Shenyang FC-31 / J-31 Fighter Demonstrator

jackliu said:

They did.... it is called J-20. And if SAC make another J-20 class jet only one will survive. Therefore they made a Mig-29/F-35 class.

Like I said, WS-13 will be ready when it is ready. In the main while, get the bird in the air ASAP is the primary goal.

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Actually, SAC did present a heavy weight stealth fighter to the PLAAF when the competition for the PLAAF's 5th gen was called. SAC's design lost out to CAC's, which is what we know as the J20. SAC's attempt at a stealth using WS10A/WS15 class engines is most certainly not the J20.

The reason SAC opted for a medium weight fighter is three-fold.

1) The PLAAF's heavy weight 5th gen requirement has already been met by the J20, and there was simply no way the PLAAF would adopt a second heavy weight 5th gen. Ruling out PLAAF orders from inception is a very very risky way to start a fighter project in China. With a medium weight 5th gen offering, SAC at least has a chance of getting PLAAF orders.

2) A medium sized 5th gen would also be the best choice for a carrier fighter. I have speculated from the start that the J31 is likely aimed more at the navy than the air force, with SAC hoping to corner the PLAN carrier fighter market for starters. Going for the navy also makes it more likely to get government finance to help with the development of the plane, since the PLAAF's R&D budget is likely to be devoted chiefly to the J20.

3) In terms of export potential, a medium weight 5th gen will have far better chances of securing export orders than a heavy fighter because of the difference in purchase and operating costs between the two classes. Very few nations could afford to buy and operate a fleet of heavy 5th gen fighters, and most of the nations who can afford them are developing their own. It would massively limit the pool of possible buyers to design a heavy weight fighter.

With all that in mind, it is clear that a medium weight design as the obvious choice.

You've got a point there ! Will you be suing the Chinese any time soon ? The Chinese are a humorous people. Have you considered the possibility that they are doing it for some lolz ? Making their plane like an F22 wasn't enough, they made it like an F35 also. Two for the price of one, buy one get one free is typical style of Chinese products in the shops you use, isn't it ?

Speeder said:

oke, now have time...

it seems that F-22/B production line just opened...

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still can't believe that i'm the 1st one who found these...

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kwaigonegin said:

when each type of aircraft is put up like that I can;t help but gasp! at how big the J-20 is compared to it's rivals. That is a very very BIG plane.
Is it bigger than the F-111? it'll be interesting if someone can do a scale side by side comparison.

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I don't know if it's scaled properly. The J-31 is as long as the F-22? That's a joke.

kwaigonegin said:

when each type of aircraft is put up like that I can;t help but gasp! at how big the J-20 is compared to it's rivals. That is a very very BIG plane.
Is it bigger than the F-111? it'll be interesting if someone can do a scale side by side comparison.

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Oh god not this again haha.

Simply comparing pictures of the planes without proper scaling can isn't the way to do things.

And J-20 is definitely not bigger than F-111 -.- various measurements using pictures of J-20 with various known lengths have given us something like 20.5 m if I remember correctly.

Bltizo said:

And J-20 is definitely not bigger than F-111

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But the J20 could well have the same role as F111. They need something big enough to reach Austrailia.

ChinaGuy said:

But the J20 could well have the same role as F111. They need something big enough to reach Austrailia.

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I can't tell if you are being ridiculous on purpose or if that is actually what you believe.

kwaigonegin said:

when each type of aircraft is put up like that I can;t help but gasp! at how big the J-20 is compared to it's rivals. That is a very very BIG plane.
Is it bigger than the F-111? it'll be interesting if someone can do a scale side by side comparison.

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With its wings fully swept, the -111 usually surprised many pilots with its visually small profile. Even if the aircraft is with two external fuel tanks and two nukes. The fully swept back wings, fuselage, and rear stabs, effectively covered most of the wings' external stores. And if the aircraft is in full hard TF low altitude penetration flight, missing its fly-by is virtually assured whether the observer is ground level, mid or above the mountain tops.

One such incidence was when I was on a -130 from Bentwaters to Heyford, we were at only 10k altitude and halfway home when the pilot told us to watch for a couple of our Es going just under Mach passing under his -130 and that we have 8 secs to get to the port windows. He put his -130 into a 5 deg roll to help us. By the time we could distinguish the pair out of the UK green/brown landscape background, they were more than halfway past us. There were no lit burners, no smoke, nothing to cue us. No way to know when they made it within our visual range but that we failed to discern them.

There is a very real science on visual recognition of objects based upon PREFERRED physical characteristics of those objects. Of course, what is preferred by our minds is not always obeyed by the real world and therein lies the problem for everyone. We naturally preferred patterns that are uniformly arrayed. A square is much more quickly attractive than a rectangle, for example.

It is said that when the US retired the -111, the Russians were relieved that a threat that they could not challenged for decades is no longer there.

gambit said:

With its wings fully swept, the -111 usually surprised many pilots with its visually small profile.

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That is also what people said about the Mig-23. The small profile and fast acceleration is useful in the Mig-23's case for interception and surprise attacks.

no_name said:

That is also what people said about the Mig-23. The small profile and fast acceleration is useful in the Mig-23's case for interception and surprise attacks.

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Small frontal profile and fast acceleration and climb were the only good things American test pilots said about early Mig-23s.

J-31 hardware and solfware are likely 70%~80% compability to bigger (and expensive )j-20.it is likely that we might see J-31 enter into full production much earlier than J-20.