Dhaka, December 8 - In a seismic shift that's rippling through South Asia's defense corridors, Bangladesh has pivoted decisively to China for its next-generation fighter jets, spurning high-stakes overtures from European powerhouses like France and Italy. The $2.2 billion deal, greenlit by Dhaka's interim government under Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus, centers on acquiring up to 20 Chengdu J-10CE multirole fighters, sleek 4.5-generation warbirds already proven in the arsenals of Pakistan and China's People's Liberation Army Air Force. This move, accelerating under Forces Goal 2030, isn't just about hardware; it's a bold recalibration of Bangladesh's airpower doctrine amid rising maritime tensions in the Bay of Bengal and the specter of obsolescent fleets. As negotiations with Beijing's AVIC finalize terms for training, spares, and phased deliveries by 2027, Dhaka's embrace of the J-10CE, armed with PL-15 long-range missiles and AESA radar, signals a pragmatic tilt toward cost-effective might over Western prestige.
The backstory reads like a geopolitical thriller, with Bangladesh's Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MRCA) quest dragging through a decade of tantalizing teases and abrupt U-turns. For years, the Bangladesh Air Force (BAF) courted Europe's elite: Dassault's Rafale, pitched during French President Emmanuel Macron's 2023 Dhaka visit, promised omnidirectional dominance but at a sticker shock of over $100 million per unit, burdened by lifecycle costs and export strings. Italy's Leonardo then dazzled with Eurofighter Typhoon demos in May 2025, ferrying BAF Chief Air Marshal Hasan Mahmood Khan for cockpit spins that showcased Captor-E radar supremacy in simulated dogfights against Chinese rivals. Yet, as whispers of a Typhoon-Rafale showdown peaked, political upheaval shattered the script. Sheikh Hasina's ouster in August 2024 via mass uprising halted talks, exposing the fragility of deals tied to a regime now exiled in India. European bids, once frontrunners, crumbled under fiscal scrutiny. Bangladesh's $60 million-per-jet J-10CE bargain offers interoperability with existing Chinese gear like F-7 interceptors, minus the political baggage of aligning too closely with NATO-adjacent suppliers.
At the heart of this pivot lies a chilling human toll that crystallized the urgency: the catastrophic FT-7BGI crash on July 21, 2025, in Dhaka's teeming Uttara district. Squadron Leader Rezwanul Haque, a decorated pilot with over 1,000 flight hours, gripped the controls of the twin-seat trainer during a routine sortie when the aging airframe, plagued by chronic engine failures and outdated avionics, betrayed him mid-climb. As the jet plummeted, witnesses later recounted Haque's desperate radio crackle: "Mayday, losing power, it's over." In those frozen seconds, his life flashed before his eyes, a montage of sunlit training runs over Cox's Bazar, his young daughter's laughter, the adrenaline of border patrols shadowing Rohingya smuggling routes. The aircraft slammed into Milestone School & College, erupting in a fireball that claimed 36 civilian lives on the ground, including 22 children. Haque ejected fractions before impact, parachuting into chaos, but his navigator perished in the inferno. The tragedy, the deadliest in BAF history, exposed the F-7's obsolescence, variants of Soviet MiG-21s from the 1970s, riddled with maintenance nightmares and safety lapses. For Haque, who survived with burns and survivor's guilt, it was a harrowing epiphany: Bangladesh's skies demanded not nostalgia, but renewal.
This J-10CE infusion doesn't just plug capability voids; it redefines regional chessboards, bolstering Dhaka's deterrence against Myanmar incursions and Indian encroachments while deepening Belt and Road ties with Beijing. Critics warn of over-reliance on Chinese tech, spare parts vulnerabilities, or strings-attached financing, but for a nation juggling floods, refugees, and fiscal belts, it's a calculated bet on survival. As the first J-10CEs touch down, Bangladesh's falcons will soar with renewed ferocity, a testament to hard choices in an era where air superiority isn't optional, it's existential.