APP,
Islamabad: Pakistan Air Force (PAF) will buy some 28 Karakoram-8 jet trainers from China to phase out its ageing fleet of US-origin T-37 jets.
''We have already placed the order with China for the purchase of the jets,'' a senior PAF official told UNI here today.
Pakistan and China had jointly manufactured the K-8, which the PAF academy is presently flying in addition to the T-37s and Chinese-made FT-5s to train its aviation cadets.
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Karakoram – 8 is a basic cum advanced jet trainer, jointly designed and manufactured by Aircraft Manufacturing Factory and Nanchang Aircraft Company China. The aircraft is equipped with advanced features and can adequately be utilized in close support role. The aircraft has already been inducted in a number of air forces around the world.
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''Both T-37s and FT-5s are quite old and we want to replace them with K-8s in order to train our cadets on modern jets,'' said the official, adding that the K-8s will start arriving early next year in the consignments of 6-8 aircraft.
Pakistani experts indigenously overhaul and upgrade the K-8s, which the PAF is flying, at the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) near Islamabad.
The complex, which is rebuilding the whole range of aircraft in the PAF's inventory, also plans to overhaul JF-17 (Thunder) jets simultaneously with the K-8s at its aircraft manufacturing factory (AMF).
Jointly manufactured by Pakistan and China, JF-17s will start joining the PAF's fleet from December 2006, followed by the commencement of their serial production in the country.
