Another possibility is that the fighters the US sells to Taiwan could become the asset of the Chinese Army, if Taiwan is united with the mainland.
According to China’s plan, Beijing will unify Taiwan by 2030. If that happens, the new-generation fighters that the US sells to Taiwan, will help China research and reverse engineering. Technological secrets will no longer America’s advantage in a potential war.
Even if these situations are not possible, the sale of the F-35 to Taiwan is also an opportunity for China, to study, due to the proximity of the distance from Taiwan to the mainland. China had purchased from Russia the S-400 advanced air defense system. It uses the 92N6E multi-mode radar, capable of detecting targets at a range of 600 km, completely covering Taiwan and surrounding waters.
Although the F-35 is stealthy and cannot be detected by the 92N6E radar at long range, at a distance of less than 250 km, it will provide the PLA with ample opportunities to study the configuration of the F-35. The information collected over time will be very useful against the F-35 in the future. It will even be shared with Russia and North Korea.
In contrast to the F-35 and high-end F-15 variants, the F-16’s design does not possess highly sensitive technologies, even when upgraded to the F-16V standard.
To be sure, China has carefully studied the Pakistani F-16 design, as well as the experience of its pilots. Pakistan’s F-16, which is believed to play a key role in the J-10 design of China and the JF-17 of the China-Pakistan joint venture.
Notably, the engine of the F-16V is not too different from the engines of the standard F-16 models, which are in service with the Pakistani Air Force. These engines are completely different from those of the F-16 that the US sells to the UAE or is offering to India. Regarding the F-16V’s avionics system, according to experts, there is nothing outstanding and superior to the fighters that the Chinese Air Force owns such as the J-10C, J-16 and J-20.
