J-10 is powered by a 122.5kN (12,500kg or 27,557 lb) thrust Salyut AL-31FN turbofan engine, with 4,500kg internal fuel. The aircraft also features a digital fuel management system to help improve fuel assumption efficiency. The combat radius of the aircraft was estimated to be 550~600km, but it could be extended to over 1,000km once the aircraft is added with the aerial refuelling capability, which has already been demonstrated on a J-10 prototype.
The J-10 has made some significant improvements in avionics, which is traditionally a major weakness for all Chinese-made fighters. CAC revealed that the indigenous radar equipped by the J-10 is a pulse-Doppler (PD) design with a mechanically slewed planar array antenna, capable of tracking 10 targets and engaging 2 (using semi-active radar-homing AAM) or 4 (using active radar-homing AAM) of them simultaneously. Possibly based on Russian or Israeli technologies, the radar is believed to be comparable to the early 1990s era Western fighter radar designs. Alternatively the J-10 could be fitted with a range of fire-control radar introduced by Russian, Israeli, and European manufacturers on its export variant.
The workload of the J-10 pilot is greatly reduced, thank to the modern human-machine interface of the J-10's cockpit, which features a wide field of view head-up display (HUD), a full-colour and two monochrome LCD multi-functional displays (MFD), Western-style “Hands On Throttle And Stick” (HOTAS) controls, and an indigenous helmet-mounted sight (HMS).
For air-superiority mission, the fighter carries 2~4 PL-11 (semi-active radar-homing) or PL-12 (active radar-homing) medium-range air-to-air missiles (MRAAM), and two PL-8 or PL-9 all-aspect IR-homing short-range air-to-air missiles (SRAAM). The J-10 was the first Chinese-made fighter to have surface attack capability in mind right from the design stage. The fighter is fully capable of all-weather offensive strikes, and could be fitted with a forward looking infrared and laser target designator pod. The AVIC I has displayed a model of the J-10 carrying what were believed to be targeting and navigation pods, which would provide the capability of the J-10 to deploy laser and satellite navigation guided weapons. In a typical surface attack mission, the fighter carries up to eight 250kg bombs, along with two drop tanks and two PL-8/9 SRAAMs.
