PAF attains Night time attack capability: PAF Chief

June 27, 2010

SHAHBAZ AIR BASE: With the induction of latest version of F-16 aircraft, Pakistan Air Force (PAF) has achieved the capability to carry out all-weather night time operations, said Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Rao Qamar Suleman here on Sunday.

Addressing the formal handing over ceremony of three Block 52 C/D version of F-16 aircraft by the US at the newly developed base near Jacobabad, Chief of Air Staff said this technology will not only eliminate our existing limitations of precision night operations but also enable the PAF to meet its mission more effectively.

“The mission of the PAF is to Maintain Peace with Honor in the Region: should this primary effort of maintaining peace fail, we will use our resources including these aircraft to defend our country against any internal or external threats.”

General Norton A Schwartz, Chief of Staff, United States Air Force (USAF), especially visited Pakistan to attend the handing over ceremony.

US Ambassador to Pakistan Anne W. Patterson, Vice Admiral Michael LeFever, US Defence Representative in Pakistan along with other senior PAF, USAF, civil and military officials were also present on the occasion. Lt Gen Hostage of USAF (Centcom) handed over the documents of the newly inducted aircraft to Air Marshal Mohammad Hasan, Deputy Chief of Air Staff (Operations), PAF.

The newly manufactured aircraft by Lokheed Martin had reached Pakistan on Saturday.

Air Chief Marshal Rao Qamar termed the handing over of the aircraft to Pakistan a happy augury as the deal for supply of these aircraft by the US was signed back in 2006, but it became controversial at the hands of critics on both sides.

However, he said of late it matured following efforts put in by the “good people” living in both the friendly countries.

Later, talking to media-persons, he said other countries in the region had already such type of aircraft available with them while acquiring of latest F-16 aircraft by Pakistan has brought back the balance of power in the region.

The Chief of Air Staff while addressing the gathering said that PAF men made round the clock efforts to complete the Shahbaz Base as a fully fledged air base, which only a year back was being used as a forward operation base.

“PAF Base, Shahbaz has been developed into a modern Base capable of handling state-of-the-art and most modern fighter aircraft of the world in less than a year.”

Completion of this task in a record time reflects the spirit of PAF, which is used to working against heavy odds and meeting the assigned tasks within the available limited resources. These new aircraft will begin a new era of hi-tech environment in the PAF.

As far as the overhauling and up-gradation of existing F-16 aircraft is concerned, he said initially 14 aircraft from the existing fleet of PAF would be upgraded with the US assistance as a team of technicians, engineers and experts had already been working to transfer the up-gradation and repair skills to their Pakistani counterparts.

This handing over has formally started the delivery of the fleet of 18 F-16 C/D Block 52 fighter aircraft to Pakistan. PAF would receive these state-of-the-art aircraft from the US Government in different batches.

The delivery of all the 18 aircraft would complete by the end of this year. In addition to delivery of 18 aircraft by US, he said the friendly country would also help Pakistan in upgrading existing lot of F-16 aircraft matching to the latest version of the fighting falcons.

The Chief of Air Staff also announced an uplift package for the people of Jacobabad according to which PAF would immediately provide three water filtration plants, besides constructing a hospital and school in the area.

Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

Pakistani JF-17 A Thunder OR A Blunder

Pakistan has witnessed new defense acquisitions in this decade than any other, and in the center of it all is the new fighter which was designed by China with partial funding from Pakistan. It is formally known as JF-17 Thunder. When the fighter was in development, Pakistani online communities were jumping with excitement comparing it with its arch rival India’s modern combatants Su-30MKI, Mig-29S & Mirage-2000H. There were claims of it featuring western Radars and long range missiles, & Chinese ordering some due to its superior capabilities. But the reality is far from it. China having spent significant amount of money into a fighter which it is never going to use, most probably forced Pakistan to accept its avionics to offset some its development costs. Chinese who are known for their self reliance first and quality next, are further downgrading JF-17s capabilities with their poorly copy-pirated avionics. Along with their dubious weapons, any chance of JF...

India Planned Attack On Pak Navy Mehran Base To Kill Chinese Engineers

The terrorist attack on Karachi's Mehran Naval Station on May 22 was conceived and launched by India with the primary objective of killing the Chinese engineers present there, a Pakistani newspaper has claimed, citing 'informed sources'. Four to six Taliban terrorists had entered PNS Mehran on May 22, destroying two maritime surveillance aircraft and killing ten military personnel during their 17-hour siege of the naval air base. "India is the only country in the region that feels troubled by the Pakistan Navy, which had awfully beaten the Indian Navy in Operation Dwarka of 1965. Since then, it has been an earnest desire of India to harm the Pakistan Navy but it was perhaps not possible on the battle front, hence it struck the PNS Mehran," The News quoted sources as saying.

Pakistani F-16s Shoot Down RAF Eurofighter Typhoons During Air Combat Exercises In Turkey

Pakistani pilots flying modernised versions of the 1970s-vintage F-16 Falcon fighter have beaten the RAF's brand-new Eurofighter Typhoon superfighters during air combat exercises in Turkey, according to a Pakistani officer. Analysis: The RAF Typhoon, formerly known as the Eurofighter, should nonetheless have been vastly superior in air-to-air combat whether BVR or close in within visual range (WVR). The cripplingly expensive, long-delayed Eurofighter was specifically designed to address the defects of its predecessor the Tornado F3 – famously almost useless in close-in, dogfighting-style air combat. The Typhoon was meant to see off such deadly in-close threats as Soviet "Fulcrums" and "Flankers" using short-range missiles fired using helmet-mounted sight systems: such planes were thought well able to beat not just Tornados but F-16s in close fighting, and this expectation was borne out after the Cold War when the Luftwaffe inherite...

ASIAN DEFENCE

Search This Blog