Iran's proposal to acquire Chinese-made J-10C fighter aircraft angers America and Israel ??

Defence affairs

For a long time, the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force (IRIAF) has struggled under strict Western arms embargoes, relying on a fleet of outdated Cold War-era aircraft — including the F-14 Tomcat, F-4 Phantom II and F-5 Tiger II — that are relics of the Shah's era when Tehran was still a close ally of the United States.

The mere report that Iran intends to acquire the Chinese-made J-10C “Vigorous Dragon” fighter jet is enough to set off alarm bells across the Middle East, unnerving military planners from Tel Aviv to Riyadh, and testing Washington’s geopolitical patience.

The effects of economic sanctions, technological obsolescence and diplomatic isolation have forced Iranian engineers to become experts in component 'cannibalization' techniques, reverse engineering work and various self-repair efforts to ensure these old jets can continue to fly.

But in the era of network-based warfare, advanced AESA radars and Beyond Visual Range (BVR) air combat, Iran's air fleet is now far behind Israel's fifth-generation F-35I Adir aircraft and modern GCC squadrons operating F-15SA, Rafale, Typhoon and F-16 Block 70.

In this context, the presence of the J-10C emerges as a very attractive alternative option — a fourth-generation-plus (4.5 or 4++) fighter aircraft designed to offer high-tech capabilities at a much lower cost without Western political constraints.

Sources close to the IRIAF leadership said discussions regarding the purchase of the J-10C had been quietly taking place under the umbrella of the 25-year Iran-China Strategic Cooperation Agreement signed in 2021 — a comprehensive agreement that covers the energy, infrastructure and defense sectors.

For Beijing, the sale of the J-10C to Tehran would be a bold gesture in challenging the US-led arms embargo system, thus further strengthening China's status as an influential arms exporter willing to challenge Western dominance in this sensitive region.

Tactically, the J-10C represents a major leap forward for the IRIAF.

This aircraft is equipped with Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar, a new generation digital cockpit, a modern datalink system and a sophisticated electronic warfare suite, making it capable of competing with Western aircraft in BVR or Within Visual Range (WVR) combat.

The biggest added value lies in the J-10C's ability to carry the PL-15 long-range air-to-air missile — the latest generation of Chinese-made missiles estimated to have a maximum range of over 200 kilometers, comparable to the American AIM-120D AMRAAM and the European Meteor.

Analysts believe that with the PL-15, Iranian pilots will gain a firing range they have never had before, thus being able to scare Israeli or GCC reconnaissance and attack aircraft from operating too close to Iranian airspace.

This timing cannot be considered a coincidence.

Open-source intelligence and Western defense assessments show that the war in Ukraine has caused significant losses to the Russian air fleet, including the loss of significant numbers of Su-34, Su-35, and Su-25 aircraft — a situation that has forced Moscow to prioritize replacing its own assets, while limiting Iran's options for acquiring modern fighter jets from Russia.

Meanwhile, China sees an opportunity to strengthen its market position in a region that has long been dominated by American, European and Russian-made assets.

This has a major impact on Israel, which still adheres to the doctrine of a preemptive strike on Iran's nuclear infrastructure before Tehran reaches a 'breakout' stage that allows them to develop nuclear weapons.

The presence of a fully operational J-10C will not eliminate the stealth advantage of Israel's F-35I Adir, but it will certainly complicate mission planning, extend Iran's detection range, and force Israel to take into account increasingly capable Iranian air defense elements.

On the part of Gulf Arab states such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, this move will force them to accelerate the acquisition of BVR missiles such as Meteor and AIM-120D, as well as new electronic warfare pods to ensure that Iran does not gain a lasting strategic advantage.

For the United States, this scenario only adds to the evidence that China's military influence is expanding, reinforcing the narrative of Washington-Beijing strategic competition that is now shaping military postures from the South China Sea to the Arabian Gulf.

A squadron of J-10Cs in Iranian service would certainly spark new pressure in the US Congress to tighten sanctions on Chinese defense companies and their subsidiaries — but the reality is that the dynamics of the increasingly diverse global arms market are difficult to fully control.