Myanmar receives six FTC-2000G light combat aircraft from China
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| An FTC-2000G Mountain Eagle LCA in Myanmar Air Force colors. Photo c/o The Irrawaddy. |
The Myanmar Air Force has reportedly received the first batch of Guizhou FTC-2000G Mountain Eagle light combat aircraft from China.
The delivery of the aircraft was made on November 2022, and reported to be undergoing inspection and testing at the Meikttila Air Base in Mandalay region, prior to formal induction and deployment to the Namhsan Air Base in Shan state.
The FTC-2000G, developed by Guizhou Aviation Industries Corporation (GAIC), are believed to be replacing the older Chinese-Pakistani Karakorum K-8 light attack aircraft, with the new aircraft expected to perform better than the aircraft it is replacing.
The FTC-2000G Mountain Eagle was derived from the Guizhou JL-9 advanced jet trainer used by the People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) and People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) since 2015 and 2014, respectively.
Myanmar is the first export market for the FTC-2000G light combat aircraft variant, although Sudan has been operating the FTC-2000 trainer aircraft, which is the export designation of the JL-9.
Chinese sources claim that the FTC-2000G Mountain Eagle is the most affordable jet-powered combat aircraft in the global market, with a unit cost of around US$8.5 million.
[1] The Irrawaddy
Reviewed by Asia Pacific Defense Journal
on
December 16, 2022
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