China must make more J-20 stealth jets to meet air force demand, say military analysts
- People’s Liberation Army Air Force has high expectations of its ‘Powerful Dragon’ but not enough of them
- Expert says J-20 numbers will have to at least double to maximise mission flexibility
China will need to speed up the production of its most advanced Chengdu J-20 stealth fighter jets, with the supply of the “Powerful Dragons” well behind demand, military analysts said.
On Sunday, the People’s Liberation Army Air Force posted a video on its social media accounts that featured two J-20s in a combat training scenario with two J-16s and a J-10C. The jets belonged to the Wang Hai Air Group, named after an ace Chinese combat pilot who served in the Korean war.
This type of five-plane formation was seen for the first time in the video to mark Lunar New Year. State television reported that the air force tested a combination of one J-20, one J-16 and one J-10C in 2018.
The latest video showed the “kaleidoscope of tactics” the J-20 and the other jets are capable of, according to the Global Times.
The fifth-generation stealth fighter jets served as the “backbone” of the nation’s air combat capability, the air force said on its 70th anniversary in November.
China would need between 100 and 200 J-20s at least to maximise mission flexibility, according to Hong Kong military commentator Song Zhongping.