A mid-sized Chinese stealth fighter successfully completed its maiden flight Wednesday, giving the nation two different stealth fighters that approximate the capabilities of the two stealth fighters in the US arsenal.
China’s second stealth fighter, provisionally designated the J-31, took off at 10:32 a.m. from the runway of the Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) in the northeastern province of Liaoning, reported state-owned Global Times. It landed on the same runway 11 minutes later.
The J-31 is lighter and shorter than the J-20 heavy fighter, which made its first test flight on January 11, 2011. The J-31 tested is equipped with Russian mid-thrust engines but will later be equipped with Chinese-made WS-13 engines, according to UK-based Combat Aircraft Monthly.
“Just like the US F-22 and F-35 fifth-generation fighters, the J-20 and J-31 will complement each other during future operations,” said Bai Wei, former deputy editor of the Aviation World weekly.
“The J-31 is almost certainly designed with the intention to have the potential of operating on aircraft carriers, judging from its enhanced double-wheel nose landing gear and two big tail wings, which help increase vertical stability,” Bai added, noting that the J-31 might replace or supplement China’s first land-based fighter, the J-15, which was also developed by SAC.
Just as the first public flight of the Chengdu J-20 stealth fighter coincided with the visit of US Defense Secretary Robert Gates last January, the Shenyang J-31 was unveiled during the visit of current US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta in mid-September.
“China needs both heavy fighters and cheaper, smaller ones to defend its vast airspace,” said Bai. Its lower cost makes it suitable for export to developing nations, he added.
The second stealth fighter gives China only the second nation, after the US, to develop two fifth-generation fighters.
“It is encouraging that AVIC developed the two fighters simultaneously,” said Bai. “There was a nine-year gap between the maiden flights of the American F-22 and F-35.”
The F-22 made its maiden flight in September of 1997, while the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) did it in December of 2006.
In at least one respect the J-31 may be superior to the F-35, said Bill Sweetman, editor for the US-based Aviation Week magazine. To give the US fighter short take-off and vertical landing (STOVL) capabilities, its weapons bay is considerably shorter than that of the J-31. The main advantage of a stealth fighter is its ability to evade detection by enemy radar to deliver missiles or bombs to targets located far behind enemy lines, making its weapons delivery capacity a prime consideration.
“It looks as if the engines are to the rear of the bulkhead that carries the main landing gear,” Sweetman pointed out in his blog. “The designers have been able to install long weapon bays [on the J-31].”
“If you ever wondered what a JSF might look without those constraints, we now have a live, physical example,” he wrote. “Unfortunately, it is Chinese.”
