J-20 5th Generation Fighter VII

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Blitzo

Blitzo

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latenlazy said:
Yeah I think this is one of those need to wait for better pictures cases. There’s definitely *something* going on with the J-20’s engines though.
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My impression is that something was up since early/mid 2021 when the rumours of J-20 testing with WS-15 became very punctuated across the board, and then we got a couple of blurry pictures about that time (included in Deino's excellent compilation image).

Since then we've gotten more blurry images, all seemingly depicting a similar configuration of a J-20 (likely an early 201X prototype) with the right engine notably being different from the left with a shorter/different nozzle... and all with ambient but persistent noise about J-20 being tested with WS-15.


Our modus operandi for confirming milestones for new engine types is one of caution, and the threshold is a bit higher than for other products, which is why we definitely can't just go out and say that "this is WS-15" because the images just aren't clear enough nor consistent enough, nor do we have insiders straight up coming out and saying "this is it".
But at the same time, there's enough noise and consistency from these pictures (even if they are very blurry, and even if one or two of them might be doctored), for us to seriously consider the likelihood that this may be WS-15.
 
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latenlazy

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Bltizo said:
My impression is that something was up since early/mid 2021 when the rumours of J-20 testing with WS-15 became very punctuated across the board, and then we got a couple of blurry pictures about that time (included in Deino's excellent compilation image).

Since then we've gotten more blurry images, all seemingly depicting a similar configuration of a J-20 (likely an early 201X prototype) with the right engine notably being different from the left with a shorter/different nozzle... and all with ambient but persistent noise about J-20 being tested with WS-15.


Our modus operandi for confirming milestones for new engine types is one of caution, and the threshold is a bit higher than for other products, which is why we definitely can't just go out and say that "this is WS-15" because the images just aren't clear enough nor consistent enough, nor do we have insiders straight up coming out and saying "this is it".
But at the same time, there's enough noise and consistency from these pictures (even if they are very blurry, and even if one or two of them might be doctored), for us to seriously consider the likelihood that this may be WS-15.
Click to expand...
I think for me the biggest tell is that afterburner color and the diameter of the nozzle in those full burn pics. Color itself is typically an unreliable tell but I don’t think even the WS-10 has a flame that red-orange.
 
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ougoah

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1.jpg

The rumours of J-20 testing with WS-15 in early 2021 was accompanied by rumors (repeated recently) that J-20 wasn't testing a WS-15 but a TVC WS-10. The right most image show petals very similar in appearance to the J-10B's TVC engine petals.

This could be the reason why there are rumours that the engine that was tested on the J-20 isn't a WS-15 but a TVC WS-10 similar to the J-10 experimental TVC.

40642345_978399379030821_8330860489668034560_n.jpg

They do look identical.

We should remember though that Gongke said the WS-15's nozzles (petals) look very similar to that of the WS-10 TVC. This would mean there is every possibility that the engine flying on the J-20 is a WS-15 which just happens to have the same nozzle design as the WS-10 TVC. If this is the case, it could indicate that the WS-15 implemented is going to be with TVC right from the get go.

So basically the reason there are rumours the J-20 is testing a TVC WS-10 is because the WS-15 has very similar nozzle appearance to TVC WS-10.
 
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stannislas

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ougoah said:
View attachment 81270

The rumours of J-20 testing with WS-15 in early 2021 was accompanied by rumors (repeated recently) that J-20 wasn't testing a WS-15 but a TVC WS-10. The right most image show petals very similar in appearance to the J-10B's TVC engine petals.

This could be the reason why there are rumours that the engine that was tested on the J-20 isn't a WS-15 but a TVC WS-10 similar to the J-10 experimental TVC.

View attachment 81271

They do look identical.

We should remember though that Gongke said the WS-15's nozzles (petals) look very similar to that of the WS-10 TVC. This would mean there is every possibility that the engine flying on the J-20 is a WS-15 which just happens to have the same nozzle design as the WS-10 TVC. If this is the case, it could indicate that the WS-15 implemented is going to be with TVC right from the get go.

So basically the reason there are rumours the J-20 is testing a TVC WS-10 is because the WS-15 has very similar nozzle appearance to TVC WS-10.
Click to expand...
yang wei in 2021 Zhuhai airshow said the Chinese TVC technology is mature enough to be used in different engine, so TVC for WS-10 and WS-15 could be a swappable components, in this case just like all the Russian TVC on flankers and su-57 look identical
 
siegecrossbow

siegecrossbow

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My opinion is that if it is only one or two posters talking about this, there is a high chance that this could be mistaken identity or even fake. But we have over two dozen Weibo posters in Chengdu and Yanliang saying the same thing the. It is definitely more credible than your run of the mill rumor.
 
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