According to Indian analysis, the stimulus for India to purchase 42 Su-57 stealth fighters and 50 Su-35 fighters from Russia is mainly because the Pakistan Air Force may soon acquire advanced Chinese-made J-35 stealth fighters. At the same time, India is still waiting for its own advanced medium combat aircraft, the AMCA fifth-generation fighter. According to India's optimistic analysis, India's domestically developed fifth-generation fighter will take about 10 years to be ready. All of this puts pressure on India. India believes that China is about to provide 40 J-35A stealth fighters, the KJ-500 airborne early warning aircraft, and the HQ-19 air defense and anti-missile system to Pakistan. This will be China's first export of top-tier stealth fighters and may change the military balance in South Asia.

Overall, it is unlikely that India will sign a contract to purchase 42 Su-57 and 50 Su-35 fighters so quickly. Even if it is an emergency procurement by the Indian government without going through the bidding process, it would require the personal involvement of Prime Minister Modi, taking at least several months. It is impossible for the Indian authorities to directly sign a contract to purchase 42 Su-57 stealth fighters and 50 Su-35 fighters from Russia at a stage where no external information has been disclosed. The contract for 26 Rafale fighters was announced two years ago when Modi visited France. The speed of various tenders by the Indian military is too slow, measured in years. Even the emergency procurement after the May 7th air battle could not be implemented so quickly.

For the Indian Air Force, it cannot buy the US F-35 fighter jets, as buying F-35 fighter jets would be equivalent to buying scrap iron at a high price. The Pakistani Air Force's F-16 fighter jets were locked down, and they could not fly, which the Indian Air Force witnessed firsthand. Now, if the Indian Air Force wants to retaliate against the J-10CE, there is only one option in the Rafale fighter jets, which is the Su-35. To counter the Pakistani Air Force's J-35 fighter jets, the only option for a fifth-generation fighter is the Su-57.

Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1838497568035852/

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