Pakistan's Initial J-35 Agreement Opens a New Phase in South Asian Air Power

An Initial Agreement With Far Reaching Stakes

Pakistan has signed an initial collaborative agreement for China's Shenyang J-35 stealth fighter, Air Vice-Marshal Tariq Ghazi, deputy chief of air staff, confirmed at an Islamabad press conference. As of May 8, 2026, the announcement points toward a major change for the Pakistan Air Force: acquiring aircraft designed to be harder to detect while finding and attacking targets through connected sensors and weapons.

Ghazi described the arrangement as an "initial collaborative agreement." Speculation places the first deliveries as early as mid-2026, potentially making Pakistan the first foreign operator of Chinese fifth generation combat aircraft. A binding delivery schedule has not been confirmed, and the financial arrangements remain unclear.

The announcement comes one year after Pakistani forces countered a major Indian air assault using Chinese warplanes and missiles during Operation Sindoor in May 2025. Pakistan now appears positioned to deepen that relationship, moving from the purchase of individual aircraft toward a broader Chinese system of aerial combat.

China's Aviation Industry Corporation, known as AVIC, has recently unveiled the J-35AE export variant. China Central Television aired footage showing a fully operational export model carrying manufacturer logos rather than People's Liberation Army Air Force markings. It was Beijing's first presentation of a complete export configuration of the aircraft, which has two engines.

The stakes extend beyond Pakistan's next fighter purchase. India has no operational stealth combat capability, while its domestic Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft program is not expected to reach operational maturity before the mid-2030s. Early Pakistani deliveries could therefore create a period in which Islamabad operates stealth fighters before New Delhi fields comparable technology. Turning that possibility into a usable military advantage would also require trained personnel, maintenance facilities and reliable connections between aircraft and other defense systems.

How the May 2025 Fighting Shaped the Choice

Operation Sindoor provides the immediate military context for the agreement. In May 2025, the Pakistan Air Force relied heavily on Chinese supplied J-10C fighters and JF-17 Thunder jets to repel Indian aerial operations. Those aircraft were employed successfully against French Rafale and Russian Su-30MKI fighters operated by the Indian Air Force.

The fighting demonstrated the effectiveness of China's export ecosystem, which combines aircraft with compatible missiles, electronics and support arrangements. Pakistan's prospective J-35 purchase would extend that approach into fifth generation aviation, where reduced visibility to radar and the sharing of targeting information are central features.

Pakistan already has substantial experience operating and producing Chinese aircraft. It is the first and only export operator of the J-10C. The JF-17 Thunder program established joint production infrastructure at Kamra, with 58 percent local manufacturing content.

The induction of the J-10C also accelerated Pakistan's ability to operate Chinese avionics, electronic warfare equipment and missiles used against targets beyond a pilot's visual range. Avionics are the electronic systems that help an aircraft navigate, detect threats and use its weapons. Electronic warfare equipment helps interfere with an opponent's sensors or protect an aircraft from them.

Pakistan's existing supply relationships and maintenance experience could reduce the difficulty of introducing another Chinese fighter. Customers without that infrastructure would have to build more of it from the beginning. For Islamabad, the J-35 would also deepen military and technical dependence on China and move its air force closer to an integrated Chinese approach to aerial warfare.

What Makes the J-35 Different

The J-35 family is China's second operational fifth generation fighter design. Developed by Shenyang Aircraft Corporation, it serves as a lighter complement to the heavier J-20. The aircraft is also known as the Gyrfalcon.

The J-35AE export variant retains the two engines, internal weapons bays and advanced avionics of its domestic counterparts, with modifications for foreign customers. Its blended wing body shape, diverterless supersonic air inlets, aligned edges on its control surfaces and radar absorbent coatings all contribute to reducing its visibility to radar.

Stealth means making an aircraft harder for sensors to detect and track. The J-35's shape and coatings reduce the radar energy reflected toward an opposing radar. Carrying weapons inside the aircraft helps preserve that reduced radar signature during combat operations.

Performance specifications put its maximum speed near Mach 1.8, or about 1.8 times the speed of sound, and its combat radius at up to 1,200 kilometers. Combat radius describes the reach of a mission that includes returning to base. That range would provide reach for strikes deep into contested South Asian airspace.

The aircraft uses an active electronically scanned array radar, a system that directs its radar beam electronically. It can track and engage multiple targets simultaneously. Its internal weapons carriage includes the PL-15 missile for engagements beyond visual range and the PL-10 missile for combat at shorter distances.

Those features support a first look, first shot approach: detecting an opposing aircraft and launching a weapon before the other pilot can establish the information needed to fire back. Whether Pakistan can use that advantage effectively will depend on how well the fighter works with its wider detection, communications and command systems.

From a Demonstrator to a Connected Fighter

The J-35 developed from the earlier FC-31 demonstrator through the J-31 prototype into its current configuration. Its evolution includes more powerful WS-21 engines and a planned upgrade to WS-19 propulsion systems.

The aircraft's sensor fusion system combines information from different sensors into a picture that the pilot can use. Its architecture integrates electro optical targeting systems and networked data sharing, allowing it to operate within a wider combat ecosystem.

Electro optical systems use light and heat information to help identify and track targets. Networked data sharing allows aircraft and other military platforms to exchange what they detect, so that a pilot can receive useful information from beyond the fighter's own sensors.

Fourth generation aircraft place greater reliance on speed and maneuverability. The J-35 gives priority to information dominance and reducing its detectable signature. Coordinated stealth operations could leave opponents less time to locate an aircraft, track it and prepare an engagement through traditional radar acquisition methods.

Pakistan's prospective purchase therefore concerns more than replacing an older fighter with a newer one. It involves connecting sensors, aircraft and weapons into a system that can detect a threat, pass on its location and direct an attack. That is the meaning of network centric combat in this procurement.

India Faces a Potential Timing Gap

India operates a substantial fleet of fighters described as generation 4.5, including Rafale, Su-30MKI and Mirage 2000 aircraft, but has no operational stealth combat capability. Its indigenous Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft program is progressing through development, with operational maturity expected no earlier than the mid-2030s.

Pakistan's possible acquisition could create a window of seven to ten years in which it holds a qualitative advantage in low observable aerial warfare. That prospect rests on the accelerated delivery expectations becoming reality and on Pakistan bringing the aircraft into effective service.

India also faces a potential challenge on two fronts. China's People's Liberation Army Air Force operates approximately 200 J-20 fighters, with that number potentially doubling by 2030, while Pakistan could introduce J-35 squadrons on India's other side.

Without stealth fighters of its own, India would have to rely on layered radar networks on the ground and airborne early warning aircraft to detect and track low observable targets. Retired Indian Air Force officers have expressed concern that even a limited number of Pakistani stealth squadrons could require substantial resources for defensive missions, leaving fewer resources available for offensive operations.

The prospective delivery timetable has reportedly accelerated from late 2026 to mid-2026. That would reflect both Beijing's confidence in expanding production and Islamabad's urgency. Chinese assembly lines reportedly have the capacity to produce one J-35 every 72 hours, although export variants may follow a different schedule.

Pakistan would still need climate controlled hangars, specialized maintenance facilities and secure data links to support fifth generation operations. Its financial constraints make those investments a central part of the procurement question. An aircraft's arrival is only one stage in creating a force that can sustain operations.

A Package Extending Beyond Fighters

The prospective agreement reportedly includes KJ-500 airborne early warning and control aircraft and HQ-19 missile defense systems for interception at high altitude. Together, they would broaden the purchase from a fighter program into a connected defense architecture.

The KJ-500 provides airborne detection over long distances and coordination across the battle area. The HQ-19 offers interception beyond the atmosphere, with a capability comparable to the American Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system, commonly known as THAAD.

Ghazi's reference to precision weapons with long range alongside next generation platforms suggests Pakistan is seeking a deep strike capability that combines stealth penetration with standoff weapons. Standoff weapons allow an aircraft or another platform to attack from a distance rather than approach closely to its target.

Pakistan's Fatah series cruise missiles and submarine launched systems that it has already tested complement that architecture. Together with airborne sensors and fighters, they could create multiple layers in the process of detecting, tracking and engaging a target.

Retired Group Captain Sultan M. Hali described the potential acquisition in terms of Pakistan entering a new era with a complete set of connected capabilities:

the fifth generation era with an entire combat ecosystem

Hali's assessment stresses integration rather than simply replacing aircraft. Beijing's export strategy is moving toward selling connected operational systems, with warning aircraft, fighters, weapons and missile defenses designed to work together.

Announcements, Denials and a Developing Timeline

Pakistan's public messaging has combined signs of interest with explicit denials. In July 2025, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif rejected reports of a J-35 acquisition and described them in terms of publicity for Chinese defense products:

media chatter

Asif's denial followed the deletion of a Pakistani government social media post referring to approximately 40 J-35 fighters, KJ-500 aircraft and HQ-19 systems in a contract worth $4.6 billion. President Asif Ali Zardari's visit to AVIC facilities in September 2025 subsequently reinforced the evidence of continued interest at a senior level.

The main developments span the fighting in 2025, contradictory public signals and the latest initial agreement:

• May 2025: Pakistan used J-10C and JF-17 aircraft during the confrontation associated with Operation Sindoor.
• July 2025: Defence Minister Khawaja Asif denied acquisition reports after a government post referring to a $4.6 billion package was deleted.
• September 2025: President Asif Ali Zardari visited AVIC facilities. Pakistan and Saudi Arabia also signed a mutual defense pact that month.
• By May 8, 2026: Air Vice-Marshal Tariq Ghazi had confirmed an initial collaborative agreement for the J-35, and China had showcased the J-35AE export configuration.
• Mid-2026: Speculation places possible initial deliveries in this period, earlier than the previously reported expectation of late 2026.

Reports of pilot training and infrastructure preparation, alongside the footage of the export aircraft, have added to indications that preparations and negotiations are advancing. Pakistan's official statements nevertheless leave a gap between the initial agreement and the detailed procurement arrangements needed to field operational squadrons.

Pakistan May Face Competition for the First Export Order

Aviation researcher Andreas Rupprecht has urged caution about early conclusions. He notes that the J-35AE export prototype has flown and suggests that an undisclosed customer may have financed its initial development. His speculation includes the United Arab Emirates as a possible launch customer.

The Pentagon's 2025 report to Congress identified the UAE, Egypt and Saudi Arabia as countries interested in the J-35. Their interest reflects efforts to obtain advanced fighters despite American export restrictions intended to preserve Israel's qualitative military edge, meaning its advantage in military capability.

China has limited experience exporting sophisticated combat aircraft in large numbers. Foreign customers generally expect reliable maintenance, support after delivery and a complete customer service package, alongside the aircraft itself. Providing those services would be part of Beijing's commercial challenge.

Pakistan's established infrastructure for Chinese aircraft reduces those risks and makes it the most plausible initial recipient, despite its financial constraints and earlier official denials. Alternative customers remain relevant because financing, support arrangements and the sequence of export deliveries will shape how the J-35 enters the international market.

The aircraft could appeal to countries unable to afford or obtain American F-35 fighters because of political constraints, particularly when China offers it alongside connected warning and defense systems. A successful Pakistani introduction could help demonstrate China's defense industrial model to potential customers in the Middle East, Africa and Southeast Asia.

Regional Diplomacy and the Cost of Sustaining Stealth

Pakistan's aircraft plans are developing alongside wider defense diplomacy. The Pakistan Air Force recently deployed JF-17 squadrons to Saudi Arabia under the mutual defense pact signed in September 2025. Negotiations also continue over Bangladesh acquiring JF-17 Block 3 aircraft and Super Mushshak trainers.

Those activities show Islamabad using its aerospace sector, closely aligned with China, to build regional influence while pursuing more advanced aircraft for its own forces. Pakistan could become both an operator of Chinese stealth technology and a showcase for connected Chinese defense systems.

For India, that would complicate security planning beyond the immediate question of detecting Pakistani fighters. Wider acceptance of the J-35 could also challenge Western dominance in the market for advanced combat aircraft and encourage faster competition over weapons and countermeasures across South Asia.

Pakistan's defense budget faces substantial constraints, and sustaining fifth generation aircraft would require spending beyond the purchase price. Specialized facilities, maintenance and secure communications would form part of a continuing commitment rather than a single acquisition payment.

Some analysts suggest financing from Gulf partners interested in Chinese defense ecosystems could help make the purchase possible. Whether funded externally or through domestic allocations, the program would likely involve several billion dollars and bind Pakistan to Beijing's aerospace industrial base for decades.

The initial agreement therefore brings together three connected choices: introducing a fighter designed for stealth, building the systems that make it effective and paying to sustain them. For Pakistan and India, the most immediate issue is timing, with possible deliveries in 2026 set against India's expected domestic stealth capability in the mid-2030s.

The Bottom Line

• Air Vice-Marshal Tariq Ghazi has confirmed an initial collaborative agreement for Chinese J-35 stealth fighters.
• Possible deliveries in mid-2026 could make Pakistan the first foreign operator of Chinese fifth generation combat aircraft.
• China has showcased the J-35AE export configuration, featuring two engines, internal weapons bays and advanced avionics.
• India has no operational stealth fighters, and its Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft is expected to reach operational maturity no earlier than the mid-2030s.
• The prospective package reportedly includes KJ-500 airborne warning aircraft and HQ-19 missile defenses.
• A deleted government post referred to approximately 40 fighters and a $4.6 billion package, while Defence Minister Khawaja Asif denied acquisition reports in July 2025.
• Delivery arrangements, financing and the cost of supporting the aircraft remain central to turning the initial agreement into an operational capability.