Chinese fighter jet cleared for exports

Beijing: China have given the green signal for exporting its domestically-developed J-10 fighter as the country looks to attract buyers at the Singapore Airshow, the media reported on Thursday.

A large-scale model of the FC-20, the export version of the J-10, is on display at the China National Aero-Technology Import and Export Corp booth at the six-day Singapore Airshow 2016 that started on Tuesday.

It is an unspoken rule in China`s defence sector that weapons solely designed for the People`s Liberation Army are never displayed at foreign exhibitions, so the model`s appearance in Singapore carries a clear indication: that China now wants to promote the warplane in the international market.

The J-10 is a third-generation, multi-role combat aircraft designed and produced by Aviation Industry Corp of China. It features a canard delta wing design, a fly-by-wire flight control system and is regarded by military experts as one of the best fighter jets in the world.

First entering service as the J-10A with the PLA Air Force in 2004, the plane was de-classified in 2009 and by February 2014, the PLA Air Force and PLA Navy`s aviation units had at least 260 of the jets in operation.

The country has also developed at least two upgraded versions of the aircraft-the J-10B, which has started to be delivered to the PLA Air Force, and the J-10C that is still in the testing stage.