Posted on 11/01/2016 1:08:41 PM PDT by Yo-Yo
As expected, the J-20 stealth fighter made its public debut at the Zhuhai Air Show today. Thought the Chinese government has largely kept silent about the J-20 over its last half decade of flight tests, a pair of the jets went screaming high over the runway at Jinwan Airport before splitting up via a dramatic cross-over break. Then a single J-20 came back for more passes, climbs and turns.
Although some spectators may have been a little disappointed that the display did not last longer, or feature a wider flight envelope and aircraft configuration changes (such as a flyby with its weapons bay doors open), there is no doubt that the J-20 has finally arrived on the world stage. Both aircraft wore an overall metallic gray scheme, not the splinter style gray camouflage that has been flying on some early production examples of the type.
Even with its abbreviated routine, the flyby still offered some of the best views of the big delta-canard planform jet, as you can see below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=If2QpImw6Bk
The air show and international arms expo also featured China’s premier flight demonstration squadron—the J-10-flying August 1st Aerobatic Team. Underlining the increasingly close military relationship between Moscow and Beijing, Russia sent two of its own flight demonstration teams, the Su-27-flying Russian Knights and the MiG-29-equipped Swifts. The UK also sent its famous Red Arrows to China as part of their Asian tour, in what was seen as a historic visit.
Among other aircraft, another highlight of the exhibition was China’s Xian Y-20 transport. Now in production, the cargo jet made its first appearance two years ago at Zhuhai in a pre-production configuration.
Also on display were various weapon systems available for export, including the Wing Loong II—China’s take on the turboprop-powered American MQ-9 Reaper. The Wing Loong I is similar to the lighter American MQ-1 Predator, and has garnered good export success, especially to middle eastern countries. A jet-powered unmanned combat aircraft similar to General Atomics Avenger/Predator C was also on display for the first time, although photos of the aircraft have been floating around for some time. The aircraft is supposedly named “Cloud Shadow.”
China’s massive new amphibian, the AG-600, was present at Zhuhai as well. Wearing its smart new paint job, the big boat-hulled transport is clearly a focus of pride for China, as the unique aircraft was designed and built indigenously. Though Chinese officials are quick to point out the aircraft’s many civilian and humanitarian uses, its military utility is undeniable—especially considering China’s extra-territorial expansion in the South China Sea and other remote island claims in the Pacific region.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VqcgLPOWhvM
Though it appeared two years ago, China’s “other” stealth fighter, the Shenyang J-31, was absent at this year's show. The J-31 is seen as a lower-end low-observable fighter that China could eventually use in a high-low strategic mix alongside the J-20. It is also clearly an aircraft that China hopes to export to countries who lust for a stealthy aircraft, but either cannot afford or are not allowed access to the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. There is even talk that the J-31 may be navalized, eventually becoming the mainstay of China’s supposed future CATOBAR carrier force.
The absent J-31 is a bit puzzling, as showing off two stealth fighters instead of one would have sent a powerful message to potential foes, industrial competitors and arms buyers alike. There have been hints the J-31 program may be morphing significantly as it moves from prototype to a pre-production configuration, although China’s interest in fielding the fighter is still unknown and a major export partner may still be needed to get the jet into operational form.
Now that China has unleashed its prized super-fighter before the masses, expect to see and hear much more about it. It is thought that the type is in low-rate initial production, and going by the way China handles military aircraft development, it will likely be fielded to its first operational squadron soon. The jet’s screaming arrival at Zhuhai also comes alongside reports that a larger, more stealthy version of the aircraft may be in the works. At the very least, a design concept for the larger jet has existed since at least 2013.
Contact the author Tyler@thedrive.com
Clone Wars
ALL stolen technology. The Chinese steal then copy everything.
Is China by these military improvements planning on a war?
Something else we should thank the Clintons for?
Fairly decent copies of our stuff. We have given them the technology to build such things by sending all our manufacturing to them. It’s going to bite us in the butt and our children will suffer for it.
Long range interceptor/strike aircraft. Ideal for being an AWACS killer.
Chinese knockoff of the US C-17. Isn't it nice how Boeing gave China the ability to build comparable aircraft. This is the capitalists selling the rope.
Sell them stuff but NOT composite designs and materials, so while their aircraft may look like ours, they are ages behind.
IF it lives long enough to get within shooting range. . .
Hey, look at that! The Chinese are imitating twenty-year old USAF tech!
We better be careful or they’re going to copy the 1997 Ford Ranger!
You are ABSOLUTELY wrong!
The Clintons did not allow this technology to be stolen.
They sold it.
Perhaps of interest, gents. The Chinese certainly have been keeping busy.
sorry, I was off a bit! LOL
Underestimate Chinese tech at your own peril. :)
They own the most powerful computer in the world, and they also tape out and manufacture the bulk of the technology we Americans consume.
I expect the greatest espionage effort in history was creating inexpensive manufacturing for American high-tech and giving their engineers access to our intellectual property.
It’s very Sun Tzu - They have effectively used our capitalism against us, knowing full well we’d gladly hand the keys to our kingdom over to them if they just produced our tech cheaper.
I hope you are right. It would be easy to make something that looks stealthy rather than having the actual capability.
The canopy frame would detract from stealthiness. It has wing actuator fairings for the trailing control surfaces. The RAM coating is hard to analyze visually but some pictures show a flat gray lustre which could raise questions about RAM composition.
The round exhaust nozzles raise questions about thrust vectoring too, but could be copies of Russian steerable turkey feathers for thrust vectoring. The plane has an extreley long beam with split twin vertical stabilizers. I suspect the lower component is a strake while the upper component is steerable. It appears if that is the case, the verticals are small for the job and it may have some severe lateral stability issues especially when maneuvering under hi G loads.
This plane could well be for national pride more than effectivenss in a Gen 5 environment. The Iranians have been doing something similar with the mock-ups like their drone, miniature aircraft carrier and cloned missile launches. This may all be for internal consumption,
Hell, we stole them from the Germans, who we stole from Germany after the war. Just about every plane built has been a variation of Ze Germans planes. This country was built on the best and brightest from Caucasian countries. Now we are bringing in the dimmest and backwards of the brown people. Like many people have gone on record saying, if America falls, the dark ages come right behind.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.