KJ-600 carrierborne AEWC thread & possible KY-600 (?) COD aircraft

[SlothmanAllen]

I cannot remember if I have asked this before, but do people still read magazines in China? This always surprises me when people put out magazine scans given how late China industrialized. You wouldn't think magazines would be a viable business model in such a digital country.

 

[Rank Amateur]

The person from AVIC First Aircraft Institute says compared to land based aircraft KJ-600 has strengthened fuselage and landing gear to handle the stress of carrier landing. The Y shaped tailhook is relatively short compared to the hooks on J-15 because KJ-600 has lower clearance between its belly and the groud. The radome is about as big as they can make it on an aircraft of this size.

Internally they decided to nickname KJ-600 as "Nezha" because:
1. From the front the nose and the two engine nacelles invokes Nezha's "three heads"
2. The main wings, when folded and resting next to the quad tail rudder invokes Nezha's "six arms"
3. The turboprop when rotating invokes Nezha's twin "Wind and Fire Wheels" that he use for locomotion
4. The radome on top invokes Nezha's weapon "Qiankun Hoop"
5. The bold red line around the fuselage that warns crew to stay out of the way of the propeller invokes Nezha's "Huntianling" that he often wears around his shoulder
6. Most importantly, they want to invoke Nezha's personality of being unafraid of hegemonic power and willing to fight to defend justice

I've always thought a suitable name for the KJ-600 would be "Puffin."

Something about the forward-fuselage shape and proportions reminds me of the bird (more specifically, the Atlantic species). See photos of the KJ-600 (lifted from by78's post here) and Atlantic puffin below.

 

[00CuriousObserver]

 

[northstar]

Are there any pics of KJ-600 operator stations?

 

[sheogorath]

Are there any pics of KJ-600 operator stations?

I don't think we'll be seeing those for a while. We barely have pictures of "older" platforms like the KJ-2000 and KJ-500 as it stands, so don't hold your breath.

 

[lcloo]

I cannot remember if I have asked this before, but do people still read magazines in China? This always surprises me when people put out magazine scans given how late China industrialized. You wouldn't think magazines would be a viable business model in such a digital country.

Yes, they still do read the hard copies of military magazines in China. The Ships Knowlege monthly (舰船知识）had increased it price from 15 yuan to 20 yuan since beginning of 2025. 20 yuan is equivalent to USD2.80 which is very cheap compare to military magazines from the West which could priced from 6 to 10 times more expensive.

The advantage of the hardcopies is that they have large picture compare to small size photo in handphones or laptops. Also they contain news and informations always not available on Internet.

 

[northstar]

I don't think we'll be seeing those for a while. We barely have pictures of "older" platforms like the KJ-2000 and KJ-500 as it stands, so don't hold your breath.

That’s what I figured, I couldn’t find any photos after searching through the forum.

If the E-2D is to be considered as an analog with three operator stations, then the KJ-600 may have a similar configuration.

 

[CannedFish]

That’s what I figured, I couldn’t find any photos after searching through the forum.

If the E-2D is to be considered as an analog with three operator stations, then the KJ-600 may have a similar configuration.

Quite sure it's already mentioned that they managed to squeeze in one more operator station than those on the E-2D. The KJ-600 is also more spacious at the cost of being slightly less aerodynamic than the E-2s