Chinese fighter jets’ South American hopes grounded as Argentina pulls purchase plan
- Argentina will not make any immediate military aircraft purchases, President Alberto Fernandez has said of US$664 million defence budget plan
- China’s FC-1/JF-17 ‘Thunder’ multi-role fighter aircraft, jointly produced with Pakistan, is believed to have been a top contender
China’s ambitions to expand the Latin American reach of its military hardware have suffered a setback, with Argentina dropping its fighter jets purchase plan.
China’s Chengdu FC-1/JF-17 “Thunder”, jointly produced with Pakistan, was reportedly a front-runner in inspections and assessments to fill the Argentine Air Force’s gap in supersonic fighter jets.
“Argentina has to allocate its resources to more important things than the purchase of military aircraft,” Fernandez told the Financial Times, when asked last week about the possibility of buying Chinese warplanes.
There are no war problems on the South American continent, and unity is sought between the countries in the region, he added.
Argentina has not acquired any combat aircraft since the last of its French-made Dassault Mirage III jet fighters retired in 2015 after more than four decades in service.
Last year, the government set aside US$664 million in the 2022 budget for the acquisition of multifunctional fighter jets.