What Oman's potential JF-17 fighter jet deal means for China and Pakistan

[Cipher212]

Sure, but it is a much much more complicated picture then just that as we all know eight?

1 more export deal and JF-17 will have the same number of export clients as Gripen, and just 4 less then Rafale.

For a plane that was not meant to be exported when concieved, that is very good.

It was never meant to replace the MIG-29

It's not about meaning to or not. Neither is it competing with the Rafale. Gripen sure.

I am just pointing out how the fighter jet as a whole is not as attractive for low budget countries any more that would have been the ideal buyer for JF-17

They are all looking at the FPV drone and the Shaheds.

I'm also thinking. Let's say I'm a random African country. I scrounge up some funds and get 12 JF-17s. No PL-15, no integrated AD, nothing. Just 12 JF-17s and low hour pilots.

For the same cost how many low cost drones I could procure and even assemble locally.

 

[PK781]

it sure is an underrrated jet
PAF successfully launched and neutralized the S400 in india with the CM400AKG with the JF17 Thunders.

That's one metric i look at, in an active war zone. It went into enemy hostile territory and took out their prized AD system, and returned safely.

But as i said and its pretty much writing on the wall.......it may be a little too late for any gulfies to consider this.....thats if the American-Iran war restarts

 

[Bratva]

Before anyone questions or ridicules, it is the same account which broke the news for azerbaijan order

 

[maxpane]

Before anyone questions or ridicules, it is the same account which broke the news for azerbaijan order

finger crossed. hope its true

 

[sutton9999]

King of Oman is visiting China (1st time), maybe there is some legs on this.

 

[Goenitz]

I always thought the JF-17 would get a flurry of sales when the MiG 21s and 29s start retiring but looks like now world militaries are not as interested in maintaining a small fleet of 12-18 fighters anymore, but more into FPV and suicide drones that can actually be sustained by most militaries which have shitty budgets.

The changing trend may end up making a lot of potential JF customers decide they'd rather not buy a platform that they can never utilise fully unlike PAF

Oman mainly needs drones for sea surveillance, plus transport for evacuation/aid, etc.

They don't have beef with anyone, so if they buy fighters, it means they are politically aligning themselves with us and China. Like the RSAF buying both the Eagle and Typhoon (to make the West happy). Though they also have genuine threats.

 

[RescueRanger]

Oman mainly needs drones for sea surveillance, plus transport for evacuation/aid, etc.

They don't have beef with anyone, so if they buy fighters, it means they are politically aligning themselves with us and China. Like the RSAF buying both the Eagle and Typhoon (to make the West happy). Though they also have genuine threats.

Drones are NOT the silver bullet everyone makes them out to be.

 

[Ali_Baba]

Before anyone questions or ridicules, it is the same account which broke the news for azerbaijan order

I hope it is not true - I want PAF to focus on buying JF17C's to retire the F7PGs and Mirages ....

 

[Kambojaric]

Oman maintains close relations with India. Its foreign policy by default seeks to avoid controversy so it will not go for Pakistani/Chinese jets imo.

India-Oman deepens defence ties with focus on military education and training

Muscat: India and Oman are strengthening their longstanding defence partnership with a renewed focus on military education, professional training and institutio

www.defencewatch.in

 

[Ali_Baba]

Oman maintains close relations with India. Its foreign policy by default seeks to avoid controversy so it will not go for Pakistani/Chinese jets imo.

India-Oman deepens defence ties with focus on military education and training

Muscat: India and Oman are strengthening their longstanding defence partnership with a renewed focus on military education, professional training and institutio

www.defencewatch.in

That's good - they should go for the Tejas

 

[K2RULEZ]

Compare JF-17 exports to existing and past MiG-21/MiG-29/F-7/A-5 operators and look at how many never bothered to get new jets or went for much cheaper trainers.

You are comparing fighters that have existed much longer and from a different era.

 

[K2RULEZ]

Drones are NOT the silver bullet everyone makes them out to be.

Fighter jets will remain the dominant asset for air superiority and high intensity conflicts.

A traditional fighter jet will always win the heavy ordnance and range contest among many other areas. Standard fighter jets feature massive thrust-to-weight ratios capable of carrying heavy long-range anti-ship, bunker-busting munitions, large internal radar arrays among other heavy weaponry.

The drone is a good decoy and even a very capable substitute to a fighter jet when facing a weaker opponent that lacks air power.

 

[SBD-3]

While i like their interest in the plane, but i feel they’re a little too late already. The region is already under grave threat of war in next few days…

For now they will have to use whatever they already have against Iranian/israeli attacks

Oman has historically pursued a markedly different regional outlook from Saudi Arabia or the UAE. Unlike its neighbours, Muscat has rarely sought an assertive regional role or actively projected power beyond its immediate strategic interests. Its foreign policy has, by and large, been defined by pragmatism, strategic restraint, and a preference for neutrality. Even during the GCC's diplomatic and economic isolation of Qatar, Oman refrained from joining the broader regional consensus and maintained its independent approach.

This relatively restrained foreign policy has also allowed Oman to operate with a lower threshold for military capability. Its air force is comparatively modest, essentially built around two fighter squadrons: one equipped with the Eurofighter Typhoon and the other with the F-16. Unlike Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, or Egypt, Oman has not demonstrated the same degree of ambition in pursuing large-scale military modernisation or expanding its combat aviation fleet.

In this context, the JF-17 makes considerable sense. It offers Oman an opportunity to supplement its existing fighter fleet, introduce additional operational capabilities, and potentially improve force flexibility without incurring the substantial acquisition and sustainment costs associated with more sophisticated Western platforms. It would be a pragmatic force enhancement rather than a fundamental shift in Oman's military posture.

It is also worth remembering that Oman has never exhibited the same degree of military ambition or fascination with large-scale force accumulation seen in Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, or the UAE. Its defence procurement decisions are more likely to be driven by affordability, operational sufficiency, and maintaining a credible deterrent than by regional power projection or prestige.

The JF-17, therefore, would fit Oman's broader strategic philosophy: acquiring sufficient military capability to safeguard its interests without becoming entangled in an expensive arms race or abandoning its traditional policy of regional restraint.

 

[PK781]

That's good - they should go for the Tejas

Make it Tejas + Truck combo with a side of fries.