Henri K take on the recent induction of J 20 and Su 35 into front line combat brigade
Su-35 South, J-20 East
As if they wanted to celebrate the New Year before the hour and add some reassuring elements to this very important festival in their culture, which will take place on February 16 this year, the Chinese Army Air Forces have made two big announcements this week, one on the new
Su-35 recently acquired from Russia, and the other on the stealth fighter
J-20 .
The first news came this Wednesday, February 7, when Internet users were surprised by the publication of three official photos on the account of the Chinese Air Force Weibo , indicating that the Su-35 participated recently in a "patrol of joint combat "in the South China Sea.
The very short Chinese statement did not give any further details on the course of the event or the exact course of Russian-origin hunters, knowing that the South China Sea still refers to a region of equivalent size. to six times the metropolitan France.
But the institutional text emphasizes that the Su-35 is a multi-role fighter plane, capable of carrying out air combat as well as Air-Surface precision strikes, and that the endowment of this aircraft will "improve the combat capability long-range high seas of the Chinese Air Force. "
For an estimated US $ 2 billion, China bought a regiment of 24 Su-35 aircraft from Russia after a very long marathon of negotiations that started in a certain way in 2006. The exact reasons This acquisition, in very limited numbers, has been the subject of much debate, but unfortunately there are
.
One thing is certain, however, is that once the order was signed in 2015, China wanted these Su-35s with tight timing. As a result, the Chinese Su-35s and the
Su-35s of their Russian counterparts differ very marginally, from avionics to even the exterior livery, as
around Russian business, and that delivery started as early as the following year with four first devices, then ten more in 2017 and the last ten in 2018.
And as soon as they arrived in China, the Su-35s were immediately deployed to the south of China, within the 6th Brigade of the Chinese Air Force, based not far from the Southern Fleet Headquarters. found in Zhanjiang (湛江).
The Su-35 Suixi-based radius of action (Image: East Pendulum)
With a fairly large range of Su-35, these heavy fighters deployed at this base can reach any place in the South China Sea and cover the Chinese bastions installed on several reefs in the Paracels and Spratleys . They can also escort H-6K regional bombers as well as electronic warplanes that regularly patrol the area. It is therefore not excluded that the "joint combat patrol" mentioned in the communiqué of the Chinese Air Force is of such composition.
Note that no additional orders are announced after these 24 devices, at least not yet. But the Chinese armed forces can still rely on other types of jet fighters such as the J-10,
JH-7Aand J-11, both in the air force and the Chinese navy. , to ensure an effective aerial watch of the region.
This formalization of the deployment of the Su-35 to the south being acquired comes then the problem of air security in eastern China, especially facing the massive air forces of the United States and its allies in Japan and South Korea. And two days after announcing the Su-35 patrol in the South China Sea, the Chinese Air Force announced the entry into service of its new stealth fighter J-20.
But for those who are watching China's defense news from far and near, they will surely remember that this is not the first official announcement of this kind.
Indeed, we knew since a year ago, in March 2017, that this 4th generation aircraft according to the Chinese classification (5th for the Russian and American classification) had already joined the ranks of the Chinese Air Force. The photos and videos published by the institutional media also show that the first J-20s, at least six in number, also participated in the annual "Red Sword 2017" air exercise, an equivalent of "Red Flag" Western forces. And it is exactly this point that was emphasized by the official statement published this Friday, February 9th.
Only if we remain attentive to the words chosen in the two announcements, we note that the one published in March last year mentions only the entry into service of the J-20 within the Chinese air force, while the statement of 9 February indicates It is clear that this is a first endowment in an operational combat unit.
And this slight difference remains consistent with the observed facts - the first J-20s in service carrying the 78x7x registration are actually assigned to the Dingxin training and flight test base, a unit of course Chinese air force but she is mainly specialized in the analysis of air combat tactics and the transformation of pilots.
after a "nominal" development cycle ¹ that has lasted nearly 11 years since October 2007.
Three of the J-20 at the base of Dingxin
But as always, the Chinese make announcements in a restrained way and we do not know what operational unit it is. Several sources converge on the 9th brigade based in Wuhu, located 290 km west of Shanghai, on the east coast of China.
If this assumption remains to be confirmed, it remains very plausible knowing the role of "air ram" J-20, which is designed for long-range air superiority and remove any threat from the sky for the squadrons fighter-bombers (see our file "
").
Given the geography of the country, whose access to the Pacific Ocean to reach the abundant natural resources is "blocked" by the first and second chain of islands, the deployment of a machine considered as the iron to the spear at this place makes sense. The idea would be to push back the military pressure that "stagnated" for 70 years before China's door and gain a "standardized" access, at least "accepted in fact", in an area that plays a key role in the strategic military and economic growth of the country.
For the moment, the size of the planned D-20 fleet and program deadlines is unknown, but it is believed that a first regiment can be fully operational by 2019-2022, a window that appears to be highly sensitive. dangerous "by the top Chinese decision-makers.
To be continued.
Henri K.
