J-20 5th Gen Fighter Thread VIII

[talonn]

Otherwise any recent news on the J-20A program?

Not a clue. Just felt obligated to share the video that coincides with your shared pics

 

[Tomboy]

Has this been shared? It seems to be a J-20A with WS-15 in reheat. No visible silver ring around the engines and the full composite little fins.

 

[siegecrossbow]

View attachment 153714
Has this been shared? It seems to be a J-20A with WS-15 in reheat. No visible silver ring around the engines and the full composite little fins.

Deino just shared it.

 

[Deino]

Deino just shared it.

but I think his Image is in better quality

 

[Deino]

Deino just shared it.

but I think his Image is in better quality

 

[Alfa_Particle]

View attachment 153714
Has this been shared? It seems to be a J-20A with WS-15 in reheat. No visible silver ring around the engines and the full composite little fins.

I nabbed it off Orca years ago and made a comment about the exhaust colour (and rightfully got flamed for it).

 

[ACuriousPLAFan]

First ever J-20 + J-35A mixed flight formation spotted! One J-20 leading two J-35As. Posted by @rational314159 on Twitter.

 

[SinoAmericanCW]

Based on very recent sightings / pictures, Scramble is claiming that the 2nd AB has converted to the J-20 (note that Scramble mistakenly - and frustratingly - designates baseline J-20s as 'J-20As'):

 

[Tomboy]

Based on very recent sightings / pictures, Scramble is claiming that the 2nd AB has converted to the J-20 (note that Scramble mistakenly - and frustratingly - designates baseline J-20s as 'J-20As'):
View attachment 154021

I assume they received old J-20s retired from another brigade? Since supposedly all new J-20s are J-20As

 

[SinoAmericanCW]

I assume they received old J-20s retired from another brigade? Since supposedly all new J-20s are J-20As

Scramble doesn't mention that any J-20 brigade has divested from its aircraft.

My theory would be that the 2nd AB received its J-20s in 2024 and that we only saw evidence recently due to the PLA's improved opsec.

Note that the 2nd AB used to fly J-10Cs, a type which AFAIK has been out of domestic production since ~2022. Yet, in late 2024 we saw that the 44th AB had transitioned to the J-10C. As such, I'd suggest that the 44th AB's new J-10Cs are in fact the 2nd AB's former J-10Cs, transferred after the latter unit received new-built J-20s some time last year.

In turn, said new-built J-20s were probably part of the last batch produced before the retooling of the assembly line for the J-20A.