China air show shows off latest fighter jet engines
Deputy head of the PLA Air Force, Lieutenant General Zhang Honghe, tours displays showcasing advances in technology, including the WS-10
The deputy head of the PLA Air Force on Wednesday visited the China’s leading air show, where he made a detailed inspection of a range of engines, long considered the weakest part of the military’s fighter jet technology.
Lieutenant General Zhang Honghe spent about 30 minutes touring the engine showroom, including a display by Aero Engine Corporation of China, at Airshow China in coastal Zhuhai in Guangdong province.
Aero Engine, a state-owned company, was set up in late August to develop and build aircraft engines and gas turbines. It has 24 subsidiaries with about 10,000 employees.
Zhang, who was previously deputy head of the air force’s armament department and president of its Engineering University in Xian, Shaanxi province, asked a stream of questions about the abilities and limitations of the engines, including the star of the air force, the WS-10, built by Shenyang Aeroengine Research Institute, an Aero subsidiary.
The engine is used in some J-10 and J-11 jets, although others still rely on Russian-designed engines. Aero Engine is developing its successor, which is expected to power the carrier-based J-15 and stealth J-20 jets.