Chinese party mouthpieces have been set into operation, playing up the might of the J-20, the People’s Liberation Army Air Force’s fifth-generation “air supremacy” stealth fighters. But some papers have gone a bit overboard, suggesting the planes are capable of swift deployment on the Liaoning, the PLA’s first aircraft carrier, and the second carrier that is expected to undergo sea trials shortly.
That assertion, obviously a step too far, has received some derisive reactions from professional observers at home and abroad, so much so that state broadcaster CCTV has to rectify matters.
In a program aired on its International Mandarin channel, PLA Rear Admiral Zhang Zhaozhong, also a well-known military commentator, admitted that putting J-20 on carriers was rather “contrived”, as the fighters were never designed to be carrier-based aircraft.
“J-20’s structural design and components are all intended for use as a land-based warplane and thus its structural strength may not have been reinforced for take-off from or landing on a carrier, as in these circumstances the plane would have to withstand huge counterforce and inertia,” Zhang said.
Nor are J-20’s wings foldable, to enable it to be parked in the hangar below the carrier’s flight deck, as space is always at a premium on a sea-going airbase.
Unlike the F-35 Lightning IIs, J-20 may not need to be maintained in a hangar with a constant temperature and humidity, as revealed in a previous CCTV report. Yet its delicate stealth coatings may be rendered dysfunctional when exposed to an offshore environment with high salinity and high humidity.
Still, the J-15 carrier-based fighters have entered mass production after technicians for Aviation Industry Corp of China reportedly took just two months to solve technical hurdles, paving the way for the fighter’s successful arrested landing tests in November 2012, just months after the Liaoning was inaugurated.
The J-15 has twelve external hardpoints for munitions including air-to-air, anti-ship and anti-radar missiles, and can cruise at a maximum speed of 2.4 Mach (2,940 kilometers an hour) with a range of 3,500 km and maximum takeoff weight of 32.5 tons.
This year the Liaoning returned to the South China Sea after it was initially deployed in the western Pacific. The carrier conducted a series of take-off and landing drills with its J-15 fighters, following a fatal accident in 2016 in which a J-15 crashed during a simulated carrier landing.
Analysts say the J-15 is almost on par with the US Navy’s Grumman F-14 Tomcat supersonic, twin-engine fighter aircraft. The Tomcat was retired from service in September 2006, having been supplanted by the Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet.
J15 IS NOT ON PAR WITH F14! J15 was initially rejected by PLA Navy because it was not performing as advertised. J15 can only takeoff with 1/4 of designed bomb load due to lack of catapults on carrier.
The J15 is a copy of an SU-27, and so is comparable to an F15, or the old F14.
Perry Kamath Pakistan hove no J-15 only JF-17s. J-15 is far superior to the JF-17s that Pakistan are building and Myanmar already operate the JF-17s
Funny… I’ve never read from Chinese news sources that was "playing up the might of the J-20". It’s only the neo-libtard, butt licking articles that always try to belittle Chinese this or that… like this article! 😀 And China doesn’t reference the J-20 as a fifth generation fighter; they’ve always described the J-20 as a fourth generation fighter. It’s really sad how the western media distorts the truth with so much BS! lol… …
Mmh, I was eagerly waiting for some butthead to give a negative comment and boom, right there. These aircrafts are superior, no kidding. The Chinese done good in a few decades after others did such in centuries. Am proud of them.
Perry kamath, yes Pakistan is building JF-17s not J-15s and for your information a number of countries has shown interest in these machines because of its impressive performance vs affordability. Mayanmar has taken its deliveries and order of Nigeria is on the production lines. Apart from that Egypt,Azerbaijan, Sirilanka and Saudi Arabia will be its potential operators in near future as MoUs are already been signed between the concern parties.
Comfort food… comfort food for little neo-libtards of this world.. 😉
Perhaps, you are better informed than I am. Thanks!
Fine to play with one’s little brother just a wee ways below if it serves to make one feel that much more secure but…
J-20, my opinion, is an F-111 of the Darth Vader’s class — in other words, a long range nuclear strike bomber of the Aarvark gist.
Any aeronautics engineer would tell you almost instantly that the J-20’s almost missile-like configure is designed for speed and not for air superiority.
J-20 was designed to super-cruise long ranges, undetected, deliver it cargo, and run like hell outta there.
For air superiority, try J-10C, J-16 (= Su-35 with a PLAAF touch), J-31 definitely, and other breeds now on the exploratory stages.
Pakistan is building but not designing and developing these machine.
There is a huge difference.
My opinion on the J-20:
J-10C, http://n.sinaimg.cn/mil/8_img/upload/e1815041/20171113/KEIp-fynshev5699783.jpg ; powered by WS-10 ( maybe WS-15 https://tiananmenstremendousachievements.wordpress.com/tag/WS-15-engine/ to bring it to warpspeed with the top dogs of the West and of Russia ); cloaking-substrates of the mellennium; 11 hardpoints compatible with the best of Chinese arsenals; APAR radar; and, evil kanevil daredevils both male female who live for the excitement of ACE Combat Tom Cruise fashion makes for a deadly combination.
No J-20 needed to deal any Su-57 class fighters…
😉
Perry ,,, you need to do homework before. you make any comments or else your info. may misleading some guys. over here.