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Agence France-Presse

China has tested the latest version of its fifth-generation stealth fighter, state media reported on Monday, as it tries to end the West’s monopoly on the world’s most advanced warplanes.
Watch: J-31 performs in Airshow China 2014

The test comes as the nation flexes its military muscles, sending its sole aircraft carrier the Liaoning into the western Pacific in recent days to lead drills there for the first time.
The newest version of the J-31, now renamed the FC-31 Gyrfalcon, took to the air for the first time on Friday, the China Daily reported.
China to speed up stealth fighter production, air force chief says
The so-called “fifth-generation” twin engine jet is China’s answer to the US F-35, the world’s most technically advanced fighter.
The new FC-31 has “better stealth capabilities, improved electronic equipment and a larger payload capacity” than the previous version which debuted in October 2012, the newspaper said, quoting aviation expert Wu Peixin.
“Changes were made to the airframe, wings and vertical tails which make it leaner, lighter and more manoeuvrable,” Wu told the paper.
The jet is manufactured by Shenyang Aircraft Corp, a subsidiary of the Aviation Industry Corp of China.
The fighter is expected to sell for about US$70 million, the article said, aiming to take market share away from more expensive fourth-generation fighters like the Eurofighter Typhoon.
The manufacturer has said that the FC-31 will “put an end to some nations’ monopolies on the fifth-generation fighter jet”, the China Daily reported.
China battles fierce competition and quality issues in fight for weapons sales
China is aggressively moving to develop its domestic weapons industry, from drones and anti-aircraft systems to home-grown jet engines.
In the past it has been accused of copying designs from Russian fighters and some analysts say the FC-31 bears a close resemblance to the F-35.
When completed the FC-31 will become the country’s second fifth-generation fighter after the J-20, which put on its first public performance at the Zhuhai Air Show in November.


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China’s military

China tests prototype of most advanced stealth fighter jet

An earlier version of the J-31 stealth fighter pictured at the Zhuhai air show in southern China two years ago. Photo: Xinhua

(141111) -- ZHUHAI, Nov. 11, 2014 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese J-31 stealth fighter performs at the 10th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition in Zhuhai, south China's Guangdong Province, Nov. 11, 2014. Some 700 exhibitors at home and abroad with 130-plus planes attended the airshow from Nov. 11 to 16. (Xinhua/Liu Dawei) (ry)

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China

Diplomacy

Latest version of the fifth-generation J-31 fighter flown for first time on Friday, state media report
