Technology Transfer from Israel, China’s J-10 Fighter Becomes as Tough as the F-16

2023-09-12 17:45:56

loading…

Despite the status of the J-10 fighter as the flagship of China’s indigenous fighter jet program, various reports suggest possible links to Israeli technology. Photo/Bulgarian Military

BEIJING – Although fighter The J-10 had the status of the flagship of the original fighter jet program China , various reports suggest a possible link to Israeli technology. Reports reveal Israel secretly shared classified information with Chinese Aeronautical Construction (CAC).

Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) reportedly shared information about LAVI, an American-funded 1980s Israeli fighter aircraft. Development of this aircraft was stopped at an early stage when the US stopped funding it.

“The LAVI (fighter) includes a lot of US-based technology. “Several similar features of the Lockheed Martin F-16 fighter aircraft show the strength of US technology,” wrote Bulgarian Military, Tuesday (12/9/2023).

It is likely that the J-10 fighter uses US technology, including advanced avionics, composite materials, and special flight controls, including influences in its design. The Israeli influence on the J-10 design is apparent, especially in the unique canard-delta configuration.

The differences with the LAVI are only the increase in size, modification of the wing shape, and increase in the distance between the canard and the wing. Due to technological limitations, China cannot use the compact Pratt & Whitney PW1120 engine from LAVI.

This is due to the inability to produce lightweight composite components on a large scale. As a result, the design of the J-10 fighter was changed and expanded to accommodate the Soviet-built AL-31F turbofan engine, resulting in a jet displacing 11.75 tons.

Then the J-10A and J-10AH fighters were expanded with the two-seat J-10AS or J-10ASH. With a two-seat configuration, the J-10 fighter achieved important advances in flight and was able to accommodate more important electronic devices.

In March 2009, details were revealed of the J-10B fighter, the next version of the J-10. The main feature is the Saturn-Lyuika AL-3FN Series 3 engine which produces greater thrust than the previous engine.