Pakistan Air Force - An Analysis

**jagjitnatt** · 02-16-2010 11:08 PM

Pakistan Air Force has played an active and important role in the wars of 1965 and 1971. It has been very professional and capable force till date. But I feel it has been ignored for a long time now. Sufficient funding was not provided at the right time. Almost all the aircraft in PAF's inventory are obsolete and need to be upgraded or replaced. Let's evaluate the current status of the PAF.

Current Inventory:
F7P - 120
F7PG - 60
A5 - 41
Mirage 5 ROSE - 34
Other Mirage 5 - 58
Mirage III ROSE - 33
Other Mirage III - 58
F16 block 15 - 41
Total - 445

Out of these aircraft, F7P and F7PG are reaching the end of their life and need a replacement soon. The A5 is too old and has been in need for replacement for a long time now. The Mirage III and Mirage 5 are also very old. Although they had good record and had been upgraded to ROSE standard, a replacement should have been considered, since in 2010 even with the upgrade these planes are outdated. The F16 A block 15 that the PAF uses are very old and need immediate upgrade. In short, ALL the aircraft in PAF's inventory are old, and need a replacement. This is a situation that should never have cropped up if funding for new projects and new aircraft was done at the right time. Look at the Indian inventory. Every 7-10 years a major funding is provided to purchase new aircraft or fund an existing project with a partner. Purchases at regular intervals assure that at any point of time you'll have at least 50% of your aircraft that are not outdated and use modern equipment. This type of commitment was very much lacking in the Pakistan government. A glance at the 1985-2005 time period will reveal that no major programs were started, nor were any purchases made. In this period of 20 years, at least 2 major purchases should have been made so that the whole fleet wouldn't need to be replaced now.

Current Indian Inventory:

Mig 21 bison - 250
Mg 27 - 147
Mig 29S - 69
Mirage 2000H - 60
Jaguar IS - 84
Su30MKI - 120
Total - 730

In the next ten years, the scenario would change dramatically and in favor of India. And that should be very evident from the steps being taken right now. Lets discuss the scenario 10 years from now in 2020.

Pakistan Inventory:
JF-17 - 200 (considering 20 per year)
F16A - 41
F16C - 12
F16D - 6
J10 - 36
Total - 285

Indian Inventory:
LCA Tejas - 110 (considering 14 per year after 2012)
Su30MKI - 280
MRCA - 80 (considering 10 per year)
FGFA - 20
Mig 21bison - 150 (retiring all non bisons and reducing 20 bisons per year after 2018)
Mig 29SMT - 69
Mirage 2000H - 60
Total - 769

As seen from the figure, while India would be expanding its fleet of aircraft, Pakistan Air Force would be reducing its fleet by a huge number. Not only are the numbers reducing by a huge figure, but also the diversity would reduce to just 3 types of aircraft performing all sorts of different roles. This is a time to worry for the Pakistani Defence Forces.

The recent times have been a little bright for the forces. JF-17 program was started which would become the mainstay of the Air force and play the major role in future combats. But even now, the old F16s are outdated and need to be replaced with better alternatives. A huge program is required at the moment. Pakistan needs to invest in an aircraft for its future needs. An indigenous effort will only result in huge investment financially and research wise which would not be feasible. But a joint development could be a possibility.

Pakistan needs at least 100-150 state of the art aircraft to fill the gap in its inventory and pose a serious threat to the enemy. The J-XX is a program Pakistan could look at. Other alternatives also include purchase of high end aircraft like Mirage Rafale or F35. Although some might say that the current economy does not approve these purchases, they are in fact well within Pakistani budget.
The fact is that money is not being poured in where it should be and corrupt leaders and officials worsen the situation even more. The military spending is not balanced, a lot of money goes unaccounted. There is no balance sheet of how much money was spent and where.

Things are improving but a lot needs to be done and looking at the current political scenario, things look tough for sure.

This is my own analysis and I could be wrong in some matters. Polite suggestions would be welcome. Please have a peaceful discussion and trolls stay away. Hope to have a peaceful discussion.

**XiNiX** · 02-16-2010 11:51 PM

Add to It :

In Pakistani Side :

3-5 More AWACS
IL78 Refuellers
More F16s [ Possible ]
T129s from Turky

Indian Side :

3 More Falcons
DRDO AWACS
Several SPYDER and Akash Squadrons
MKI AESA Upgrade
Probably 3-6 More Refuelers [ Boeing 767 / IL 78s ]
6-12 C130s
10 Globe Masters
Airborne Brahmos

Dedicated Satellite in 2014

Indians have an edge but Role Wise, Pakistani numbers are sufficient for a Defensive Role.

**Taha Samad** · 02-17-2010 12:18 AM

1)F-7PG were inducted in 2001-2002 so although basic design is old but planes are new.

2)Secondly after MLU F-16 A/B's will come close to blk 52 standards and will be fit for service till 2025.

3)Thirdly since 36 FC-20's are expected to be delievered by 2015.One expects PAF to give a follow-on order.

If you look at history of PAF procurements it has always been like this:
initially a small order
followed by a bigger order

4)so my number will be as follows

60 F-16's AM/BM/C/D
250 Jf-17
around 80-100 FC-20
and its possible some of F-7PG will still be in service

so around 400 aricrafts atleast
so things are not that bad considering we have historically fought wars,out numbered 3:1

5) as far as planning goes PAF ordered a total of 111 F-16's out which 71 were embargoed.So with no other options left, it is quite clear why PAF's fleet is composed of so many old planes.

http://www.f-16.net/f-16_users_article14.html

6) until FGFA is ordered i won't say anything about it.

**jagjitnatt** · 02-17-2010 01:52 AM