China has unveiled its long-awaited new stealth fighter, an aircraft seen as part of Beijing’s attempt to match America’s advanced combat capabilities.
The land-based version of the Chinese Air Force’s J-35A made its public debut on Tuesday at the Zhuhai Air Show in southern China, Reuters reports.
The warplane is “designed mainly for air combat operations and can also carry out air-to-ground attacks,” according to a report by a newspaper linked to the Chinese military.
If the aircraft is put into service, it would make China the second country after the US to have two types of stealth fighter jets, according to experts cited by Chinese state media.
China’s J-20 stealth fighter entered service in 2017, officials said at the time.
Stealth fighters are those designed to evade radar and other surveillance in order to carry out missions without being detected or intercepted.
The J-35 is likely to be designed as a series and could also be used as an aircraft carrier in the future, Chinese military expert Li Li told state broadcaster CCTV.
This would “greatly improve China’s overall combat power at sea and in the air,” she said.
Carl Schuster, former director of operations at the US Pacific Command’s Joint Intelligence Center, said the J-35A, which has been in development for more than 10 years, is likely destined for the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy.
“The J-35 made its first flight in 2021, but as a derivative of an earlier prototype, it could be ready for production early next year,” Schuster said, adding that the J-35A model is likely an improvement over that earlier design with more powerful engines.
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China’s development of stealth fighters has been dogged for years by accusations that it stole key stealth fighter technology from the US.
Beijing strongly denied these claims, which came to light with the publication of a German magazine in 2015. Der Spiegel documents allegedly leaked by Edward Snowden from the US National Security Agency.