MK - I agree with you. If you go back to my posts, I've bee wanting to see Heavies just as much as you've been talking about them. But that wasn't the point. The post I wrote, was about your post saying "the JFT is the wrong aircraft". in Kargill, the Mig 29's and the Mirages had locked onto patrolling -16's on the Pakistani side many times. ONLY because they didn't have the BVRs.
Today, both Mig29, or Mirage 2000's, would try to put a lock onto a JFT flying on the other side of the border, and will hear the same bone chilling beep in their cockpit at the same time. That beep, breaks a a sweat at 30,000 feet up in the air.....when its just you and behind you is your wing-man!!!
Similarly, the Indian Navy and members on here, would constantly bit*ch about "blockade" so much. A few pictures of the JFT flying with the supersonic anti-ship missile has stopped all that. They know they'll be hit from 160 miles away, let alone coming close to Karachi.
Similarly, why they haven't attacked even after "trying" a few times. For a soup-o-powa to generate that "Fear Factor" that the US military has (through established and proven combat and for the right reason), India won't have that in any war it got into with Pakistan. Pakistan might lose all 200 JFT's, but India will lose their 80 SU30's or 50 SU-30's and 50 Mig or Mirage 2000's...and some ships. That damage and its advertisement and the moral breakdown is such a cost that no power projection country wants to be showing to its own people, let alone to the world. All that, was made possible because of the JFT.
Now, on to the future, absolutely Pakistan needs 450+ advanced aircrafts. But the good thing is, this wait......turned into a blessing in disguise. Having the option of buy Russian SU-35 with Archers and all, or J-11D wouldn't be there three years ago.
You were pretty much stuck with no money in Pakistan's bank account and may be used -16's through FMS? or FC-20 from China through soft loans??? Today, you have about $ 19 billion in your account, if a national security emergency was to take place, you could pay the Chinese cash and get some J-11 from their flying formations, to help you with India right away. So I think the delay was the delay, no losses happened and no wars, I hope it stays like this. But this wait has turned out to be better for Pakistan IMO.
Today, Pakistan, due to its potential economic status and via projecting growth already taking place, can talk to many big countries on the same individual level. That confidence or the ability wasn't there when three years ago, the country was about to go bankrupt and barely had money to pay salaries to employees for a couple of months!!
So let's look at a brighter future, this wait's part of the history. Good things are coming and in due time. If India started a war when Pakistan only had 36 Block-15 F-16's without BVR and 40 JFT Block I's without BVR's.....right now you have over 100+ BVR fighters and in the next 12-24 months, you'll have about 250-300, so the chances of war are minimal. Let's hope people of this region don't see another way and both the countries get into a healthy economic and trade competition instead. All poor citizens from both sides will benefit from it.
I agree with you. Increase F-16's even more. I'd replace J-10B with J11D, or SU-35. THAT is what you want to be frank with you, whether 80 or 100, don't matter a whole lot!!