TSAMTO, November 7. At Al Maktoum International Airport (Dubai, UAE), the first two new advanced jet training aircraft L-15 "Falcon" of Chinese production were spotted.
Both aircraft marked L15 64 and L15 65 are painted in the bright livery of the National Aviation Demonstration Group. According to the information Scramble.nl It is expected that they will take part in demonstration flights within the framework of the 18th International Aerospace Exhibition Dubai Airshow 2023 (November 13-17, 2023, Dubai).
As already reported by TSAMTO, the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) on its WeChat page on February 21, 2023 announced the signing of a contract for the sale of advanced training aircraft L-15 to the UAE Armed Forces.
The agreement was concluded by the China National Aerotechnological Import & Export Corporation CATIC (China National Aero-Technology Import & Export Corporation) during the 16th International Defense Exhibition IDEX-2023. The L-15 TCB with the possibility of refueling in the air debuted at the event in the UAE Air Force paint. The aircraft can be used to train fighter pilots of the fourth and fifth generations, intercept air targets and strike.
The signing of the contract took place after the UAE Defense Ministry announced in February 2022 its intention to purchase 12 L-15 aircraft in China.
In accordance with the preliminary agreement signed by the UAE Ministry of Defense with CATIC, the UAE Air Force and Air Defense should receive 12 L-15 TCB (as part of the PLA, it is designated JL-10). The options provide for the possibility of acquiring 36 more aircraft in the future. The purchase is carried out within the framework of the UAE's plans to diversify the portfolio of military equipment orders.
The cost and delivery dates of the aircraft were not disclosed. The estimated cost of a two-seat L-15 Falcon is from 10 to 15 million dollars per unit.
It is also not yet known in which version the aircraft will be delivered, training or combat. The L-15 aircraft demonstrated at IDEX-2023 was equipped with guided ammunition on the underwing suspension units.
As analysts noted, the purchase of the UAE Air Force L-15 may negatively affect plans to purchase F-35A fighters in the United States. At the beginning of 2021, in the last days of his stay in the White House, US President D.Trump approved the sale of 50 F-35A and 18 MQ-9B Reaper UAVs to the UAE. At the end of 2021, there were reports of the termination of negotiations on the purchase. The reasons, obviously, were US concerns about Abu Dhabi's ability to also develop cooperation with Beijing and Moscow.
The L-15B is a two–seat twin-engine supersonic combat training aircraft with an electric control system designed to train pilots and perform combat missions. The maximum take–off weight of the aircraft is 11900 kg, the wingspan is 12.44 m, the maximum flight range is 2600 km (with two outboard fuel tanks), the practical ceiling is 16 thousand m. The L–15 is equipped with AI–222-25F engines of the Ukrainian company Motor Sich and is capable of a maximum speed of 1.4 M. The aircraft is equipped with 9 weapon suspension points and can carry a combat load with a total weight of up to 3,500 kg.
