It is subscription locked, I can't read it. Fell free to post the full article if you have access to it for us to read.
Feel free to get the subscription. In short, Tom Cooper highlights that Chinese Poly Group Corporation (CPGC) + CETC, and IEI (SAIRAN) of Iran which is responsible for military electronics of Iran have a large TOT contract which has resulted into the creation of extensive Iranian IADS. As a result of this, some Iranian modern IADS components have an uncanny resemblance with some of the modern systems offered by Chinese CETC e.g. radars of Sayyad, Talash-3, Shahin, and Bavar-373.
As an example, Meraj-4 3D long range AESA search/tracker of BAVAR-373, probably has 16000+ GaN T/R modules, can track even stealth aircrafts and 200+ targets, beyond what S-300PMU2/S-400 counterparts can do, looks like a modernised TOT of Chinese CETC offered system JYL-1. There are other examples if you search a little. 2010s IADS developments of Iran have that signature of Russia and China TOTs or procurement but post 2020s IADS is becoming totally local.
I mean, you're right? My point was that if Russia was offering ASMs at the time, Iran likely would not have bought them from China. But this is arguing a hypothetical so I will digress.
You previously claimed that Iranian decision makers would rather get tech from "Euro-apes" and fellow Aryan/white Russians than Chinese, suggesting that Iranian decision makers might have a racially low view point of the Chinese. In reality, I provided you the list we got from Chinese, the F-7N (~60), TOT of entire combat and avionics suite of Azaraksh/Kowsar(Azaraksh-II) fighters, IADS passive assets, the large TOT of AShCMs, Missile attack FACs for IRGCN and many more.
These are your words
"Because enough influential policy-makers still hold the futile dream of becoming westernized indo-european aryans and accepted by the euro-apes, able to buy fancy European apartments and store their wealth in the banks of the European metropole. They would rather buy from "fellow white" Russians than China."
You could not be more wrong.
I double checked Sipri, some J-7s and J-6s were obtained in 1986 and 1984, and some in F-7M the 90s.
Wrong and very foolish considering SY-80 Skyranger radar that Iranian F-7N got (later upgraded and produced as Baaz/Bayyenaat-V inside Iran), was not even developed before 1990.
https://www.key.aero/article/history-chengdu-f-7n-iranian-service
Here is the delivery schedule of F-7N for IRIAF:
- First Batch (October 1990): 6 x FT-7N training aircraft (serials: 3-7701 to 3-7706) delivered..
- Second Batch (By May 1990): 15 x F-7N
- Third Batch (By February 1992): 15 x F-7N
- Fourth Batch (1992): 20 x FT-7N trainers
- Fifth Batch (1994): 6 x more FT-7Ns.
- Final Delivery (1996): 4 x FT-7N (Last serial 3-7726).
- Total Delivered Units: F-7N 30 + FT-7N 30 = 60 Airframes.
Article provides even the serial numbers and bases/squadrons they were inducted into along with Iranian plan to rebuild them as FT-2000G under project Erfanian (abandoned now).
Russia would be the main country I would think of where this is the case as the MiG-31 and Flankers have been doing to bulk of air to air combat in the Ukraine war, please provide other examples.
Russia, not that much interested in MIG-35 is massively producing the SU-30SM/35S/34/57, still heavily reliant upon MIG-31.
PLAAF refused to induct FC-1. Ordered SU-35S, is producing J Series Flanker, J-20/35.
Iran refused to produce Kowsar or ask for MIG-29/35, instead went for SU-30SM/35S.
Algeria did not order more MIG-29/35 instead went for SU-30M/35S/57
India is inducting even more SU-30MKI and Rafale, not showing any passion for their own Tejas/F-16/F-18/Mig-29/35 despite being offered.
KSA is not interested in anything except F-15, EF-2000, in future possibly F-35.
Egypt wants SU-35, Rafale, F-15E.
US moved on from F-16/18 production or upgrade program but in the 4th gen category is still using F-15 along with F-22/35.
For the sake of commenting on this forum, I am broadly referring to IRGCAF and IRIAF as one unified entity. For now Iran's drones are not capable of carrying heavy weapons and are limited to mostly light anti personnel fragmentation bombs.
You do not fight sandal wearing militias by carpet bombing them. That achieves nothing (US against Taliban). They will disperse in caves while you waste cash on PGMs destroying nothing but rocks. Instead, You take out the leaders and throw in the intelligence-based cash to create factions fight each other. Look at Israeli way of dealing with Hezbollah while physically supporting the Lebanese government. Thats the blueprint of Iran vs Taliban. If Israel wants to get rid of its own supported HTS in Syria, they won't bomb them with IAF 24/7, they will take out few at the top to make the low IQ warlords below fight each other.
You stated that IRIAF faces problems of incoming ALBMs and I stated that the Su-35 is not the solution you might think it is. I did not comment on ability of J-10 or Su-35 to carry ALBMs.
SU-35S can fire ALBMS over Iraq to Israel or towards anyone. Its has the thrust, MTOW for that. No other plane on earth available to Iran can match that right now. As a rough idea, SU-35S can easily lift and launch an AL version of Hypersonic BM Fattah. If it lofts this missile over Iraq towards Israel or over southern Iran towards KSA, no AD on earth can stop the incoming RV. I am open to hear the counterpoint on which other plane Iran should have purchased.
The US, UK, France, and Jordan in fact actively defended "Israel" against these attacks.
As long as US troops are in Iraq, they have the ultimate say in any Iraqi government decision.
US did not attack Iran after TP1
US did not attack Iran when they bombed PMU using their Strategic Bombers
US did not attack Iran after TP2
They could but they did not because Iranian war-time diplomacy worked brilliantly. Araghchi was flying more than IRIAF jets during Iran-Israel showdown making sure US stays out and it did. Not impossible that it was US which kept Israel away from Iranian nuclear sites and oil terminals otherwise IRGCs TP2 was a pure humiliation for Israel. Like I said War is not just fighting, war time diplomacy is part of it. If Iran needs to use Iraqi Airspace or PG to ensure its security, Iranian diplomats will have to make sure that US does not intervene like Araghchi did before.
Your posts are detailed, however my point was that Iran cannot produce new air frames or engines for such a fighter. Unless you have information to the contrary.
For somewhere around ~10 million USD, F-4E/D reaches Dowran status which is almost JH-7 equivalent (read my posts). Titanium based airframe was a problem in 2010s, its solved now so IAIO can pull the "kowsar" on F-4E/Ds and put out their own ALM/SOW/ALCM launching JH-7 equivalent fleet of 64 "Dowrans". A scary force for anyone in Persian Gulf and beyond coming out of underground ABs. IAIO already rebuilds its airframe extensively so age is not a problem.
If Russia does another S-300 or Rafsanjani MIG-29/31 or 2009 nuclear fiasco on Iran, and SU-35S delivery stops in the middle which I suspect will happen somewhere in 2026/27, Iran needs to be prepared. They probably can throw F-4E/D fleet to IRGCAF if SU-35S/30SM fleet crosses 60+ airframes.
