China-US military rivalry: America’s cutting-edge NGAD programme aims to rise above PLA Air Force
- US fighters and autonomous drones would fight side by side under the new combat concept
- Air force advances in the US will push Beijing to match American ingenuity and design, analysts say
The US Air Force’s desire to radically reshape and accelerate the way it develops future fighter planes could propel China to ramp up its plans for next-generation aircraft, Chinese experts said.
A military insider familiar with China’s next-generation aircraft project said Chinese aircraft designers were keeping a close eye on anything disclosed by their American counterparts about NGAD, or the Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) programme.
If implemented, NGAD would create a network of advanced fighter aircraft, sensors and weapons, with jets and autonomous drones fighting side by side rather than as a single-aircraft platform or technology.
“China has also planned to develop a next-generation aircraft, but so far just specifically for the air force not for the navy, calling it a ‘background plane’,” said the insider, who requested anonymity.
“Because of a lack of reflection standards and relevant parameters, there are doubts around the development progress of the background plane.”
The US has announced two next-generation programmes: NGAD for the air force, and the F/A-XX for the navy, a long-term plan to develop next-generation ship-borne aircraft to complement and eventually replace the current F/A-18E/F Super Hornet fighters.