Gaijin have unfortunately already answered this in the J-8F’s devblog no less.
I’m not entirely sure why they didn’t stick to their original idea of keeping the PL-11 as a placeholder, seeing as plenty of aircraft in game already forgo historical accuracy in favour of balance, It could’ve easily been added until the PL-12 arrived alongside all the other BVRAAMs and then removed. I’m also not even sure the J-8F could carry the 6x PL-8s they decided to give it in real life, making the avoidance of historical inaccuracy pointless in the end. I could be wrong but I have yet to see evidence of such a loadout.
I would prefer and I know many others who play China would prefer the extra range of a decent medium range radar missile over the 6x PL-8s we currently have, but we are now apparently so close to BVRAAMs that it may not matter to the developers.
The difference is the F-16C has a radar and FCS compatible with AIM-7Ms, whereas the J-8F is not compatible with the PL-11. You really can’t wait 1-2 patches for it to get its PL-12s?
Issue with the statement about the J-8F receiving the PL-12 is that it won’t be getting it anytime soon, and by the time we receive the PL-12 I highly doubt this thing will even be played. Gaijin has done this countless of times and eventually the equipment promised for a vehicle doesn’t actually come.
Best we can do is complain about this double standards and hopefully this will be forwarded (like spall lining)
The difference is the F-16C has a radar and FCS compatible with AIM-7Ms, whereas the J-8F is not compatible with the PL-11. You really can’t wait 1-2 patches for it to get its PL-12s?
Many vehicles have placeholder equipment and armament, this isn’t just a “cope session”. The issue is how long will it take and by that time will the J-8F still be prevalent and if not what’s the point on adding the PL-12?
Same could be said about the Gripen C for Sweden and you still see people rightfully advocating it to be in Sweden as well. Players shouldn’t wait 5 months for a vehicle to be balanced and thinking so is very selfish.
Me posting this is both a placeholder and balance thing
That’s my point, what was the purpose in removing a fictional yet perfectly balanced weapon loadout, only to add a seemingly fictional loadout to replace it? It doesn’t make a huge amount of sense because as far as we know the J-8F couldn’t use either of these loadouts, so why give it the less balanced one which is in opposition to the actual roles of the aircraft.
That’s not the issue. The issue is it will NEVER get PL12s. Look at the Chinese f100 event vehicle, what did Gaijin say about its 9js? If you saw that, then you know j8’s PL12s are likely never to come.
Personally that’s why I’d rather see the J-8C. If I understand it correct the J-8C led to the J-8F and the J-8D led to the J-8H. So changing it to a J-8C would be basically just making it into a pseudo-prototype for the J-8F that it is currently
J8F will never fit the meta. Even when it gets pl12s the br will probably go higher and its airframe is heavily outdated compared to teh 4th gens with amraams it will be facing.
I mentioned above that it will be dead by the time we receive the PL-12, it will be best to receive the PL-11 now and give the PL-12 to another Chinese vehicle (like the J-11 or J-10).
J8F will never fit the meta. Even when it gets pl12s the br will probably go higher and its airframe is heavily outdated compared to teh 4th gens with amraams it will be facing.
Fr, the J-8F will be fighting F-15EXs by the time we receive the PL-12
Both loadouts stated cannot physically exist in real life without technical alterations, altering a pylon to fit and use a missile it never carried nor could use is no different to altering a radar to lead a missile it never interacted with.
Nowhere have I so far seen anyone claim that the PL-8 to have been used on the extra two pylons that gaijin have implemented it on in game. The idea of the J-8F holding and using 6x PL-8s is purely fictional, and purely by the design of Gaijin. The loadout of holding Two extra PL-8s is as fictional as the loadout of holding two PL-11s. Pylons are what connect the missile to the plane, and are just as important as the missiles themselves, they are not always interchangeable and most certainly not in this case.
