CAC/PAC JF-17 Thunder

The PAC JF-17 Thunder (Urdu: جے ایف-١٧ تھنڈر‎), or CAC FC-1 Xiaolong (Fierce Dragon; Chinese: 枭龙; pinyin: Xiāo Lóng), is a light-weight, single-engine, multi-role combat aircraft developed jointly by the Pakistan Air Force, the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) and the Chengdu Aircraft Industries Corporation (CAC) of China. Its designation "JF-17 Thunder" by Pakistan is short for "Joint Fighter-17", while the designation "FC-1 Xiaolong" by China means "Fighter China-1 Fierce Dragon".

The JF-17 can carry a variety of missiles and bombs, including air-to-air and air-to-surface missiles, supplemented by a 23/30 mm GSh-23-2 twin-barrel autocannon. It is powered by a RD-93 afterburning turbofan, and has a top speed of Mach 1.6. The JF-17 is slated to become the backbone of Pakistan Air Force (PAF), complementing the F-16s as well as the J-10Bs (on order) within its aircraft ranks and is also expected to fill the duties of aerial reconnaissance, ground-attack and interception.[9]

Pakistan has already started induction, and has plans to induct around 250 units. The JF-17 will replace Pakistan's ageing fleet of A-5C, Mirage-III, Mirage-V, and F-7P/PG by 2015. The first squadron was inducted in the Pakistan Air Force in February 2010. In China it is in an evaluation phase (passed design appraisal).