J-10

The Chengdu J-10 (Jian-10, or F-10 in its export name) is asingle-engine, all-weather, high-performance multirole fighter aircraftcapable of both air-to-air and air-to-ground roles. The aircraft wasdesigned by Chengdu-based 611 Aircraft Design Institute andmanufactured by Chengdu Aircraft Industry Corporation (CAIC). Theaircraft is available in single-sear fighter (A variant) and tandemtwo-seat fighter-trainer (B variant) versions. The aircraft first flewin 1998 and entered the PLA Air Force (PLAAF) service in 2003. About50~70 examples are expected to have been delivered by 2006. Theseplanes are powered by a Russian-made AL-31FN turbofan engine, while onlater production variants this will be replaced by Chinese indigenousWS-10A “TaiHang� turbofan. The total number of productionmay be as many as 300.

The J-10 development programme, also known as “Project8610�, officially began in 1986 to counter the fourth-generationfighters such as MiG-29 and Su-27 then being introduced by the SovietUnion. The aircraft was initially designed as an air-superiorityfighter aircraft but changing requirements later shift the developmenttowards a multirole fighter. It was widely speculated that theJ-10’s initial design was based on the cancelled IsraeliAerospace Industry (IAI) Lavi lightweight fighter. Despite the denialby both Chinese and Israelis, the high resemblance of the two aircraftappears to support this claim. Russia provided key assistance to theaircraft development after 1990 by helping Chengdu engineers integratethe Lyulka-Saturn AL-31F turbofan engine into the aircraft.

The J-10 is single-engine fighter with a rectangle belly air intake,low-mounted delta wings, and front canard wings. The airframe possessesa large vertical tail, as well as canards placed near the cockpit. Theair intake is rectangular in shape, and is located beneath thefuselage. The aircraft is the first Chinese-made fighter to be fittedwith a large two-piece bubble canopy to provide 360 degrees of visualcoverage for the pilot. If necessary, the aircraft could be fitted withan in-flight refuelling probe.


The J-10 fighter represents the highest achievement of the Chineseaviation industry today. The aircraft achieves high manoeuvrability byusing a large amount of composite materials in its fuselage and wingstructures to reduce the its overall weight and thus increase thethrust-to-weight ratio. The aircraft design is aerodynamicallyunstable, to provide a high level of agility, low drag and enhancedlift. The pilot controls the aircraft through a computerised digital,quadruplex (four-channel) “fly-by-wire� (FBW) system, whichprovides artificial stabilisation and gust elevation to give goodcontrol characteristics throughout the flight envelope. Theaircraft’s cockpit avionics and fire-control system are alsobelieved to be superior to those of other Chinese indigenous fighteraircraft.

In the late 1990s, the U.S. Office of Naval Intelligence estimated thatthe J-10 could be as manoeuvrable as the U.S. F/A-18E/F Super Hornet.With its advanced “fly-by-wire� system, the J-10 may have abetter aerodynamic performance compared to the Russian Su-27, whichstill uses the conventional control method. The Hong Kong-basednewspaper Sing Tao Jih Pao reported on 29 May 2004 that during anaerial war game conducted by the PLAAF, the J-10 fighter has beaten theSu-27 fighter in all three rounds of “dogfight� in themid-air.

The J-10A single-seat fighter entered service with the PLAAF in 2003,with 50~70 examples delivered so far. The production continues at arate of 2~3 units per month. The two-seat variant J-10B joined theservice In 2006. The aircraft may become available for export market by2007~08.


Weapons

The fixed weapon on the J-10 includes a single-barrel 23mm internal cannon.

The aircraft has 11 stores stations – six under the wing andthree under the fuselage. The inner wing and centre fuselage stationsare plumped to carry external fuel tanks.

The aircraft carries a range of air-to-air and air-to-ground weaponsfor different mission profiles. For interception and air-superioritymission, the aircraft carries the indigenous 2~4 PL-12 activeradar-homing medium-range air-to-air missile and 2 PL-8 infrared-homingshort-range air-to-air missiles. It is not clear whether the aircraftis equipped with helmet-mounted sight (HMS) but the technology isavailable.

For ground attack roles, the J-10 will carry 500kg laser-guided bombs(LGB), free-fall bombs, and 90mm unguided rocket launcher pods.

The two front hardpoints under the fuselage can be used to carry target acquisition and navigation pods.


Power Plant

The initial production variant J-10s are powered by the RussianLyulka-Saturn AL-31F turbofan rated at 17,857lb (79.43kN) dry and27,557lb st (122.58kN) with afterburning. The same powerplant is alsobeing used by the PLAAF's Su-27 and Su-30 fighters. The AL-31FN modelused by the J-10 has been specially modified to fit theaircraft’s fuselage. Lyulka-Saturn delivered 54 AL-31F turbofanengines to China between 2002 and 2004 for the initial batch of theJ-10.

In July 2005, China ordered an additional 100 AL-31FN engines for moreJ-10 productions. Some reports suggested that these could be theimproved model with increased thrust and possibly a fully variable,all-aspect thrust vector control (TVC) nozzle. Lyulka-Saturndemonstrated a TVC-equipped AL-31FN during the 2002 Zhuhai Air Show.The TVC capability would further enhance the aircraft's manoeuvrability.

Shenyang-based AVIC1 Aviation Engine Institute has been developing theindigenous WS-10A turbofan engine, which is also known as‘Taihang’ in its commercial name. Reportedly based on someAL-31F technologies, the engine is rated at 73.5kN dry and 110kN withafterburning.

The WS-10A development was completed in December 2005 and the enginesmay be ready for batch production soon. It was reported that the latervariants of the J-10 and J-11 fighters will be powered by the WS-10A.

source: http://www.sinodefence.com/airforce/fighter/j10.asp