South Asia Investor Review

Squadron Leader Hasan Siddiqui of Pakistan Air Force (PAF), flying a  Pakistan-made JF-17 Block 2 serial 15-201  fighter jet,  shot down  Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman of Indian Air Force (IAF) flying a Russia made MiG 21. Abhinandan was captured by Pakistan last week. The news has boosted the stock price of CAC (Chengdu Aircraft Corporation) which jointly developed JF-17 Thunder with Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC). JF-17 Thunder Fighter: The development of JF-17, a modern highly capable and relatively inexpensive fighter jet, is the crowning achievement to-date of the  Pakistan-China defense production  cooperation. It's being deployed by Pakistan Air Force with Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC). The latest version is capable of launching a variety of nuclear and conventional weapons ranging from smart bombs and air-launched cruise missile Raad to anti-ship missiles. Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) got its start decades ago by sett...

At a ceremony held at the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC), Kamra, last Thursday, Air Marshal Farhat Hussain Khan, the chairman of the PAC board, announced the launch of Falco UAV production in Pakistan in collaboration with Selex Galileo of Italy . Speaking on the occasion, the Air Marshal said the UAV co-production facility was a major step towards the long-term goal of self-reliance in military aviation industry. In the opinion of this blogger, it is expected that most Pakistanis will take pride in the nation's indigenous capacity to build and eventually use armed drones to put down the insurgent groups such as the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) who have unleashed a reign of terror in Pakistani towns and cities. Most such attacks cause large numbers of innocent civilian casualties and powerful, palpable anger against the responsible groups. Many Pakistanis will also see the development and manufacturing of UAVs positively in the context of Pakistan's competition with a...