(Discussion moved here to avoid derailing original thread.)
Well, that's the problem.
WS-15 has been developed (or shall I say, tailor-made) with the J-20/A in mind, and that the J-20 wasn't planned for carrier-based operations in the first place. So if this situation does happen (i.e. navalized variant of WS-15 isn't ready in time as interim engine for the J-XDSH), then the WS-10H must be ready, no matter what.
In the meantime, given that the probable J-XDSH likely won't be entering service onboard PLAN CV(N)s until the mid-2030s - Given the additional time available for the AECC and SAC engineers, the best-case scenario would be having the new J-XDSH units to use WS-XX from the get-go. But then, I'm still very cautiously optimistic and borderline pessimistic.
