Originally appeared at ZeroHedge
Last week, Beijing’s fifth-generation stealth jets displayed a dazzling fifteen-minute performance at Airshow China 2018. The jets wowed more than 20,000 spectators by performing combat maneuvers in Zhuhai, South China’s Guangdong Province.
Two of the four J-20 stealth jets opened their missile bay doors during the presentation, according to new images in a South China Morning Post report. Each plane showed four medium- and long-range missiles in its central bays and a short-range missile on both sides of the aircraft.
In a Xinhua video, the stunning performance lasted roughly one minute, as the stealth jets showed thousands of spectators the exotic weapons mounted inside the bays.
Xu Anxiang, deputy commander of the People’s Liberation Army Air Force, said the demonstration last week indicates that the J-20 “has the initial operational capability.”
However, it remains a mystery whether the J-20 is capable of launching missiles in high-speed flight.
“The capability to open bay doors during a high-speed fly-past is still a challenging and advanced technology and capability, because even Russia’s new-generation Su-57 stealth fighter jet is still incapable of doing it,” a military insider who requested anonymity told the South China Morning Post.
The report specifies that only the US Air Force’s F-22 Raptor and F-35 Lightning II stealth jets are the only fifth-generation jets to be combat proven with opening missile bay doors and launch capabilities at high-speed flight.
The Global Times, citing Chinese military experts, said “the move displayed the J-20’s superiority” over America’s stealth jets, and increased the confidence of the People’s Liberation Army to safeguard the South China Sea with high-tech planes, a move that has Washington worried.
Chinese experts also said the F-22 is outdated technology and the F-35 is full of defects. Song Zhongping, previously commented that “the J-20 will engage with rivals in the future who dare to provoke China in the air,” which means there is a strong possibility that fifth-generation stealth jets from China and the US could fight it out over the South China Sea.
While the J-20 has participated in war games, the plane, unlike its American counterparts, has never seen actual combat.
The plane does not meet all requirements for a true fifth-generation fighter, and its inferior engine technology is a massive drag on performance. The aircraft is expected to receive a new engine, but it remains unreliable in static tests, indicating, for now, the J-20 relies on Russia for its engine technology.
It seems China has somewhat mastered the field of cutting-edge aviation technology that was once dominated by the US. It is only a matter of time before the J-20 receives a new engine and is deployed across the South China Sea.
I wonder if this aircraft is just a diversion from the real holy grail, radar and SAM systems capable of tracking US stealth aircraft. Maybe the Russians and Chinese use the J-20 and SU-57 as distractions for what they’ve really accomplished, or are very close to, being able to defeat stealth. If or once that happens, who still needs aircraft with limited internal payloads?
Russia and China are not close to defeating stealth, they can defeat stealth. BUT, America can’t defeat stealth, so it makes sense for Russia and China to build stealth aircraft, until the US develops the technology.
No, why would it make sense? To build a stealth aircraft, development cost skyrocket. Stealth is also only achieved by scrutinizing the aircraft’s flight stability, which need to be compensated by computer aided flight controls. And stealth does not mean invisibility. It is just a form of postpone detection to a closer range to target. To maintain stealth, weapons need to be stored in closed weapon bays, which reduces the amount of weaponry to be transported. Overall the benefits don’t supersede the disadvantages. From a tactical perspective some stealth planes make sense, but not shifting to an all out stealth fleet.
Well said
OK, obviously you know more about it than the US Russian and Chinese aircraft designers, but your statement “Stealth is also only achieved by scrutinizing the aircraft’s flight stability,” puzzles me, how does inspecting the aircraft’s flight stability make it stealthy? From what I have read it’s about the shape size and angles of the aircraft, but I’m not an aircraft designer, and don’t really understand the math behind Rayleigh scattering. As for an all out stealth fleet, I don’t really know where you got that from, China has many non stealthy planes.
Stealth is merely a radical design prioritization – the design brief is based on the absolute prioritization of reduced radar cross sections and heat signatures. However, this design prioritization, and the compromises needed to achieve it, do not actually correspond very well with most basic of flight principles based on fluid dynamics and flow. That is, the radical design prioritization of stealth, and its impact on air-frame and flight surfaces, grossly compromises the most basic elements of flight – stability and maneuverability. This is why stealth air-frames require such vast computing power onboard – to actually plot and make constant corrections to the unstable mass in pitch and roll. Stealth is a purely military based brief in air-frame design – it has no viable purpose beyond its military application – as it actually compromises basic flight.
“”””This is why stealth aircraft require such vast computing power onboard – to actually plot and identify required corrections for an unstable mass in pitch and roll.”””
Maybe on the B2 the flying wing, the F22 is quite aerodynamic, F35 far less.
F-117/B2/F-35 are dynamic logs with tech to compensate – agree the F-22 is interesting case. As the original contract competitor the F-23 was likely more stealthy, but the USAF was concerned about its maneuverability limitations in any potential direct combat – it was deemed primarily a BVR warplane and that spooked USAF at time. Thus the F-22 won out as was deemed the more stable and maneuverable competitor – just in case some combat versatility required. Which brings own questions – just how stealthy is the F-22 really – it is certainly less than F-23, thus the stealth prioritization was at least partially dialed down in the design brief.
https://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/how-france-shot-down-americas-stealth-f-22-raptor-25212
If the stealth aircraft in question was to be a sniper, engaging enemies from BVR, maneuverability should not have been the primary issue, since F22’s do not like to get into knife fights. It I said a shame to design an expensive aircraft and limit it’s role to only BVR engagements. Maybe F23 would have been better for sole BVR engagements provided it got some new air to air weapons.
That Black Widow was a sexy bird, pitty it didnt see its day in the sun, from what we know of course.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_-OqCJ34WE
Agreed, in the future the F22 for all its maintenance issues will be regarded as the last good American war plane.
To some degree, actually F22 did not prove itself in combat against peer enemies, in Syria the Russians used ROE that nullified their “supposed” situational awareness and out maneuvered behind them. F22 was designed to counter known Suk 27 and MiG 29 capabilities at the time, since then the Suk platform evolved significantly, while the F22 stagnated. To make things worse, the F22 does not have sophisticated and proven missiles for BVR combat, to utilize of the stealth advantages that allows them to see their enemy from 200kms, and set the stage of and parameters of the battle.
Any of these planes has no stable aerodynamics, and is not able to glide to a safe landing. Without thrust from their jet engine, their flight characteristic is close to that of a stone. No landing without thrust is foreseen in the manual. In such case the proposed action for the crew is to bail out.
The Russians have used Plasma stealth for years allowing even WWII era Bear bombers to become low vis with full missile load outs, also the long wave radars also WWII era are capable of detecting stealth fighters let alone the passive systems now available https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/43c9dd8139933aa2975bd319211e3b11408776ab39049a6e5c32c3ffe440348c.jpg
today is obsolete this way
It’s a good idea to have as many means of defence as possible, to be able to overcome an attack which is necessarily selective. Ground based anti-aircraft systems have to go somewhere and an aircraft based system can go anywhere. it looks like we’re back to zone fighters and interceptors like in the 1930s, just not all in the air.
i wont really call the J20 stealth its just a plastic version of the MiG1.44 (witch was a actually good aircrft)
It was a prototype.
I thought Boeing was the only company building plastic planes?
no China builds more of them infact evry part of their aircarf is bad……their are so shit they cant fly more then 100h without them burning up……
Dear oh dear, and Boeing claims they lead the world with the 787 plastic(composite) plane. Thanks for letting me know it’s just more American grandstanding.
….plastic=/=composite carbon fiber is not a polimer xD
The Dreamliner is made from carbon fibre reinforced epoxy resin, and epoxy is a polymer.
“The company is providing its trademarked Torayca 3900-series highly toughened carbon fiber-reinforced epoxy prepreg for the 787’s primary structure”
https://www.compositesworld.com/articles/boeing-787-update
that still dosent make it plastic m8 xD
Of course they can detect stealth, Boeing developed the technology to prove their competitor, LM is not that stealthy, US Marine has the technology already.
Name the radar system?
BS’r
I don’t know when you say that Russia and China can “defeat stealth” that detecting stealth and making a missile that can lock on it are different things. Though I don’t remember that it had read a name for the toy that detects stealth.
you are soooo wrong
this is just a bad copy of the MiG 1.44
I disagree with the bad bit, but – https://sputniknews.com/military/201611021047001359-china-j20-russia-mig-144/
Russia now dominates the world in aircraft and missile design, they are decades ahead of the US, and the gap is growing.
Sorry but I know that, so what are you on about ?.
Daniel Miller stated “this is just a bad copy of the MiG 1.44” and I just linked an article stipulating the same or similar thing.
I was agreeing with you.
Oh sorry, I am just used to ……
The J20 is very heavy and weak engines to compensate for that also lets not forget it has the aerodaynamics of a brick.
The British helped the Americans design planes and engines in WWII. At the beginning of WWII the American technology was very backward, but with the help of the British, and German prisoners forced into labour for the US after the war, the US went on to become a major aircraft designer/manufacturer.
China is like America was, and will become a leader, as America once was, it’s evolution in Asia and devolution in North America.
Only problem is Russia did not share the tech and the Chinese stole it as always but they will never acheave the level of quality and performance the originals will i mean just look at how pathetic their jet engine programs are……they can copy all they want but they still use Russian made engines since their own are so crap and burn out after 100h of flight and lets not forget their only strategic bombers are the H6K models…….you know the TU-16 ripoff.
no
Really? I must be blind then……https://hushkit.files.wordpress.com/2018/01/j-20-mig-144.jpg?w=830
The F-22 has never seen combat with even near-peer adversaries.
The F-35 never will, because it’s hot garbage.
Here’s a Rafale taking out an F22 in a simulated dogfight. It doesn’t get interesting until 2 minutes 20 seconds, unless you speak french, but the Rafale gets a missile lock on the F22.
https://youtu.be/oGuWadoTgkE
in a simulated dogfight
in a simulated…
in real combat never took out any nato planes f-22. they were not able to recognize them, russians are also not able,. during military exercises, in saria too, f-22 flies in semi-stealth stage.
Semi stealth, is that like semi pregnant?
no, the activate this thing (i dont remeber thge name) in f-22. this is after incident during nato exercise, when one norwegian plane almost crashed with f-22, because was not able to recognize it.
well. you should search PHODIR in goo´gle, and have a look here: https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/stealth-killer-russias-sixth-generation-fighter-might-have-radio-photonic-radar-25361
the key word: -might-have
MIGHT
russians has nothing