The cost is not one time 25M that PAF will be worried about. It is the lifetime cost of the aircraft. The more the platforms, variation in radars, etc the more the complexity to manage, service the aircraft. The higher will the cost of training the ground crew in understanding technology. Integration with the modern warfare that is network centric will become a little more complex.
AESA radar is not a game changer if the aircraft is under the supervision of AWACS. Pakistan is going for smaller and larger number of AWACS and if thought through, the deficiency if any in a cheaper platform is not much of a handicap. If Pakistan keep pushing the envelope and decide to spend more on JF-17, it may become an unlikely export aircraft as it loses its unique selling proposition.
However, it is almost certain that JF-17 cannot be used as an air superiority fighter given its power plant and its matchup against SU 30 MKI or the block 52 F16s.
AESA radars are gonna be coming to PAF one way or another in the next few years. Rather the AESA based AEW&C are already getting inducted and in fighters also they are soon gonna come.
We have western and chinese both options, whether in the AESA section or the normal Doppler radars.
PAF will always try to go for 2 options, western and chinese on either its JF-17 or FC-20s. As said again and again, PAF doesn't wants to put all its eggs in one basket and wanna keep comparing both west and eastern products and get the best out of them.
And as for PAF training, no worries, they can cope with it, and with a Chinese option, the maintenance and other issues won't be a problem as we can get in house production facilities, same may happen with western ones, the way we are license producing Griffo radars for the F-7s.
And even with different set of radars, there would be no problem in integrating them into info centric warefare, as PAF is already doing them, take the example of JF-17, it has data link capability and can fully communicate with western platforms even though it has Chinese radar, but its communication equipment is western.
AESA is not game changer, but it gives you a lot of flexibility and PAF would have no issues the one which you have told above in the long run.
And as for JF-17, let time come and we will see what it really can do and what are its capabilities and what future holds for it.
Even if its operational costs go up with AESA radar or western avionics, the price would still be much more less compared to western platforms whose just initial cost is double the cost of JF-17.
