The two countries began joint production of the jet in January. Pakistani Air Chief Marshal Tanvir Mahmood Ahmed said the first squadron equipped with JF-17s will be operational by the end of this year.
Four JF-17 will also participate in Pakistan’s National Day fly-past on March 23, a release by the Pakistani Air Force (PAF) stated.

The fighters have been inducted at the PAF’s aeronautical complex in Kamra, where they will be used for further testing and evaluation as part of the development programme.

The prototype of the JF-17 made its first flight in August 2003. The first JF-17 supplied by China was inducted by the PAF in March last year.

Pakistan will initially induct 15 to 20 JF-17s a year and the figure will be scaled up to 25 to 30 a year. The jet’s engine taken from Russia’s MiG 29 called the RD-93 responds good during tight turns, but leaves a lot of smoke, according to test pilots.  

India also uses the MiG 29 multirole fighter, which is one of the world’s most agile air interceptor.