Bangladesh plans to buy 20 Chinese J-10CE jets in USD 2.2 billion deal: Report

Dhaka, Oct 7 (PTI) Bangladesh plans to purchase 20 Chinese-made J-10CE fighter jets at an estimated cost of USD 2.2 billion, a media report said on Tuesday.

The deal will also cover training, maintenance, and other related expenses, The Business Standard newspaper reported, citing the government documents.

Bangladesh would receive the fighter jets during 2026 and 2027 to “modernise the Bangladesh Air Force and strengthen national air defence,” it added.

No official announcement on the deal has been made yet, but the paper said it reviewed official documents related to the procurement that also suggested that payments for the jets would be spread across 10 fiscal years, up to 2036.

When asked by reporters for comments on the report, finance adviser Salehuddin Ahmed said, "I won't make any comment on this matter." "Just because I know something, does that mean I have to reveal everything?” he said.

The reports said the J-10CE is the export variant of China's J-10C, which is already in service with the Chinese air force. Pakistan has said its air force used Chinese J-10C jets during the four-day military conflict with India in May.

The paper said that Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus's office estimated the base price of each aircraft at USD 60 million, or USD 1.2 billion for the fleet, while training, equipment, and freight would cost another USD 820 million.

"With insurance, VAT, agency commissions, civil works, and ancillary costs, the total climbs to USD 2.20 billion,” the paper added.

In March, the chief adviser's office said that Yunus had discussed the purchase of combat aircraft during his visit to China, which responded positively to the proposal.

Security analyst Maj Gen (retd.) ANM Muniruzzaman, who heads the private Bangladesh Institute of Peace and Security Studies think-tank, said the air force had long planned to acquire new fighters but stressed that the matter remains at the evaluation stage.

"A new kind of geopolitical divide has formed in the world today, so the geopolitical impact must be analysed before buying aircraft from any country," he said.

According to warpowerbangladesh.com, the Bangladesh Air Force operates 212 aircraft, including 44 fighter jets, of which 36 are Chinese-made F-7s.

The BAF comprises both fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft, blending Cold War-era and contemporary types, but its primary fighter mount remains the ageing F-7, while eight MiG-29B multirole fighters provide a more modern capability.

A small fleet of Russian Yak-130 aircraft is used in the light attack role. PTI AR ZH ZH