Pakistan Air Force (PAF) officially inducted the Chinese J-10C fighter jets earlier this month. China delivered the jets in just eight months rather than the years that defense manufacturers usually take to deliver fighter jets such as the J-10C.
The J-10C fighter aircraft has been developed by the Chengdu Aircraft Corporation (CAC). The J-10C fighter jet is a single-engine, tail-less, canard delta wing, multi-role, combat aircraft capable of all-weather operations. It is primarily designed for air-to-air combat, but it can also perform strike missions.
Pakistan has inducted the J-10C fighter jets from its all-weather ally in order to address the military imbalance in the region that resulted from the Indian acquisition of French-made Rafale fighter jets.
The Rafale jet is a twin-engine, canard delta wing, multi-role fighter aircraft designed and manufactured by Dassault Aviation, a French military aircraft manufacturer.
Defense experts have claimed that the J-10C is more powerful than the Rafale because it can carry more advanced fourth-generation missiles despite being lighter in weight due to the composite materials used in its manufacturing.
Let’s have a look at the detailed comparison of the two jets.
Both J-10C and Rafale have identical attributes. The only difference is in the engine as the former is powered by a single-engine while the latter is fueled by a twin engine.
| Attributes | J-10C | Rafale |
| Weight | Medium-weight | Medium-weight |
| Engine | Single-engine | Twin-engine |
| Generation | 4.5th generation | 4.5th generation |
| Role | Multi-role | Multi-role |
The J-10C is longer and taller than Rafale. Since it is made from composite materials, it is lighter in weight than the Rafale. The J-10C has a superior internal fuel capacity and is powered by a single engine which produces nearly as much thrust as the twin engines of Rafale.
| Features | J-10C | Rafale |
| Crew | 1 (single-seat) | 1 (single-seat) or 2 (two-seat) |
| Length | 55 feet 2 inches | 50 feet 1 inch |
| Wingspan | 32 feet 2 inches | 35 feet 9 inches |
| Height | 18 feet 8 inches | 17 feet 6 inches |
| Wing area | 400 sq. ft. | 492 sq. ft. |
| Empty weight | 9,750 kg | 10,300 kg |
| Gross weight | 14,000 kg | 15,000 kg |
| Max takeoff weight | 19,277 kg | 24,500 kg |
| Fuel capacity (internal) | 4,950 kg | 4,700 kg (single-seat) or 4,400 kg (two-seat) |
| Powerplant | 1 x WS-10B afterburning turbofan engines, 89.17 kN thrust dry, 142 kN with afterburner | 2 × Snecma M88-4e turbofans, 50.04 kN thrust each dry, 75 kN with afterburner |
The J-10C has by far a superior speed, combat range, and service ceiling in comparison to the Rafale. The rate of climb, wind loading, and thrust is almost identical.
| Characteristics | J-10C | Rafale |
| Maximum speed | Mach 2 | Mach 1.8 |
| Ferry range | 2,950 km | 3,700 km |
| Combat range | 2,600 km | 1,850 km |
| Service ceiling | 56,000 feet | 52,000 feet |
| G limits | +9/-3 | +9/-3.6 |
| Rate of climb | 59,000 feet/minute | 60,000 feet/minute |
| Wind loading | 381 kg/meter2 | 328 kg/meter2 |
| Thrust/weight | 1.10 | 0.98 |
Despite having fewer hardpoints, the J-10C is equipped with a better gun and more air-to-air missiles, air-to-surface missiles, anti-ship missiles, and bombs.
| Weapons | J-10C | Rafale |
| Guns | 1× 23 mm GSh-23 twin-barreled autocannon capable of firing 3,600 rounds per minute | 1× 30 mm GIAT-30 autocannon capable of firing 2,500 rounds per minute |
| Hardpoints | 11 (6× under-wing, 2× under-intake and 3× under-fuselage) with a capacity of 5600 kg of external fuel and ordnance | 14 for Air Force versions and 13 for Navy versions |
| Air-to-air missiles | PL-8 PL-10 PL-12 PL-15 PL-15E | MBDA MICA EM MBDA MICA IR MBDA Meteor Magic II |
| Air-to-surface missiles | KD-88 YJ-91 | MBDA AM 39 Exocet |
| Anti-ship missiles | C-601 C-705KD C-802AK CM-400AKG HD-1A | AM39 Exocet |
| Bombs | LT-2 (laser-guided) LS-6 (glide) GB3 (glide) GB2A (glide) GB3A (glide) FT-1 (satellite-guided) 250 kg and 500 kg unguided bombs | Laser-guided bombs from 225 Kg to 900 kg |
In this department as well, the J-10C fares better than the Rafale jet.
| J-10C | Rafale |
| Type 1473H pulse-doppler fire control radar | Thales RBE2-AA AESA radar |
| AESA fire control radar | Thales SPECTRA Electronic Warfare system.
|
| K/JDC01A targeting pod | Thales/SAGEM-OSF Optronique Secteur Frontal infra-red search and track (IRST) system |
| Type Hongguang-I infra-red search and track pod | |
| CM-802AKG targeting pod for KD-88 and YJ-91 | |
| KG600 electronic countermeasure pod | |
| Blue Sky navigation/attack pod |
The J-10 has fewer variants as compared to the Rafale.
| J-10C | Rafale |
| J-10A | Rafale A |
| J-10AH | Rafale D |
| J-10S | Rafale B variant F3-R |
| J-10SH | Rafale C variant F3-R |
| J-10B | Rafale M variant F3-R |
| J-10B TVC Demonstrator | Rafale N |
| J-10C | Rafale R |
| J-10CE | Rafale DM |
| Rafale EM | |
| Rafale DH | |
| Rafale EH | |
| Rafale DQ | |
| Rafale EQ |
The J-10 is operated by just two countries; China and Pakistan. On the other hand, Rafale is operated by 8 countries.
| J-10C | Rafale |
| China | Croatia |
| Pakistan | Egypt |
| France | |
| Greece | |
| India | |
| Indonesia | |
| Qatar | |
| UAE |
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