Pakistan has confirmed the acquisition of at least 25 J-10C fighter jets from China. This defence deal, in the words of the country’s Interior Minister, is an answer to India’s Rafale jets.
India had signed a defence agreement with France in 2016 to acquire 36 Rafale fighter jets, to be manufactured by Dassault Aviation. The deal was worth over 39000 crore rupees and France had delivered the first jet back in July 2021. While the value of the acquisition deal between Pakistan and China is not known yet, commentators believe the addition of the J-10Cs in the former’s Air Force will augment its striking capabilities. Since the Chinese jets have been compared with India’s Rafale, it is important to draw a comparison between the two by going into specifications to give a much clear perspective to the reader about their respective capabilities.
Rafale vs J-10C
Length
Length of the Rafale jet is 15.27 metres while length of J-10C is 16.03 metres.
Wingspan
WingSpan of the Rafale jet is 10.2 metres wide whereas the wing span of J-10C is 9.25 metres.
Height
The height of the Rafale jet is 5.34 metres whereas the height of J-10C is 5.23 metres.
Fuel Capacity
The fuel capacity of single seat fighter aircraft is 4700 kgs and of a double seater is 4400 kgs. The fuel capacity of J-10C is 3860 kgs.
Engine Features
Rafale is a double engine aircraft, each engine providing a thrust of 75 Kilo-Newton whereas J-10C is a single engine aircraft with a thrust of 62 Kilo-Newton.
Frame
Both the aircrafts have delta-shaped wing frames.
Gross weight
Gross weight of Rafale is 15000 kgs whereas that of J-10C is 14000 kgs.
Maximum weight take-off
Maximum weight take-off for Rafale is 24000 kgs whereas maximum weight take-off for J-10C is 19277 kgs.
Maximum speed speed
Maximum speed of Rafale jet is 1912 kmph/ 1.8 mach at high altitude and 1390 kmph/ 1.1 mach at lower altitude.
Combat Radius
The combat radius (distance a jet can fly from its base at once) for Rafale is 780 kmph to 1680 kmph, depending upon requirements of operations. The combat radius of J-10C is 900 kms.
Both the fighter jets are all-weather multi-role aircrafts.
Warfare System
Rafale employs the SPECTRA electronic warfare system. J-10 C uses Active electronically scanned array (AESA) developed indigenously by China.
Deployment
Rafale fighter jets are currently deployed by French Naval Aviation, French Air and Space Force, Egypt, Qatar, India and Greece. J-10Cs are currently in service of People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF), China.
