CAC/PAC JF-17 Thunder

The CAC/PAC JF-17 Thunder, also known as FC-1 Xiaolong, is a Sino-Pakistani single-engine lightweight supersonic multirole combat aircraft developed jointly by the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) and the Chengdu Aircraft Corporation (CAC) of China. It is a fourth-generation fighter, designed and developed as a replacement for the third-generation A-5C, F-7P/PG, Mirage III, and Mirage 5 combat aircraft in the Pakistan Air Force (PAF). The JF-17 can be used for multiple roles, including interception, ground attack, anti-ship, and aerial reconnaissance. The Pakistani designation "JF-17" stands for "Joint Fighter-17", with the "Joint Fighter" denoting the joint Pakistani-Chinese development of the aircraft and the "-17" denoting that, in the PAF's vision, it is the successor to the F-16. The Chinese designation "FC-1" stands for "Fighter China-1".

The JF-17 can deploy diverse ordnance, including air-to-air, air-to-surface, and anti-ship missiles; guided and unguided bombs; and a 23-mm GSh-23-2 twin-barrel autocannon. Powered by the Russian Klimov RD-93 (JF-17 Blocks 1 and 2) or Klimov RD-93MA (JF-17 Block 3) afterburning turbofan engine, it has a top speed of Mach 1.6. The JF-17 is the backbone and workhorse of the PAF, complementing the F-16 Fighting Falcon at approximately half the cost, with the Block II variant costing $25 million. The JF-17 was inducted in the PAF in 2007.