Pilots at the controls of a China-made FTC-2000G. / Dayu
Myanmar’s military regime has taken delivery of six FTC-2000G fighter jets purchased from China, according to Myanmar-based observers monitoring the regime’s air force.
The six fighter jets arrived in November and are currently being checked over at Meiktila airbase in Mandalay Region before their deployment to Namhsan airbase in southern Shan State, according to regime air force sources. The jets are likely to be used in the regime’s ongoing airstrikes against civilians and resistance forces fighting alongside ethnic armed groups across the country.
The six FTC-2000Gs will apparently replace the military’s K-8 light fighter jets jointly developed by China and Pakistan, said observers.
Designed and manufactured by Guizhou Aviation Industry Corporation under the supervision of state-owned aerospace and defense firm Aviation Industry Corporation of China, the FTC-2000G is a light multi-role trainer and combat aircraft. It is capable of carrying up to 3 tons of missiles, rockets or bombs and tasked mainly with airstrikes against ground targets, according to aerospace news portal Defense World.
It can also be used for flight training, aerial surveillance, patrol missions, reconnaissance, electronic warfare, close-in air support, and air escort missions.
The FTC-2000G is in service with the Navy and Air Force of the People’s Liberation Army and costs US$8.5 million per unit.
The intermediary for the FTC-2000Gs’ purchase from China was weapons dealer Dr. Naing Htut Aung, director of Gateways Hong Kong Ltd, according to Justice for Myanmar, a human rights group monitoring junta businesses.
