J-20. Via Chinese Internet.
Two weeks after grainy photos proved the existence of China’s first stealth fighter, the Chengdu J-20 might have just flown for the first time. The debut flight over southwest China, possibly depicted in the photo above, marks the beginning of a likely long and difficult testing phase for the large, angular airplane.
The photo could be a fake. Even if it is, the J-20’s debut flight is surely imminent. A planned take-off last week was scrubbed due to bad weather.
In any event, it could be a decade or more before J-20s begin to roll out of Chinese factories in meaningful numbers. But that doesn’t mean pundits, analysts and hawkish politicians aren’t already wringing their hands and warning of impending doom. That’s the same doom, it should be noted, that some observers predicted when Russia’s T-50 stealth prototype made its first flight a year ago.
In truth, any alarm over the J-20 is premature — note the Pentagon’s cool indifference. Right now, no one outside of the Chinese government knows what the J-20 is for, or what it’s capable of. The best anyone can do is guess, based on assumptions derived from a handful of digital snapshots. Those guesses, and their implications, are the subject of my latest article for The Diplomat.
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Vectored Thrust?????
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by War is Boring, David Axe and CDCE. CDCE said: Danger Room: China's New Stealth Jet Takes to the Air http://is.gd/kvj0C [...]
I don’t think so. Apparently it has standard nozzles.
FUCK CHINA!! FUCK CHINA!!FUCK CHINA!!FUCK CHINA!!FUCK CHINA!!FUCK CHINA!!FUCK CHINA!!FUCK CHINA!!FUCK CHINA!!FUCK CHINA!!FUCK CHINA!!FUCK CHINA!!FUCK CHINA!!
[...] Others point out the ancillary components required to be really effective, and David Axe has a good roundup and a full Diplomat article that calls it “over hyped.” Then, there’s the Russian [...]
We need to worry. China is a patience tiger. Is like a snake and fast as a leopard. Don’t under estimate china. We are arrogant and that is a weakness. They are just taking their time. If you see the China of the past and the China that is emerging now you can see a big diference.We need to keep an eye on China very closely.