J-36: Assessing China’s New Generation Combat Aircraft
What we know – and what we don’t know – about the next-generation fighter that made its first public appearance over Chengdu.
By Rick Joe
December 30, 2024
The aircraft that made its debut flight above Chengdu on Dec. 26, 2024, in a photo widely circulated on Chinese social media.
Credit: Weibo
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On December 26 in the city of Chengdu, China, a new generation, stealthy combat aircraft made by Chengdu Aerospace Corporation (CAC) had its maiden flight. Images and videos emerged in near real time, showing the highly swept flying wing aircraft accompanied by a J-20S twin-seat chase plane. This aircraft generated significant furor on defense tracking internet and news sites, with questions surrounding its role, capability, maturity, and more.
For the community of People’s Liberation Army (PLA) watchers, this aircraft was not unexpected. I have published articles on Chinese next-generation fighter efforts over the last half decade. Indicators over the last year-and-a-half strongly suggested a new generation/sixth-generation air-to-air combat aircraft would emerge rather soon, and these hints accelerated over the past four months, with increasing details on the type of platform to expect.
The PLA watching community’s working designation of this new CAC aircraft is the “J-36,” in reference to its expected tasking as an air-to-air/air superiority platform, with “36” reflecting the visible serial number: 36011. I will refer to the aircraft as “J-36” as well, with the proviso that both its prefix and suffix are not yet definitive (I have previously used the term “J-XD” as a stand-in).
In this article, I will review the leadup to the J-36’s maiden flight, current knowns and unknowns, as well as prevailing debates and narratives surrounding it. I will also consider its role in the PLA Air Force, and key topics to consider in future.
https://thediplomat.com/2024/12/j-36-assessing-chinas-new-generation-combat-aircraft/
