The Chengdu J-20 (Chinese: 歼-20; pinyin: Jiān-Èrlíng), also known as Mighty Dragon (Chinese: 威龙; pinyin: Wēilóng), is a twinjet all-weather stealth fighter aircraft developed by China's Chengdu Aerospace Corporation for the People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF). The J-20 is designed as an air superiority fighter with precision strike capability; it descends from the J-XX program of the 1990s. The aircraft made its maiden flight on 11 January 2011 and was officially revealed at the 2016 China International Aviation & Aerospace Exhibition. The aircraft entered service in March 2017 and began its combat training phase in September 2017. The first J-20 combat unit was formed in February 2018. The J-20 is the world's third operational fifth-generation stealth fighter aircraft after the F-22 and F-35.
Development[]
Origins[]
The J-20 emerged from the late-1990s J-XX program. In 2008, the PLAAF endorsed Chengdu Aerospace Corporation's proposal, Project 718; Shenyang's proposed aircraft was larger than the J-20. Chengdu had previously used the double-canard configuration in the J-9, its first design and cancelled in the 1970s, and the J-10.
In 2009, a senior PLAAF official revealed that the first flight was expected in 2010–11, with a service entry date by 2019. On 22 December 2010, the first J-20 prototype underwent high speed taxiing tests outside the Chengdu Aircraft Design Institute (CADI). Three months later, the first J-20 prototype made its maiden flight in Chengdu. The first prototype was painted with the number "2001". In May 2012, the second prototype took flight in the CADI facility.
Several changes were made to the third J-20 prototype numbered "2011", which made its maiden flight in March 2014. The new prototype showed increasing sophistication in design, including numerous subtle changes from the first two prototypes. The new airframe introduced modified diverterless supersonic inlet (DSI) intakes, stealth coating, streamlined underwing fairings, and redesigned vertical stabilizers. Analysts noted new equipment and devices for multi-role operations such as integrated targeting pods for precision-guided munition, and six additional passive infrared sensors can also be spotted around the aircraft.
In December 2015, the low-rate initial production (LRIP) version of J-20 was spotted by military observers. The LRIP aircraft revealed dielectric surfaces that were previously painted for prototypes, potentially containing various sensors or baked-in radar absorbing materials.
In October 2017, Chinese state media reported that the designs of the J-20 had been finalized and is ready for mass production as well as being combat-ready. In March 2018, Chinese military revealed other versions of the J-20 platform were being developed.
In January 2019, Chinese media reported that a twin-seat variant of the J-20 is rumored to be in development for use in tactical bombing, electronic warfare and carrier strike roles.
In November 2019, a J-20 painted in yellow primer coating was spotted during its flight testing by defense observers at the Chengdu Aerospace Corporation manufacturing facility. The aircraft is equipped with new variant of WS-10 Taihang engines with serrated afterburner a nozzle to enhance stealth. Report indicated Chengdu Aerospace Corporation terminated the manufacturing of J-20 with Russian engines in mid-2019.
Chinese media reported that a new variant of the J-20, the J-20B, was unveiled on July 8, 2020, and entered mass production the same day. The only change mentioned was that the J-20B was to be equipped with thrust vectoring control. Conflicting reports emerged regarding the exact engine type. Analyst Andreas Rupprecht expressed skepticism regarding the use of Russian engines on the J-20, as he believes that the J-20 is using a variant of the WS-10 which he called the WS-10C. This engine has improved thrust, stealthier serrated afterburner nozzles, and higher reliability, but it is not designed for thrust vectoring unlike the WS-10 TVC demonstrated on a J-10 at 2018 China International Aviation & Aerospace Exhibition. Analyst Jamie Hunter believed the new engine type is what he called WS-10B-3, a Chinese-made thrust-vectoring engine demonstrated on the 2018 Zhuhai Airshow.
A photo taken of a J-20 after air refueling.
In January 2021, South China Morning Post reported that China will replace Russian engines on the J-20 stealth fighter with a type of Chinese engine called WS-10C. In June 2021, Chinese media confirmed that an aviation brigade is assigned with the enhanced J-20A variant that integrates domestic WS-10C engines. Despite the replacement, WS-10C is considered another interim solution before Xian WS-15 passes evaluations. Moreover, WS-10C will not be equipped on the J-20B, the thrust-vectoring version of J-20 that entered mass production in 2019, which still required further testing. Overall, Chinese engineers believe WS-10C is comparable with AL-31F in performance, and the replacement would also reduce China's dependency on Russian engines. The WS-10C-powered J-20 was officially showcased to the public on 28 September 2021 at Zhuhai Airshow.
The development of a twin-seater variant was hinted by J-20's chief designer in 2019. In January 2021, Aviation Industry Corporation of China released computer renderings of the twin-seat variant of the J-20 fighter in celebration of the 10th anniversary of the jet’s maiden flight. In February 2021, a South China Morning Post infographic depicted a twin-seat J-20 variant powered by thrust vectoring WS-10C. In October 2021, a taxiing prototype, dubbed J-20S by analysts, was spotted near Chengdu Aerospace Corporation facilities, making J-20S the first-ever two-seat stealth fighter. The twin-seat design allows the possibility for the second operator to coordinate attacks and reconnaissance missions from other friendly aircraft via networking or unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAVs) linked via "loyal wingman" systems and sensors. The advantage for a second operator includes the potential for better interpreting and exploiting the enormous sensory data that could overload the limited cognitive and processing capacity for a single human, especially in a contested air combat environment.
A J-20 with afterburners.
Deployment[]
On 12 December 2016, at least six J-20s were observed in PLAAF air bases, with tail numbers 78271-78276 identified. Another six were believed ready to be delivered by end of Dec 2016. On 9 March 2017, Chinese media revealed that the J-20 had entered service in the Chinese air force, making China the second country in the world—after the United States—and the first in Asia to field an operational fifth-generation stealth aircraft. Chinese National Defense Ministry confirmed the service status in September 2017. It is anticipated that frontline units could be equipped with the low observable combat aircraft before 2020.
Design and Weaponry[]
Design[]
A J-20 showcasing maneuverability by performing a post stall maneuver.
The J-20 has a long and blended fuselage, with a chiseled nose section and a frameless canopy. Immediately behind the cockpit are low-observable diverterless supersonic inlet (DSI) intakes. All-moving canard surfaces with pronounced dihedral are placed behind the intakes, followed by leading edge extensions merging into the delta wing with forward-swept trailing edges. The aft section has twin outward canted all-moving fins, short but deep ventral strakes, and conventional or low-observable engine exhausts.
One important design criterion for the J-20 is high instability. This requires sustained pitch authority at a high angle of attack, in which a conventional tail-plane would lose effectiveness due to stalling. On the other hand, a canard can deflect opposite to the angle of attack, avoiding stall and thereby maintaining control. A canard design is also known to provide good supersonic performance, excellent supersonic and transonic turn performance, and improved short-field landing performance compared to the conventional delta-wing design.
Leading edge extensions and body lift are incorporated to enhance performance in a canard layout. This combination is said by the designer to generate 1.2 times the lift of an ordinary canard delta, and 1.8 times more lift than an equivalent-sized pure delta configuration. The designer claims such a combination allows the use of a smaller wing, reducing supersonic drag without compromising transonic lift-to-drag characteristics that are crucial to the aircraft's turn performance.
The use of a bubble canopy, extensive flight-control surfaces, and canard configuration for angle-of-attack control indicates J-20's intention to operate in air-superiority missions and within-visual-range engagements. Chief test pilot Li Gang describes the J-20 as having comparable maneuverability to the Chengdu J-10 while being significantly better at low-observable (LO) performance. The J-20 is a multirole air superiority fighter, with the interceptor role being just one of the options.
Avionics and Cockpit[]
The J-20 avionics aim to obtain situational awareness through advanced sensor fusion while denying situational awareness to the adversary through stealth and electronic warfare. The J-20 features an integrated avionic suite consisting of multi-spectral sensors capable of providing omnidirectional coverage. Official information on the type of radar that J-20s use has not yet been released publicly. Some analysts believed that J-20s used Type 1475 (KLJ-5) active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar with 1856 transmit/receive modules, but more recent information revealed that this radar was designed for upgraded versions of the J-11D. Other analysts point out that, based on the nose cross-section of the J-20 and known data about a single transmit/receive module surface in the J-16's AESA radar-system, J-20s likely contain 2000–2200 transmit/receive modules.
A famous Dogfight in 2036 of a J-20 fighting a retired American F-22A Raptor.
Prototypes after application "2011" and production models feature a revised nose section with an electro-optical/infra-red targeting system and an advanced communications suite on top of the aircraft, enabling it to datalink with other friendly platforms in service, such as airborne early-warning drones. Six electro-optic sensors called the Distributed Aperture System (similar to EODAS) can provide omnidirectional coverage for the pilot with a sensor fusion system combining the radar signal with the IR image to provide better situational awareness. The combination of an integrated targeting pod with a spherically-located passive-optical tracking system is reported, similar to the design concept of Lockheed Martin F-35's avionic suite. Beijing A Star Science and Technology has developed the EOTS-86 electro-optical targeting system and Electro-Optical Distributed Aperture System for the J-20, and potentially for other PLAAF fighters, to detect and intercept stealth aircraft.
The aircraft features a fully-digital glass cockpit with one primary large color liquid-crystal display (LCD) touchscreen, three smaller auxiliary displays, and a wide-angle holographic heads-up display (HUD). The size of the primary LCD screen is 610 mm × 230 mm (24 in × 9 in), 650 mm (25.63 in) diagonal size, with two illumination systems for operational redundancy. The aircraft is fitted with a helmet-mounted display (HMD) system, which displays combat information inside the pilots' helmet visor and facilities firing missiles at high off-boresight angle.
A J-20 with weapon doors open at night.
Weaponry[]
The main weapon bay is capable of housing both long-range air-to-air missiles (AAM; PL-12, PL-15 – PL-21) and precision-guided munitions (PGM; LS-6/50, LS-6/100), while the two smaller lateral weapon bays behind the air inlets are intended for short-range AAMs (PL-10). These side bays allow closure of the bay doors prior to firing the missile, enhancing stealth and allowing the missile to be fired in the shortest possible time. The J-20 reportedly lacks an internal autocannon or rotary cannon, suggesting the aircraft is not intended for use in short-range dogfight engagements with other aircraft but to engage from long standoff ranges with missiles such as the PL-15 and PL-21. The J-20 will likely use air-to-air missiles to engage in air superiority combat with other aircraft and to destroy high-value airborne assets. Supplemental missions may include launching anti-radiation missiles and air-to-ground munitions for precision-strike missions.
While the fighter typically carries weapons internally, the wings include four hardpoints for auxiliary fuel tanks to extend the ferrying range. However, much like the F-22, the J-20 is unlikely to carry fuel tanks on combat missions due to its vulnerability in such a configuration; the value of this configuration is relevant to such peacetime operations as transiting between airbases. The fighter is able to carry four medium/long-range AAMs in the main bay and one short-range missile in each lateral weapon bay. A staggered arrangement of six PL-15s is possible for potential future missile rail launchers.
Variants[]
J-20A[]
J-20A is the first production variant of the J-20 platform. Flight testing began with prototypes in late 2010, with maiden flight in 2011. The variant entered serial production in October 2017.
J-20B[]
Improved J-20 variant with thrust-vectoring control (TVC) engines. The variant entered production on 8 July 2020.
J-20S[]
The twin-seat variant of J-20, named J-20S or J-20B by defense analysts, is a version of J-20 that is used by People's Liberation Army Navy. It is the first publicly produced twin-seat stealth fighter on Earth.
Service History[]
China[]
Primary operator of the Chengdu J-20
Various Southeast Asian Countries[]
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Many Southeast Asian countries also operate the export variant of the J-20.