ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Air Force on Wednesday inducted 14 dual-seat multirole JF-17 fighter jets into its fleet and announced that it was beginning production of state-of-the-art JF-17 Thunder Block 3 fighter jets, an advanced variant of the aircraft, to boost the country’s defense capabilities, the air chief announced.
The 14 multi-combat aircrafts, produced in collaboration with China, were rolled out at a ceremony at the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex in Kamra. The inauguration was attended by Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Mujahid Anwar Khan, the Chinese ambassador to Pakistan Nong Rong and several Nigerian officials.
“These aircrafts will help boost our operational capabilities and serve as a strong deterrent to maintain peace,” the air chief told reporters after the induction ceremony.
Pakistan’s nuclear-armed neighbor and arch-rival India recently acquired high-tech Rafale fighter jets from France, giving it an advantage over Pakistan Air Force.
“The new variant of the JF-17 will be equipped with latest radars and other gadgets, and it will match the capability of Rafale,” the air chief said. “We have conveyed an effective message to India in February [2019] that don’t mess with us,” the air chief added, referring to Pakistan shooting down an Indian fighter jet and capturing its pilot in an aerial dogfight last year.
“Red alert or no alert, Pakistan Air Force is alert all the time to defend the motherland,” he said, while responding to a question about the threat spectrum on the country’s eastern border with India.
Pakistan already inducted its first batch of eight dual-seat JF-17 aircrafts into the PAF fleet in December last year.
“We have ensured timely roll out of the remaining 14 aircrafts despite disruption in our production unit due to the coronavirus pandemic,” the air chief said, thanking China for helping achieve the milestone.
Talking about the export of fighter jets, the air chief said numerous countries were taking interest in buying the JF-17, but it would be premature to name them.
Speaking during the induction ceremony, the Chinese ambassador congratulated Pakistan for the Block-II dual-seat joining its air defense fleet.
“Pakistan Air Force Block-3 is a very important project,” Nong said, adding that Pakistan-China “cooperation in the defense production is an example of our friendship.”
Pakistan inducts 14 dual-seat JF-17 fighter jets into air force fleet
https://arab.news/99beg
Pakistan inducts 14 dual-seat JF-17 fighter jets into air force fleet
- Announces production of state-of-the-art JF-17 Thunder Block 3 fighter jets, an advanced variant of the aircraft
- Air chief says numerous countries were taking interest in buying JF-17 aircraft from Pakistan, premature to name interested parties
Security forces kill nine Pakistani Taliban militants in restive northwest, military says
- The militants were killed in separate operations in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Dera Ismail Khan and Bannu districts
- Pakistan this week summoned Afghanistan’s deputy head of mission to demand action against the Pakistani Taliban
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan security forces have killed nine Pakistani Taliban militants in two separate engagements in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, the military said on Sunday, amid a surge in militancy in the region bordering Afghanistan.
Four militants were killed in an intelligence-based operation in KP's Dera Ismail Khan, while five other Pakistani Taliban members were gunned in an exchange of fire with security forces in the Bannu district, according to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the military's media wing.
Weapons and ammunition were also recovered from the deceased "Indian-sponsored" militants, who remained actively involved in numerous activities against security forces and law enforcement agencies and target killing of civilians. There was no immediate response from India to the statement.
"Sanitization operations are being conducted to eliminate any other Indian sponsored kharja [militant] found in the area," the ISPR said in a statement. "Pakistan will continue at full pace to wipe out menace of foreign sponsored and supported terrorism from the country."
KP has seen a surge in militancy in recent years, with the Pakistani Taliban, or the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), and other militant groups frequently targeting security forces convoys and check-posts, besides targeted killings and kidnappings of law enforcers and government officials.
Pakistan this week summoned Afghanistan’s deputy head of mission and demanded “decisive action” against the TTP after four Pakistani soldiers were killed in an attack on a military camp in KP’s North Waziristan district that also killed four assailants, according to the Pakistani foreign office.
Islamabad has long accused Kabul of allowing its soil and India of backing militant groups, including the TTP, for attacks against Pakistan. Kabul and New Delhi have consistently denied this.
The uptick in militant violence triggered fierce clashes between Pakistan and Afghanistan in Oct. The two countries agreed to a ceasefire in Doha on Oct. 19, but tensions remain high between the neighbors.
