The PAC JF-17 Thunder (Urdu: تھنڈر, also known in China as the Chengdu FC-1 Fierce Dragon (Chinese: 枭龙; pinyin: Xiāo Lóng),[1] is a light-weight multi-role combat aircraft jointly developed by Chengdu Aircraft Corporation of China and Pakistan Aeronautical Complex of Pakistan. The "JF" and "FC" designations stand for "Joint Fighter" and "Fighter China" respectively.
The first two aircraft were delivered to the Pakistan Air Force on 12 March 2007.[2] The JF-17/FC-1 is designed to be a cost-effective fighter which can meet the tactical and strategic needs of air forces of developing countries. On 22 January 2008, Pakistan started limited serial production of the aircraft at the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex, Kamra. Full-fledged production of JF-17 is expected to start from 2009 after completing testing and avionics evaluation. [3][4][5]