Larch Dug Up An Interesting Piece ...

 ... on Chinese HQ-9 AD complex. In support of the facts in this piece you have to recall that during recent (few years ago) tensions around Taiwan with the US Navy maneuvering in the area, China moved all its available S-400s and its regiment of SU-35 closer to the coast. Mind you, this is all after non-stop claims that HQ-9 is better than S-400. I omit here this Su-35 saga. Here is this piece and huge thanks to our good friend Larch. 

The Chinese "S-400 competitor" turned out to be weak

Pakistan is dissatisfied with the performance of the HQ-9B complex, which was advertised in China as "more advanced than the Russian Triumph."

Local conflicts, such as the Indo-Pakistani war, are often particularly interesting because of these duels, where systems that were competing in peacetime find themselves on the front lines against each other. The Chinese anti-aircraft missile system, like the S-400, is based on the Soviet S-300PM system.

The first models were presented in the early 1990s, and since then, several modifications have been developed, each more advanced than the last. The latest model, with the letter "B" and an integrated AESA radar and digital combat control system, was introduced by the Chinese in 2021. It was positioned as a "more advanced competitor to the S-400," although the Chinese were the first to acquire the "Triumfs" and are now using them in the most critical areas. But what can not be said for the sake of marketing.

Many countries were quite satisfied with this relatively inexpensive alternative, and it has recently become one of the most exported high-tech products from China's military-industrial complex.

Pakistan acquired the HQ-9B in 2021. Its combat debut took place during the brief conflict in May. However, it was a bit of a misfire. The system managed to intercept some of the French SCALP-EG cruise missiles launched by the Rafales, but it was completely ineffective against the Russian-Indian BrahMos missiles, which caused significant damage to Pakistan's rear airfields.

Shortly after the end of the conflict, Islamabad requested more advanced HQ-19 systems from Beijing, and tried not to even discuss the operation of the HQ-9B. However, it is now revealed that behind this conspiracy of silence lay a deep disappointment with one of China's top air defense systems.

Pakistanis on military forums complained that the complex is highly susceptible to electronic warfare systems, and its missiles require constant target illumination, which in turn quickly attracts enemy anti-radar missiles.

At least one full battery protecting the key Nur Khan airbase was destroyed by Indian Rudram-1 anti-radar missiles. The Pakistani military also complained that the HQ-9B could only shoot down subsonic cruise missiles, even though the advertisement promised that all missiles, including hypersonic and quasi-ballistic missiles, would be shot down.

This example once again proves that the original is always better than a copy, especially when the developer of that copy uses the original Russian Triumph for their own urgent needs.

So, make your own conclusions. 

My, My, My...

The Wall Street Journal worries. To such a degree that it felt the need to write about Russia's "Checkmate" (presently also known as SU-75) and quote Rostec's big Honcho Sergey Chemezov. 

At Russia’s premier expo for military aircraft in July, Russian President Vladimir Putin inspected a prototype jet that is designed to take on more than enemy fighters. The lightweight stealth plane also is meant to cause geopolitical headaches for the U.S. The LTS Checkmate would be the world’s second single-engine fighter plane to incorporate the most sophisticated radar-evasion and command systems. The only other plane in this category, the F-35, manufactured by Lockheed Martin Corp. , is the most advanced plane in the U.S. arsenal. 

Chemezov flatly denies any geopolitical aspect to Checkmate, but he is just being polite--of course there is. While WSJ tries to put a positive spin on F-35 by making risible statements such as this:

The F-35 is in demand internationally, providing Washington a viable defense export that also helps advance U.S. security and diplomatic aims. Israel and Japan are among the 15 countries that have received the F-35 or reached agreements to buy it.

The 800-pound gorilla in the room cannot be ignored: F-35 which is a $100 million a pop combat failure loses outright on three (among very many) points:

1. It cannot fly properly, let alone supersonic, while you can bet your ass on Russian-made combat aircraft of any generation being able to fly, especially on the Izd. 30 engine with thrust vectoring. Do we need to go into discussing how Russian planes fly?

2. The issue of price. This is not even fair to compare. 

3. Let's drop this "Stealth" BS. Low or very low observability doesn't cloak you into "invisibility" bubble, especially against modern fused sensor suite on any modern combat aircraft, let alone modern AD systems. Turks can testify to it. 

So, yes, this Checkmate thing is designed to win market while providing a much better combat performance for a fraction of F-35 price. It is GEOPOLITICAL by default because it makes US clientele think twice about what they are buying from the US for their defense needs. Ask Germans, they acted geopolitically: 

Germany Doesn't Want the F-35 Stealth Fighter. The Bundestag made the announcement last week and comes as good news for the European multinational Airbus, which had affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

Germans wanted to keep manufacturing on the Continent. Plus, Germans made it patently clear in 2019 that rumors of F-35 "stealth" were grossly exaggerated. 

Stealthy no more? A German radar vendor says it tracked the F-35 jet in 2018 — from a pony farm. In the illustrious history of the F-35 fighter jet, add a pony farm outside Berlin as the place where one company claims the plane’s stealth cover was blown, writes Sebastian Sprenger for C4ISR.com.

While there are huge question regarding Europe's ability to compete across the whole spectrum of requirements for the modern warfare with the United States nominally, what one cannot deny is the fact that Europe's problems lie outside the classic nation-state (or military-political block) warfare and they are systemic in nature. Russia is not going to blow Europe to smithereens where she sells her hydrocarbons and even without it--what is Europe's value for Russia? Russians have their own problems with migration, albeit nowhere near as acute as in Europe, so, for now, at least, Europe will stick to her guns, so to speak, and will continue with her own Typhoon program. Those who will not, like Netherlands or Italy, they will have their hands twisted into buying F-35. 

But in the end, F-35 is itself a pure geopolitical tool, and always was, when one considers the US "credit history" with competition on international weapons markets. Turkey's precedent with purchasing of S-400 was a massive blow to American confidence and now India is under unstoppable pressure from the US to reverse her decision and, incidentally, a $5 billion contract with Russia for S-400s. In general, S-400, same as any updated S-300 series and other Russian air defense systems and F-35 are not "compatible" because they expose F-35 for what it is, a failure, and this is verboten in American "book". This is where it all crosses into the pure geopolitics and cash, a lot of it. This is not unique for the United States to "condition" the use of own weapons. Let me remind you: 

This all is in the open. It always was. Now, when former Soviet and Russian submariners also begin to talk, things get really complicated with the reputation of the America's weapon systems and enablers. If there is a field in which the United States really dropped the ball--it is a field of combat aviation. F-35 is a living proof of it and even massive America's spin machine and perception management "technology" cannot hide the fact of the United States losing a competition where it always claimed a leadership. In this case the appearance of a fighter which merely works for a fraction of the price of F-35, let alone being a very good combat aircraft, which, knowing Russia's propensity for producing good planes consistently, is highly probable, becomes a major geopolitical concern for the United States, because a shitload of money and prestige is at stake here. 

And the United States, certainly, doesn't know how to lose gracefully. Can you imagine a media circus when SU-57 will be offered for export, and it will be. 

P.S. For WSJ--learn the meaning of the word "advanced" when applied to warfare. Over-engineering and useless features do not apply to what makes things advanced. Combat effectiveness  does.