China caught up with the USA: after 10 years of development, they created a J-35A fighter with HQ-19 missiles

With the appearance of the J-35A and J-20, China is becoming the second country after the US to have two versions of stealth fighters.

On November 5, 2024, Colonel Niu Wenbo of the Equipment Department of the Chinese Air Force confirmed that China's latest J-35A medium-role multirole stealth fighter will be unveiled at the 15th China Air Show on November 12-17. Xinhua.net reports this.

According to aviation expert Rupprecht_A, who also published a photo of the fighter jet on the X social network, the appearance of this aircraft at AirShow China 2024 in Zhuhai will be a sensation.

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The other day, the wing of a new fighter was published on the official account of the media center of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

The author of the post noted that it is about a plane that has been talked about for many years. And only in September of last year did any specific information about this version appear. Earlier published only blurred and very small images.

According to the Chinese state publication, during the air show dedicated to the 75th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese People's Liberation Army Air Force, along with the stealth fighter J-35A, also HQ-19 surface-to-air missile systems and a new strike-reconnaissance UAV are being presented for the first time.

With the arrival of the J-35A and J-20, China becomes the second country after the US to have two versions of the stealth fighter. This is an export project of Shenyang Aircraft Corporation and Aviation Industry Corporation of China. The J-31 prototype first appeared in 2012 and attracted considerable interest. Over time, the J-31 underwent numerous design changes, including straight-swept air intake ramps and oblique vertical stabilizers.

According to Army Recognition, this version eventually caught the attention of the Air Force, in particular, the J-35 designation was added. The Navy variant first flew on 29 October 2021.

Compared to the earlier FC-31 demonstration version and the J-35A naval fighter variant, the latter has an electro-optical guidance system and a modified supersonic air intake.< /p>

Along with the J-35A variant, Chinese designers developed the export model J-35E. But there is currently no international market for the naval variant of the J-35, as only a few countries possess the large resources necessary for naval operations.

It is not yet clear when the new J-35A fighter will enter service with the army China and where they will be placed. Carl Schuster, the former director of operations at the US Pacific Command's intelligence center, also believes that the fighter is likely destined for the Chinese navy.

“The J-35 made its first flight in 2021, but a derivative of the early prototype may be ready to be released early next year,” — noted Shuster.

According to him, the updated version of the plane may have more powerful engines.